Elisabeth Moser Sep 8, 2010:

I haven't seen the part before and the sentences after this one. I would think it is a mediocre reference. Everything is clothed in nice words but just means certain things. In Germany you must write one of these letters for every employee upon leaving. Interesting are also the last couple of sentences, i.e. are they sorry to see him or or leave, was it upon the employee's request, do they wish him or her all the best for the future (private and career), etc.

BrigitteHilgner Sep 8, 2010:

@Woodstock Thank you very much for your explanation - that's very interesting. I've been a freelancer for so many years that I no longer know the current expressions and their meaning - it was just a gut feeling that the sentence did not sound like a recommendation. :-)

Woodstock (X) Sep 8, 2010:

@Brigitte I did a lot of work for a personnel consultant/headhunter for over 12 years and read/translated dozens - if not hundreds - of these things, so "bewältigen" in some form or other is very, very common. The key is in the adjectives used to describe HOW X was "bewältigt", so you are absolutely right in your impression that the description is a bit tepid. The person in question was an average, or even somewhat below average, employee in terms of work performance.

BrigitteHilgner Sep 8, 2010:

I've never worked in a personnel dept ... ... so no guarantee: To me, the sentence does not sound positive: "bewältigen" means that you have to make an effort - he coped (but not necessarily well). My opinion is supported by the expression "brauchbare Lösungen": the solutions were useful/adequate but not necessarily good/inspiring. My guess is that the performance of the guy was satisfactory but not really good.

Elisabeth Moser Sep 8, 2010:

here is one example: In dieser "Positivskala" erfolgt die Beurteilung über eine Abstufung der positiven Bewertung. Hierzu ist dringend anzumerken, dass letztlich nicht jeder einzelne Zeugnissatz "stets höchste Leistungen" bestätigen kann. Aus stilistischen Gründen können Temporaladverben oder einzelne Steigerungsformen durchaus entfallen, es zählt der Gesamteindruck. Ein allzu massiver Einsatz aufwertender Attribute kann zudem den Eindruck eines "Gefälligkeitszeugnisses" erwecken, das man z.B. als Entschädigung für eine konjunkturell bedingte Kündigung erhalten hat. Strikt eingehalten werden sollte diese Struktur aber bei der für die Gesamtnote entscheidenden "Leistungszusammenfassung", hier zählt jeder Buchstabe:

Note 1: "Er führte alle Aufgaben stets zu unserer vollsten Zufriedenheit aus."
Note 2: "Er führte alle Aufgaben stets zu unserer vollen Zufriedenheit aus."
Note 3: "Er führte alle Aufgaben zu unserer vollen Zufriedenheit aus."
Note 4: "Er führte alle Aufgaben zu unserer Zufriedenheit aus."

Elisabeth Moser Sep 8, 2010:

Germany has fixed rules on how to write those employer references. Each sentence has a certain meaning and is an equivalent to a (school) grade. Sometimes, but rarely, you will find at the bottom of those letters a phrase that tells the reader that the standard phraseology was not used.

Shane London (asker) Sep 8, 2010:

Dictionary entries and context Hi. Elisabeth, Cilian
Yes. I realise the issue with dictionaries and context. 'cope' acually does suit the context (work loads etc) but I wondered if 'bewältigte' here meant more than just cope. Actually, I think your suggested answer tells me what I want to know.

Elisabeth Moser Sep 8, 2010:

I think cope with works better with some sort of change in circumstances

Elisabeth Moser Sep 8, 2010:

I don't understand the question! You have to use dictionary entries always within any given context.

Cilian O'Tuama Sep 8, 2010:

bewältigen -

How do dictionaries/glossaries work?