Offshore English

In a recent survey among non-native English speakers in multinational organisations 97.5% said it was a great advantage to be able to use English with many nationalities.  However, 60% said they found it easier to understand non-native speakers of English.  A further 60% said native English speakers seemed insensitive to the effort made by others and again nearly 60% felt native speakers deliberately took advantage of their linguistic superiority.

English is definitely the number 1 language of international business.  But what kind of English?  English speakers clearly have an advantage but do they necessarily have the best ideas?  Many international professionals are clearly sensitive about the way English is used in international meetings, conference calls and e-mail communication about their own ability to communicate effectively.

Too often native English-speaking business people fail to adapt their language and delivery to a more international environment.  They don't know how to speak Offshore English - the real language of international business. They fail to recognise that many words like control, delay or eventual can mean something quite different to a non-native speaker.

This 1-day course is designed to help them do so.  It should benefit anyone who answers the telephone regularly to non-native speakers of English, manages international teams or presents regularly to international audiences.

Like all our cross-cultural skills training programmes, we tailor the course to meet the needs of our clients, whether it is one person, a pair or a group from the same company. Below is an example of a typical programme. An active, practical course, the training will involve short presentations of the key rules and tips, relevant enactments, feedback and discussion.

What is Offshore English?
An overview and a look at the kind of English your international counterpart has learned.

Speaking Offshore English 1 - Where the hell is it?
Enactment on the telephone, followed by feedback and discussion.

Rules and Tips - Pacing, Pausing and Projecting

Speaking Offshore English 2 - What a waste of time!
Meeting enactment, followed by feedback and discussion.

Rules and Tips - Vocabulary
Latin/French v Anglo-Saxon/Scandinavian
False Friends
Jargon, Slang and Colloquialisms

Writing Offshore English - What do you think?
E-mail exercise, followed by feedback and discussion.

Rules and Tips - Sentence Structure and Grammar

Speaking Offshore English 3 - Are you with me?
Presentation enactment, followed by feedback and discussion.

Summary and Action Points