English as a global business language
A lingua franca is defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as “any of various languages used as common or commercial tongues among peoples of diverse speech.” Since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1989, which ended the bipolarity between the USSR and the US, and the spread of the neoliberal market to nearly all of the world's countries in the 1990s, English became the de facto global language for business.
An article by Tsedal Neeley in the Harvard Business Review in 2012 reported that, ten years ago, multinationals based in any country tended to mandate English as the common corporate language in order to facilitate communication and cooperation with colleagues in other branches across the globe. This used to be the case for Samsung, Airbus and Microsoft in Beijing, for example. These three companies are Korean, French and American, respectively; coordinating everything in English, instead of requiring staff members to also learn Korean or French, was more simple.
Other lingua francas around the world
However, since 2012, the global situation has changed in many ways. First of all, emerging BRIC countries – Brazil, Russia, India and China – have had time to grow more powerful, and so have other countries outside of the English-speaking world like those in the Gulf. This has given their local official languages (Portuguese, Russian, Chinese) more weight as lingua francas for doing business in the region.
Knowledge of both Portuguese and Spanish should give you the ability to conduct cross-border business across the whole of Central and South America. The dominance of these languages is expected to increase due to their large young populations, with 24% of the population there being under the age of 14. They will have a larger labor force when many countries are facing an aging population.
The importance of Spanish as a lingua franca will also expand as 30% of the population of the United States is projected to speak it as their mother tongue by 2050, what with the increase in the Hispanic population (Cervantes Institute). Many jobs in the US already require bilingual English and Spanish skills. Knowing Spanish is very useful if you're planning an expatriation project to states like California, Texas, New Mexico or New York.
As for Russian, it's still often a lingua franca across ex-USSR countries in East Europe and Central Asia. That is, even if you don't master Georgian or Azerbaijani, a knowledge of Russian will make living in Georgia or Azerbaijan easier. The case of India is slightly different. As it is the largest former colony of the British Empire, English is still a lingua franca across its various regions that use 22 different official languages. Indeed, a person in Tamil Nadu will be more proficient in English than in another Indian language like Hindi or Gujarati.
Apart from being used in France, French is also very helpful for moving to Canada and a large part of Africa. With a projected goal of ∼450,000 new residents per year, Canada is one of the countries that's the most open to expats right now. Canada is bilingual, both English and French are recognized as official languages. In Quebec, French is the only official language, even if English is widely used. All the same, Quebec's Charter of the French Language gives the right to any company or worker to choose to use only French at work. Furthermore, it requires larger companies (of 50 or more employees) to implement French as their main work language.
In Northern, Western and Central Africa, even without a working knowledge of Arabic, Wolof or Yoruba, you can use French as a lingua franca. You can work in major economic capitals of North Africa like Algiers, Casablanca and Tunis using French to communicate. Of course, you can also opt to learn the other regional lingua franca, Arabic. Vernacular (spoken) Arabic, however, varies from country to country. Arabic from the Maghreb will not be fully understood in Egyptian or Saudi Arabian streets.
The UK's exit from the European Union has weakened the importance of English in the EU in favor of French and German. The latter is an official language not only in Germany but also in Switzerland, Belgium and Austria. There are also many German speakers in Denmark, Holland and Luxembourg. German is, hence, a great language to know if you plan on moving to Europe, especially if you want to work in finance, academia and diplomacy.
The localization of economies after the pandemic
The pandemic has closed borders, restricted the movement of employees, and encouraged the localization of jobs in some regions of the world. This is the case for China, Hong Kong and Gulf countries. As such, the value of Chinese and Arabic as business languages has gone up in these regions, even in multinationals, at the expense of English.
As eFinancialCareers reports, as of 2022, the American private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co now has fewer than 1% of expats working in its Hong Kong office. Its co-chief executive highlights that favoring a local workforce fluent in Chinese has helped build trust with local networks and investors. The strict lockdown and the expat exodus have made companies based in Hong Kong and China turn more towards local talent, reports the South China Morning Post. While expats are still welcome there, they should expect to now have to compete with locals who master Chinese.
The same thing is happening in Gulf countries. These states want to boost local employment and are creating policies that give local citizens preference when applying for private sector jobs. Hence, any expat competing with a local for a job will now have a better chance if they master Arabic.
Sectors that generally require foreign languages
While knowledge of an extra language is useful in any field, some sectors have a higher need for foreign language skills. Banking and finance is clearly one of these sectors, as detailed above in the case of finance firms in Hong Kong. Goldman Sachs, for instance, requires employees posted in Paris, Frankfurt, or Zurich to be able to conduct business in the local language, i.e., French or German. Foreign language skills could be the key to getting a promotion to another regional office of your finance company.
Aviation and tourism is clearly another sector where foreign languages are highly valued. While the International Civil Aviation Organization has specified that the international language of aviation is English, cabin crew members who speak additional languages receive extra pay, according to Simple Flying. This is because they play a crucial role in making multilingual passenger announcements and providing assistance to passengers who don't speak English. Candidates with foreign language skills are also preferred for the positions of travel agents, tourist guides and guest relations specialists.
Retail, e-commerce and international marketing is yet another globalized sector where foreign languages are indispensable. According to the translation company Tarjama, only 26% of internet users use English, which makes it imperative to communicate with e-commerce customers and potential customers in multiple languages. Indeed, according to a study by the Harvard Business Review and European Commission, 72% of internet users prefer browsing a website in their native language. Post-sales multilingual customer support also ensures customer satisfaction and loyalty. An expat in these fields will benefit from knowing additional languages.
