Partner Article

Rosetta Stone survey finds learning languages benefit careers

A new survey conducted by Rosetta Stone has found that 91% of people think being proficient in more than one language would benefit their careers. Indeed, half (50%) of respondents state they use a language other than their mother tongue in the workplace. Despite this, 43% of respondents can only speak one language. While it’s fair to say that English is the lingua franca of many corporations, this indicates that companies could benefit from encouraging better language learning in the workplace.

The research, which surveyed 412 individuals* also revealed that over a third of respondents (35%) feel that learning another language would allow them to improve their relationships and communications with their customers and clients.

“While understanding multiple languages might previously have been seen as a “nice to have”, these results show that global companies are aware that they can enjoy richer, more productive interactions with customers, suppliers, overseas colleagues and partners when they are able to operate within different cultures in different languages,” said Panos Kraniotis, regional director of Europe at Rosetta Stone. He continued by saying, “For companies with a global outlook, a multi-lingual workforce builds higher levels of trust that can lead to increased sales, better productivity and more successful business deals. We are also finding that employees are increasingly interested in widening their language skills to further their careers, as well as for their own personal satisfaction.”

Kraniotis argued that, “the next few years will be challenging for UK businesses in many ways as the country negotiates its exit from the rest of Europe – and language will likely play a large role. By separating itself from the wider European unit, there’s a chance that at some point other languages, such as French or German, could become more commonplace – particularly around trade agreements. Making an effort to keep language learning in the spotlight​ post-Brexit will be key for UK businesses hoping to maintain and build international relationships.”

Additional results of note from the survey were:

• Of those respondents proficient in one language (43%), a resounding 85% of them said they felt that learning a second language would benefit their career
• The top 3 languages respondents identified as those that would help them advance in their career: Spanish (40%), Chinese (Mandarin) (23%), and English (21%)
• It was an even split among all respondents in regards to if they use another language at work

*The majority of individuals were from the United States, with other respondents from Europe and Asia

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Panos Kraniotis .