Why businesses are implementing English into the workplace

With a quarter of the world’s population now speaking English at a useful level, it won’t come as a surprise to hear that English is the global language of business. It was only a matter of time before there was a universal agreement upon a common mode of speech. Imagine an international business meeting where people couldn’t understand each other – it would be mayhem. With the rapid development of transport and technology in the 21st century, globalization has advanced at a dizzying speed. Now it’s common for people from all over the globe to frequently interact with each other, especially in the world of business. These interactions demand a form of communication that can eclipse native tongues and facilitate all manner of conventions, it just so happens that English has helped fill that void. It’s clear that implementing English into your workforce will improve communication and teamwork, but there are many other advantages that can be drawn from adopting an English corporate language strategy. This blog will identify them and, in doing so, explain why colossal businesses such as Heineken, Samsung and Renault believe that soon, more than 50% of their employees will need to speak English.

Encouraging Good Study Habits

When enrolling employees in English language lessons, an opportunity to endorse a balanced routine in a thriving learning environment presents itself. Studying is an excellent way to allow your employees to interact and learn together while simultaneously cultivating a healthy culture in the workplace. Successfully implementing language in the workplace stems from helping employees who are operating at various levels of proficiency. By inspiring a desire to learn amongst your workforce, it’ll be easier to allocate learning time to your employees and accelerate the process of their language acquisition.

Opportunities to Acquire Experience with Language

Companies can’t go back in time and change past employee experiences, but they can offer opportunities that will allow their employees to embark on a bright new future. Opportunities such as language training and job rotations open new doors for employees and enable them to broaden their skill set while building confidence. The prospect of polishing your skills and increasing levels of overall ability will appeal to your workforce as language in the modern world is the key to employability. Rakuten is known to have offered its employees the chance to undertake extended language training courses abroad, and plans to send more to conferences outside of Japan to fully immerse their workforce in an English-speaking environment. With business giants taking the leap, it’s clear that while the practicalities of performing such feats may prove challenging, the rewards that are tied to them make it worthwhile.

Positive Mental Attitudes

A good attitude can go a long way, as people’s belief in their own abilities rapidly grows when they see others around them having positive experiences. Implementing a new language learning infrastructure can show employees that those around them – colleagues, friends, managers – are also capable of trying something new, making errors and then correcting those errors as they all take strides towards bettering themselves. By introducing English learning in managerial positions, companies can influence a desire for their whole workforce to increase their language proficiency. This highlights the advantages that can be gained from fearlessly introducing change and presenting it in a positive light.

Overall, there are many reasons why businesses are implementing English in the workplace. With English being the global business language, it goes without saying that learning it in the modern world is becoming more and more of a necessity. However, what potential investors don’t know is that it offers up another whole list of advantages that can influence the workplace in a positive way. While they may be less known, these advantages make the whole process even more appealing and explains how the workforce of many major companies have been profiting from the English language.

Sources:

https://www.britishcouncil.org/organisation/policy-insight-research/research/the-english-effect?_ga=2.86028383.635636164.1543686243-1306582546.1543686243https://www.britishcouncil.my/english/courses-adults/learning-tips/importance-of-English-in-the-workplacehttps://www.strategy-business.com/article/When-a-Japanese-Company-Adopted-English-as-a-First-Language?gko=82a6b