English Language in International Business

In recent times, the importance of English has increased in the international context and it interests not researchers but also businessmen. Even in nations with a different native language, English is used for communicating with each other. In addition to it, in the business world, a universal language has to be used for communicating. That is why language competencies are considered crucial. For both entrepreneurs and job-seekers, it has become important to learn a second language. One of the most important reasons for this increased influenced of English is globalization.

            In this paper, the importance of English in terms of business will be analyzed and its importance in a number of nations will also be considered. It will be determined whether it is necessary for an entrepreneur and a job-seeker to learn English for being successful or not.

Background of English Language in International Business

            Out of six thousand languages in the world, English has become the lingua franca from being only a national language due to the influence of the US and the UK. In accordance with Deyuan He, “it can be seen that English has grown from being a national language into the global lingua franca.” Due to this revolution, the number of non-native speakers larger than the number of native speakers. Considering the fact that it is a universal language, whenever two people have different native languages, they communicate with each other using English. In fact, it serves as a medium to communicate with people who have a different native language. Such an event occurs not only in daily lives but also in organizations. Firms have employees who speak a different native language. And communicating with them is difficult because they cannot understand the common language in the firm. In such a case, it is important to find a solution and improve communicating with such employees.

            In the business world, organizations prefer a diverse workforce due to the skills and capabilities it brings to the firm. Firms acquire people from different backgrounds and culture as they have different skills and abilities which are utilized by managers for completing a wide range of tasks which are normally not possible for employees to complete. Although numerous advantages are brought to the firm by a diverse workforce, it also poses a challenge to the firm about communication. In every firm, it is important to develop an innovative workplace culture which requires effective communication among employees. If employees are from different cultures and backgrounds, they will have different native languages as well. In order to communicate with such employees, it is important to use a language which they can understand. This will serve to improve communication among employees and management. In addition to it, it will also assist managers in cultivating the workforce (He).

            Determining whether English as a lingua franca is important because it can help in not only improving the importance of English acquisition and will guide both entrepreneurs and job-seekers to understand if they should learn English to pursue their careers or not. That is why this research is important and other than just guiding job-seekers and entrepreneurs, it will also help them in understanding why it is important. At present, organizations in different countries with different native languages struggle to establish effective communication. Kuwait is an example of such nations because multinational firms operate in the nation. Due to this obstacle in communicating with workers, organizational performance is affected. This research will serve to help firms and managers in establishing a culture of effective communication within the firm. Gradually, it will help in improving the individual performance of employees.

Problem of English Language in International Business

            As stated above, due to globalization, the influence of English has expanded. From being just a national language, it has become a lingua franca. Even in different nations with different native languages, English is spoken by non-native speakers. Besides being a medium of communication in nations and regions, it has gained importance in the context of business as well. It is utilized as a means of communicating with employees from different cultures and communities. It is used to communicate with foreign workers and contributes to the establishment of effective communication. However, the question is whether it is necessary to learn English in order to be successful or not. In accordance with Zainuddin, Pillai and Phillip (2018), “employers and students agree that English plays a major role in employability” (Zainuddin, Pillai and Phillip). It is considered important but is it critical for job-seekers and entrepreneurs to learn English to pursue their careers?

            In the organizational context, it is crucial to understand the importance of English. After all, it acts as a medium to communicate and share ideas with foreign workers. A diverse workforce benefits an organization in several ways. And one of the significant ways is that it brings diverse skills to the firm. However, the issue is to communicate with these employees because they speak a different language. English serves as a medium to communicate with these employees. However, it also poses a question about its importance. Does it mean that people associated with the business must learn English or not?

Topics to Investigate of English Language in International Business

Following are the questions that will be investigated in this paper:

1.      Is it critical for job-seekers and entrepreneurs to learn English to pursue their careers?

2.      Should English be to the only universal language used for communicating with a diverse workforce?

Methods of English Language in International Business

            In this paper, the targeted audience is students and entrepreneurs who have yet to develop a business or acquire a job. It will help them in understanding whether English learning is required to pursue their careers or not. Meanwhile, when it comes to methods used for researching information, eight journal articles have been selected from the Online Databases of UHV Library. Only recent articles have been selected and these scholarly journal articles have been collected from the same library.

Qualifications of English Language in International Business

            I haven’t had any previous knowledge in this area. Although I knew about the importance of English and its increasing status in the whole world, I didn’t have any information associated with its significance in terms of business. Personally, I find this topic quite interesting because I didn’t have much information about it and it provided me new information.

Work Schedule of English Language in International Business

            I will use most of my time to complete this assignment and conduct research. For instance, I will extensively study the research papers to find the necessary information which will be used in writing this assignment. I will spend 1 hour on each journal article and in a single day, I will study 4 journal articles. After my research is completed and I have noted the important information, I will create a rough draft of my paper in 1 day. In the next two days, I will be working on completing the assignment and improving the draft. Two days are enough to write the whole assignment as I would have the necessary information noted. After it, I will use 1 day to proofread and make sure that the structure of the assignment is proper and correct. As I proofread, I will highlight all the mistakes and in the next round, I will work on correcting all of those mistakes.

Works Cited of English Language in International Business

Bibliography to be used in the Actual Work

Adina, Nicolae Oana. "The limits of current practices in teaching English for Business and Economics." Journal of Educational Sciences & Psychology 2.1 (2012).

Avello, Maria, et al. "Do You Use English in Your Daily Life?” Undergraduate Students’ Perceptions of Their Extramural Use of English." Journal of Teaching in International Business 30.1 (2019): 77-94.

Bury, James and Tatsuya Oka. "Undergraduate students’ perceptions of the importance of English in the tourism and hospitality industry." Journal of Teaching in Travel & Tourism 17.3 (2017): 173-188.

Dashti, Abdulmohsen. "The role and status of the English language in Kuwait: How is English used as an additional language in the Middle East?" English Today 31.33 (2015): 28-33.

He, Deyuan. "The use of English in the professional world in China." World Englishes 36.4 (2017): 571-590.

Lowenberg, Peter. "English in Malaysia: Current use and status. Edited by Toshiko Yamaguchi, David Deterding. 2016. Leiden: Brill, ix+ 202." World Englishes 37.4 (2018): 724-726.

Vandenbroucke, Mieke. "Socio‐economic stratification of English in globalized landscapes: A market‐oriented perspective." Journal of Sociolinguistics 20.1 (2016): 86-108.

Zainuddin, Siti Zaidah Binti, Stefanie Pillai and Francisco Perlag Dumanig: Adriana Phillip. "English language and graduate." Education + Training (2018).