English in multinational companies: implications for teaching “English” at an international business school

Abstract

In recent years, the use of English has become everyday practice in multinational companies (MNCs), and it has been investigated in three disciplines: applied linguistics, international management, and corporate communication, all of which can be housed in international business schools. While reviewing research in these disciplines, we ask the question: how does the research inform the teaching of "English"? By taking an example of an international business school located in a small non-English-speaking country, we present the educational environment and the needs of future business graduates before moving on to demonstrating a continuum of English as a shared language constructed on the basis of the disciplines. The continuum extending from "official English" to "working language" BELF (English as Business Lingua Franca) illustrates different uses that English as a shared language meets in the MNC environment and in the students' future work contexts. On the basis of this discussion, we conclude our paper by presenting the implications of the different conceptualizations of English for the teaching of "English" at an international business school. Englannin kieli monikansallisissa yrityksissä: Miten 'englantia' tulisi opettaa kansainvälisissä kauppakorkeakouluissa?Viime vuosina englannin käytöstä on tullut monikansallisten yritysten arkipäivää ja sitä on tutkittu kolmella tieteenalalla: soveltavassa kielitieteessä,

Conceptualising English as a business lingua franca

“…They perceive previous studies as conceptualising language(s) as "discrete, unified, preexisting system[s]" and call for a paradigm shift to seeing language as "social practice" (p.631). While this is a welcome development in the study of language in IB, it very closely reflects many existing conceptualisations of ELF and BELF (Kankaanranta et al, 2015) and would be greatly enhanced by including these in any further discussions of the concept. v At the same time, Janssens and Steyaert's (2014) "provocative" understanding of English as "a 'glocal' language, a hybrid language enacted in a social process" (p.636) and their inclusion of functional and professional languages as an aspect of multilingualism are valuable contributions to conceptualisations of (B)ELF.…”

“…Another conceptualisation first proposed by Louhiala-Salminen et al (2005) and called BELF (Business ELF or English as a business lingua franca), draws explicitly on ELF research but contextualises it in IB (Kankaanranta et al, 2015;Kankaanranta and Planken, 2010;Louhiala-Salminen and Kankaanranta, 2012; for an excellent, comprehensive and critical overview, see Ehrenreich, 2016). Based on international managers' reported use of communication strategies, BELF is perceived as being "highly context-bound and situation-specific", while "BELF competence calls for clarity and accuracy in the presentation of business content, knowledge of businessspecific vocabulary and genre conventions, and the ability to connect on the relational level" [Kankaanranta et al, (2015), p.129, based on Kankaanranta and Planken, (2010)]. This trifold understanding of language use adds to conceptualisations of ELF with a more general focus, and merits further ethnographic attention.…”

“…Used as the language for official communications, it frequently follows Standard English norms, particularly when directed at external stakeholders (e.g. Ehrenreich, 2010); sometimes, however, this happens at the cost of communicating effectively and so leads to communications going unread (Kankaanranta and Planken, 2010;Kankaanranta et al, 2015). At the other end of the continuum, how English is used as a (business) lingua franca in any given context depends greatly on many factors, including the setting and purpose of the interaction, the interlocutors' (shared) linguistic repertoire(s), their experience in technical and multicultural communication, and the length and power dynamics of the relationship (e.g.…”

“…At the other end of the continuum, how English is used as a (business) lingua franca in any given context depends greatly on many factors, including the setting and purpose of the interaction, the interlocutors' (shared) linguistic repertoire(s), their experience in technical and multicultural communication, and the length and power dynamics of the relationship (e.g. Ehrenreich, 2009Ehrenreich, , 2010Ehrenreich, , 2016Kankaanranta and Planken 2010;Kankaanranta et al, 2015). Analysing BELF interaction through a Community of Practice lens can help to reveal how these factors influence the way language use develops over the course of a specific business relationship and how the development of a shared repertoire, the clarification of mutual goals and the (linguistic) efforts made to achieve these goals in turn strengthen that relationship and contribute to a successful outcome.…”

“…On the one hand, studies on language in the fields of business communication, management or organisational studies have been brought together in the research stream of "Language in IB [International Business]" (e.g. Barner-Rasmussen et al, 2014;Feely and Harzing, 2003;Fredriksson et al, 2006;Harzing et al, 2011;Kankaanranta et al, 2015;Kankaanranta and Planken, 2010;Kassis-Henderson, 2005;Kassis-Henderson and Louhiala-Salminen, 2011;Louhiala-Salminen et al, 2005;Marschan-Piekkari et al, 1999;Piekkari and Tietze, 2012;Piekkari et al, 2014;Tietze, 2004; for a brief but excellent overview, see Brannen et al, 2014). On the other hand, the establishment of English as a lingua franca ("ELF" i ) as a field of linguistics research in its own right has been pioneered by House (2003) ;Jenkins (2000;; Mauranen (2006;Mauranen et al, 2010); Meierkord (2002) and Seidlhofer (2001;, mostly investigating the university context.…”