Languages Mean Business

Mr Leonard Orban, Commissioner responsible for multilingualism, recently hosted a conference on Business, Languages and Intercultural Skills in Brussels to discuss the issues of languages as a competitive strength for Europe. According to a study conducted in 2006 by CILT, the UK National Centre for Languages, 11% of 2000 exporting European SME’s have already lost business through lack of language skills.

In 2006, Mr Orban told MEPs: "At first sight, one single language might appear easier to manage [... but] multilingualism can also give any industry a competitive advantage if it helps them to tap local markets and create new products which also cater for multilingualism."

Mr Orban believes that employees should master three languages: their mother tongue and two other languages (English should be one).

Conference on Business, Languages and Intercultural Skills

Study: Effects on the European Economy of Shortages of Foreign Language Skills in Enterprise