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English may be the global language, but mastering a foreign tongue can benefit business and employees. But how should staff be encouraged to do this?
Foreign language skills are, increasingly, a must-have on CVs. As more organisations operate globally, being able to communicate with clients and colleagues in different countries is important.
Recruiting staff with these skills may be half the battle, but what about upskilling the current workforce? It may sound like a long and expensive process, but arranging language training could pay dividends.
Kate Mason, institutional sales manager, Europe, at e-learning training specialist Rosetta Stone, says immediate benefits can be reaped. "These include improved retention, increased customer satisfaction, and enhanced employee communications, to name a few."
Before introducing training, you first need to get staff interested. Unless there is a business need for them to learn a specific language, Mason says that choice can be key to motivation. "Certain languages may not seem immediately relevant, but they may be in the future. If employees can learn languages that are most interesting or relevant to them, they have a higher chance of success."
Cultivating culture
You then need to embed a language learning culture into the company. Declan Mulkeen, marketing director of communications skills consultancy Communicaid, says that this can be done by running workshops and events, or bringing together staff of different nationalities to act as mentors. "It's also...