Business English for New Employees

Abstract

People who work in multinational corporations are often faced with situations in which they need to communicate in English by using appropriate language within the given context. Appropriate language usages differ according to context, and having a good command of English is important for effective communication. However, new employees who have recently entered the corporate world often encounter situations that they are not prepared for. In response to this need, this portfolio has been created to help new employees to develop the English language skills necessary to survive in a multinational corporate office. The target students are newly hired employees at Otis Elevator Korea (OEK) whose ages are from mid-20s to 30s. Although the company is based in the US, it has clients throughout the world and the office in Seoul consists of both Korean and non-Korean employees. Therefore, English is often the primary language of use at the workplace. Before joining the company, the target students learned English at least for ten years, which includes four years of English studies taken at the university level. However, most of the time was spent on developing their receptive skills, and as a result, they do not have the communicative skills necessary for the office. This portfolio will help the target students to develop their productive skills, particularly focusing on business English. The learners’ proficiency level is intermediate-advanced, and they have lived abroad for approximately one year. Their routines include talking on the phone with their overseas counterparts, writing e-mails to the distributors in foreign countries, as well as accompanying buyers from foreign countries. They have little difficulty using casual English, and are sometimes faced with the difficulty of using appropriate registers for specific contexts. Also, the target students hope to learn specific terminologies and phrases used for business purposes. This portfolio will also introduce the communication skills they need to succeed in business and will increase their knowledge of the business world. Also, the students will develop an ability to communicate in English in a wide range of business situations as they engage in classroom activities which simulate office scenarios. Furthermore, conducting a needs analysis for students of business English is important because it is difficult to predict the specific needs they may have in the workplace. Pilbeam (1979) states that analyzing both the learners’ present language abilities and the target situation that the learners will carry out in the actual business settings are important in a needs analysis since such a language audit will help to decide for how many hours the course will be planned and what to teach as a top priority. Holden (1996) suggests conducting an interview or passing out a questionnaire to understand the learners’ awareness of English usage in their workplaces and their preferred learning styles. Therefore, I conducted interviews with newly-hired employees who joined the company less than three years ago. The results of the needs analysis showed that they wanted to practice the language for various business cases associated with their job. In order to have the learners try using business English in various situations, this textbook includes contents related to authentic office situations specifically for Otis Elevator Korea.