The Linguist is a languages magazine for professional linguists, translators, interpreters, language professionals, language teachers, trainers, students and academics with articles on translation, interpreting, business, government, technology
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INSTITUTE MATTERS DIVISIONS & SOCIETIES CONTRIBUTORS Jessica Chen The key to export success CYNTHIA HOLLINSWORTH OFFERS ADVICE BASED ON HER RECENT TALK FOR THE BUSINESS, PROFESSIONS AND GOVERNMENT DIVISION Exporting is crucial for the UK economy. Yet, although the majority of companies that are likely to consider trading internationally see lack of proficiency in foreign languages as a barrier, very few speak their buyers' languages well enough to conduct deals in them. Furthermore, the majority of business owners have no knowledge of the languages of the emerging BRIC markets (Brazil, Russia, India and China). The British Chambers of Commerce are calling for a fundamental change in the school approach to language learning to ensure that the next generation of business owners receives a global education. It wants the government to revise the national curriculum so that studying a foreign language is compulsory until AS-level. I believe that the syllabus should also have an emphasis on languages for business. I studied French, German, Russian and Latin at Croydon High School (a private girls' school) and later obtained various qualifications in these languages from the Institut Français du Royaume-Uni. In the early part of my career, I worked in the communications and broadcasting industry, building up teams of multilingual marketing and commercial managers. We worked in Germany and francophone Africa, and our ability to communicate in the buyers' languages was the key to our continued success. Later I worked with an engineering company. Instead of employing contract managers at each European subsidiary, they employed me to take responsibility for all contracts outside North America. By negotiating major contracts with French and German postal and airport organisations in their own languages, I was able to reach crucial mutual agreements. More recently I have worked on strategic deals in France and Germany, and I have run training courses for project teams where my language skills have played a key role. I believe that success in international business depends on trust and collaboration with your business partner and that this is created not only through the ability to speak, write and negotiate in your business partner's language, but also through a good understanding of their culture. By creating an environment based on trust and collaboration, value can be created in the contract for both parties. Therefore I see language and cross-cultural skills as a critical differentiator in the success of international business relationships. When I first visited China for contract negotiations, I researched the Chinese culture and learned about the importance of relationships (Guanxi), face (Mianzi) and harmony. Confucius said 'Do not do unto others what you do not want others to do unto you.' This preparation proved to be invaluable. Throughout my career, my fluency in foreign languages and cross-cultural awareness has opened many doors in business and overcome many barriers. I hope that through the CIOL we can campaign with other professional organisations to improve school education in foreign languages and cultures to ensure that young people are better prepared for international trade, thus creating a stronger British business community of tomorrow. Cynthia Hollinsworth was guest speaker at the BPG Division's AGM on Saturday 29 June. She has more than 20 years' experience in international contracts and was recently elected a Fellow of the Institute of Export. Jessica (Zhiyi) Chen was born in China and moved to Austria in 2001. She has researched relay translations of Freud's work for an MA in Translation. See p.22 John Evans John Evans works at the European Commission Representation in London, promoting language learning and linguist careers in the EU institutions. He will return to the DG Translation next year. See p.20 Jill Karlik Dr Jill Karlik has a long-standing involvement with churches in GuineaBissau and The Gambia, and recently completed a PhD on this topic. See p.18 Nataly Kelly Vice-President of Market Development at Smartling, Nataly Kelly has worked for 17 years in the translation industry. Found in Translation is her latest book. See p.14 Shirley Lawes Dr Shirley Lawes MCIL is a Lecturer in Education at the Institute of Education and has researched and written extensively on language learning in UK schools. See p.8 Rekha Narula Rekha Narula MCIL is a public service and conference interpreter, and a freelance translator, working mainly in health, immigration and law. See p.12 Claire Nevill Claire Nevill is a freelance journalist, and Communications and Campaigns Officer at the National Literacy Trust. She speaks Spanish. See p.24 Christine Pocock Christine Pocock FCIL has been Chair of the CIOL Interpreting Division since 2000 and Vice-Chair of Council since 2012. She owns Bilingual Business Services, specialising in German. See p.16 www.iol.org.uk