An assessment of foreign language training for English‐speaking exporters

Reports on a study of Irish exporting companies aimed at discovering the extent to which they use foreign languages in conducting their export business and discusses the implications of its findings for export‐oriented foreign language training. Concludes that a high level of foreign language skill is not essential for success in exporting to non‐English‐speaking markets, but that some competence in the language of the foreign target market can be immensely valuable in gaining the confidence of prospective customers and in understanding their needs. Training aimed at improving the foreign language skills of exporters should also cover the culture and business practices of the foreign market, and the technical terms used in a particular industrial sector. However the real need is for competence at a relatively low level within exporting companies to enable junior staff to deal effectively with incoming messages. Language training should focus initially on developing reading and basic writing skills rather than seeking to achieve fluency in speaking the foreign language.