B1 · Module 04 · Class 13 — Bogotá, Day One
Narrative SceneEl Dorado Airport → Zona Rosa, Bogotá The flight from Mexico City lands at 6:40 a.m. Santiago and Marco clear customs, collect their equipment cases, and take a car to the hotel in Zona Rosa.
By 9 a.m. they are in a conference room on the seventh floor of a glass building near Parque de la 93. Across the table sits Rodrigo Méndez — the director who oversees infrastructure concessions for one of Colombia's largest logistics groups.
Santiago opens his notebook. Before every fieldwork interview, he writes three things: what he already knows about the person, what the person controls, and what he needs them to say on record.
"The hardest part of stakeholder interviews," he told Marco on the flight, "is not the questions. It's the write-up. You need to describe people, organisations, and relationships precisely — so that someone who was never in the room can understand exactly who said what, and why it matters."
Marco nods and opens his laptop. He has never written a stakeholder briefing before. |
Precision & Description | ||
specify | /ˈspesɪfaɪ/ | To state something exactly and clearly, leaving no room for misinterpretation |
antecedent | /ˌæntɪˈsiːdənt/ | The noun that a relative pronoun refers back to in a sentence |
qualifier | /ˈkwɒlɪfaɪə/ | A word or clause that limits or makes more precise the meaning of another word |
ambiguity | /ˌæmbɪˈɡjuːɪti/ | Uncertainty of meaning; a situation where a sentence can be understood in more than one way |
attribution | /ˌætrɪˈbjuːʃən/ | The act of crediting a statement, finding, or idea to a specific source or person |
Defining Relative Clauses
A defining relative clause tells us WHICH person, thing, place, or time we are talking about. Without it, the sentence is incomplete or unclear. It identifies — it defines.
The Core Rule A defining relative clause cannot be removed without losing essential meaning.
"The company that won the concession is now under review." → Remove the clause: "The company is now under review." — Which company? We don't know.
NO commas around defining relative clauses. "That" can replace "who" or "which" in defining clauses (but NOT in non-defining). |
Relative Pronouns — What They Replace
Pronoun | Replaces | Example |
who | a person (subject or object) | "Rodrigo Méndez, who oversees concessions — wait, no comma here — is our first interview." → "The director who oversees concessions is our first contact." |
which | a thing or organisation (subject or object) | "The fund which Vantage manages focuses on infrastructure." |
that | a person or thing (subject or object — informal alt. to who/which) | "The company that won the tender has defaulted twice before." |
whose | possession — person or thing | "The analyst whose report we cited has since revised her projections." |
where | a place | "The building where the interview took place is owned by the logistics group." |
when | a time/period | "The quarter when returns peaked was Q3 2023." |
Subject vs Object Relative Clauses
The relative pronoun can be the SUBJECT of the clause (before the verb) or the OBJECT (when there is another subject inside the clause). When it is the object, it can often be omitted in informal English — but NOT in formal writing.
Subject relative clause (pronoun = subject) | Object relative clause (pronoun = object — can omit in speech) |
"The director who chairs the committee…" (who = subject of "chairs") | "The report that we submitted…" (that = object; "we" is subject — can drop "that" in speech) |
"The fund which controls the assets…" | "The director (that/whom) Vantage appointed…" |
"The market that is growing fastest…" | "The company (which/that) Santiago mentioned…" |
"The analyst whose data we used…" (whose = possessive — always kept) | "The sector (that) the report covers…" |
That vs Which — When to Use EachUse THAT: in defining clauses, especially after superlatives and "the only", "the first", etc. "This is the only asset that meets the fund's return criteria." Use WHICH: in non-defining clauses (always); also fine in defining clauses in formal British writing. "The sector which showed the highest growth was logistics." ✓ (formal defining) NEVER use "that" in a non-defining clause (with commas). |
Phrasal Verbs — Module 4follow through — to complete an action that was started or promised "Every commitment that Altius made in London must be followed through in the field." pick up on — to notice and respond to something, often a detail others missed "Santiago picked up on a hesitation in Rodrigo's answer that Marco had not noticed." carry out — to perform or complete a task, especially a formal or planned one "The interviews that were carried out in week one produced three unexpected findings." |
Stakeholder Briefing: Rodrigo Méndez
Read this stakeholder briefing that Santiago drafted after the first interview. Underline every defining relative clause and identify the pronoun used.
ALTIUS CONSULTING GROUP — PHASE 2 FIELDWORK Stakeholder Briefing Note — Rodrigo Méndez Date of interview: 25 April 2026 | Location: Bogotá ─────────────────────────────────────────────────
SUBJECT PROFILE
Rodrigo Méndez is the director who oversees infrastructure concessions at Grupo Celanova, a logistics company that controls approximately 340 km of toll road concessions across Colombia and Ecuador. He is the official whose signature is required on all government-facing submissions, which makes him a critical gatekeeper in any infrastructure transaction.
INTERVIEW SUMMARY
The period when concession renewal activity peaked in Colombia was 2021–2023. Méndez indicated that the regulatory window that Vantage is targeting may close earlier than projected, citing a draft bill that is currently under review in the Colombian Senate.
The assets that he considers most viable for external investment are the northern corridor routes, which carry an average of 22,000 vehicles per day. He was unwilling to confirm the revenue figures that Altius had modelled, but suggested that the assumptions on which those models were based were "broadly reasonable."
RISK FLAG
Méndez referred to a regulatory body that he described as "increasingly active." This is the agency that issues final approval for all foreign investment in transport infrastructure. Any delay in that approval could affect the timeline that was agreed with Vantage.
Prepared by: Santiago Reyes | Altius Consulting Group | April 2026 |
Practice Exercises
6 questionsNew exercises to reinforce what you learned. Different from the lesson material.
The analyst ___ prepared the risk model has left the firm.
This is the concession ___ generates the highest revenue in the portfolio.
The quarter ___ the deal was signed was unusually active.
We need to identify the stakeholders ___ approval is legally required.
The office ___ the interviews took place is in Zona Rosa.
The regulatory body ___ issues approvals has changed its procedures twice.
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