Harry
What does "we can make this work." mean? I have two choices at this point: I can meet with you and your department heads to discuss ways your agency can address our company’s needs, or I can engage another agency to develop our company’s Web site, online creative work, and online media plans. Before considering the second option, why don’t we get together later this month to review the resources you can provide for us? Let’s set a date and see if we can make this work. "we can make this work" means that we can engage your agency. Is it right?
Aug 22, 2014 1:36 PM
Answers · 6
1
Yes, that's the basic idea. The speaker is obviously being quite threatening here. My understanding is that the agency has already been engaged by the speaker's company, but the company is dissatisfied with the service received so far. The 'this' is the situation/relationship between the two parties, and the speaker is suggesting that the proposed discussion will help them 'make it work' ie find a way to make it successful.
August 22, 2014
I'm not a native speaker, but I think the expression means ''See if something can go right'' like Give something a chance to see if something can give positive results
August 22, 2014
"Make this work" is usually a positive expression that shows that a person wants to put in the extra effort during a hard situation to find a solution that everyone is happy with. It's a little bit strange in this context, but the speaker is saying that of the two choice he has, he would rather take some time to work on this business partnership before starting to look for a new agency to work with. People also use it in a very casual way when something doesn't go right, but they want someone else to feel okay about a mistake or something. For example, if a friend of mine tells me that she'll bring some food to a party, and then she forgets, she might feel bad because there's not enough food for everyone. So, I might say, "We'll make it work" to help her not feel so bad about her mistake.
August 22, 2014
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