Language barriers blamed for miscues

Category: English in the News

Melissa Korn / The Wall Street Journal
05/14/2012
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Nearly half the executives at global companies believe language barriers have spoiled cross-border deals and caused financial losses for companies, says a report from the Economist Intelligence Unit.

The report, sponsored by language-training company EF Education First, was based on a poll of 572 senior executives worldwide.

Executives at companies based in Brazil and China said they were most affected by misunderstandings, with 74% and 61%, respectively, reporting financial losses as a result of failed international deals.

Nearly two-thirds of respondents said that misfires in their internal cross-border communications resulted in lost productivity. Among Brazilian managers, the figure jumped to 77%.

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