Written by: Stefania Piccardo, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
It is well known how learning a language is vital to our cognitive abilities, how it can benefit our mental health, improve our social skills, and increase employability opportunities.
But how crucial is language training for your business?
Not investing in language training for your employees can actually negatively impact your business revenue.
Back in 2017, the UK was losing out on £4.8bn every year as a result of a lack of language skills. This implies that investing in a language for your business would turn up to be a good choice in terms of financial return and opportunities.
The disinterest and lack of linguistic knowledge raise concerns about how the UK can fit in a multilingual world, particularly now that it will feel the Brexit effect.
Most UK exporters rely on their mother tongue, but in fact, many trade partners have a low level of English, which adds to concerns around the UK’s capacity to boost business competitiveness on an international level. Now more than ever, language skills are paramount to survive in a globalized context.
According to Eurobarometer, only 32 percent of Britons aged 15-30 can read and write in more than one language. The EU average is 80 percent. For any business, an employee who knows another language is an asset to the organization. It shows dedication and respect towards the business partners by not taking for granted their knowledge of English. The benefits for a business would be tremendous regarding employability, skills and productivity of personnel, boost of trade and business links.
So which languages should you invest in for your business and your personal or career development? German-French, and Spanish lead the way in a European context, followed by Italian and Portuguese. In a wider international context, Arabic, Chinese, Russian, Turkish and Japanese are your best choices.
It goes without saying that to improve the perspectives of language learning in the UK, lots of work needs to be done with regards to awareness and language education from early years throughout the different school stages, to recognize the importance of languages outside the education system and elevate community languages to a higher-ranking position. The Scottish Government has taken steps to improve language skills from an early age by combining two languages in schools and English as a mother tongue. This is a decisive step forward to open up prospects for the future of the country.
In conclusion, UK is faced with a huge long-term challenge with regards to Brexit and its connection to language learning, but this also represents an opportunity to boost collaboration across different sectors and policy areas with a view to implementing a national strategy to preserve and enhance UK’s chances to thrive in an international context.
“You live a new life for every new language you speak. If you know only one language, you live only once”. - Czech proverb
Stefania Piccardo, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Stefania Piccardo obtained her PhD in English language and literature from La Sapienza University of Rome, Italy. During her academic years, she worked for Scottish distilleries and castles as a tour guide in multiple languages. Her love for Scotland brought her back to Aberdeen in 2003, where she obtained an MSc in Corporate Communications and Public Affairs from Robert Gordon University.
She then worked for multiple organizations but soon realized that she wanted to teach languages privately to the corporate level. Stefania has helped many students achieve the best grades in school and university but most of all she has the ambition to train corporate employees who deal with import/export, foreign trade or want to develop their career and expand their horizons for more opportunities in Europe and beyond. She speaks four languages including Italian, her mother tongue, English, French and Spanish and she has founded Language tutor4U back in 2012.
In addition to her teaching schedule, she works as a PR/Marketing manager for Namaste Delhi, the innovative and traditional Indian restaurant she owns along with her husband in Aberdeen City center since 2018. As a keen writer, she also enjoys feeding social media posts and writing for her blogs about Italian and Indian cultures, languages and much more!
