In an increasingly global business environment with more interconnected global companies, the ability to communicate in multiple languages is becoming increasingly important. From a social and professional point of view, talking with someone in their native language is often the foundation of a lasting relationship and collaboration.
Language is a key aspect of a successful employee (or even a business), being bilingual, or even better: multilingual. At a time when diversity within a company often rhymes with prosperity, being able to read between lines and establish an emotional connection with employees speaking another language can strengthen the performance of your business and thus make it more effective on the world market.Around the world, more than 7000 living languages are spoken in 2019. What are the essential ones to master to allow you and your company to get ahead of the competition?
English: the universal language par excellence
It is not surprising that English is one of the most important languages, especially when we know that it is the second language spoken in 55 different countries. It is used by nearly 400 million people around the world (even if it is the native language of only 10% of them) and especially in the majority of online or offline content.
Because the vast majority of people practice this language, which greatly facilitates communication. Fluency in English increases your chances of working in an international company or abroad. English is an easy language to learn from its Latin alphabet and simple structure. But it is especially the most used language in the international professional world.
Spanish: the most popular language
Spanish is one of the most widely spoken languages, with more than 470 million native speakers, ranking as the second most spoken language behind Mandarin Chinese. Learning Spanish gives access not only to Latin American countries but also to the United States. Moreover, many companies use Spanish to negotiate, that's why choosing a good Spanish School is important to improve language quickly.
According to the British Council, 34% of English companies said that Spanish is "useful for their structure". This is due to the fact that it is the language used in high-growth markets and by the emerging powers of Central and South America. From the American point of view, Spanish is also essential because more than 30% of the population is of Hispanic origin and 60 million more are expected by 2020.
Why learn Spanish?
Mastering Spanish opens the way to learning many other Latin languages such as Portuguese, Italian or French. Speaking a language so connected will make it easier to share your ideas and have more impact by presenting them. It will also open up new travel and immersion opportunities in Central America, South America and Europe. Spanish is also the third language used on the internet.