Language learning can be a great asset to any business. It can help open up new markets and communication channels, and it can also simply make your employees more well-rounded. However, it can also be a challenge, both for the individuals learning the language and for the business as a whole. In this blog post, we’ll explore three of the biggest challenges in language learning, and how you can overcome them.
1. Time Constraints
One of the biggest challenges for businesses when it comes to language learning is that of time constraints. On the one hand, you want your employees to be able to commit enough time to learning the language so that they can be proficient. But on the other hand, you don’t want to take them away from their regular work tasks for too long. It can be a tricky balance to strike. One way to overcome this challenge is to offer language training as an incentive. For example, you could offer a bonus for those who complete a language course or you could set aside time for learning for your employees within the working hours and book time slots on specific days. This way, employees will be more likely to dedicate the time needed to learn the language.
For those who don’t have time for traditional learning methods – don’t worry, with today’s technology, your talent can learn at their own pace in their own time from anywhere in the world. Self-paced learning solutions have many benefits for companies. They can help save time by providing a structured learning experience that can be completed at the learner’s own pace. This type of solution can also improve productivity by allowing learners to focus on the most relevant content for their needs.
With a self-paced bite-sized learning solution like Learnship Solo, it is easy to incorporate the learning culture during work hours, free time, and even commuting time. In addition, Solo offers a structured approach to language learning and availability on all devices with an offline option. With our self-paced solution, your learners can become more productive in their day-to-day working lives with access to such tools as email templates, cultural briefings, and business-focused dictionaries for immediate use in the workplace.
2. Cost
Another challenge businesses face when it comes to language learning is cost. Language courses can be expensive, and if you’re looking to have a large number of employees learn a new language, the cost can quickly add up. One way to reduce the cost of language learning is to take advantage of online self-paced training. Self-paced learning is the ideal starting point—it’s flexible, affordable, and measurable.
Solo, our e-learning product, can help you bring everyone up to speed, quickly and affordably. Solo equips learners with everything they need to practice and improve their business language skills at their own pace. With a self-paced e-learning program available in four languages, Learnship provides global organizations with a scalable, comprehensive solution, with consistent, premium quality standards across all activities, levels, and languages. In addition to self-paced learning, learners can enhance their learning experience with virtual group sessions led by a professional trainer.
3. Motivation
The next big challenge for HR and L&D professionals when it comes to corporate language learning is a lack of employees’ motivation. It can be difficult to keep your talent motivated to learn a new language, especially if they are not seeing results as quickly as they’d like.
One way to motivate employees to learn a new language is to offer them incentives, such as gift cards, paid time off, or a bonus, based on their performance and engagement in their training. Surprisingly, incentives can come in the form of a graduation ceremony! The perspective of being recognized as one of the top learners and shining in front of the management team can be a real engagement booster. Actually, we noted an average 32% increase of interest in training every time such an event occurs at one of our clients. Also, good to know that 95% of employees think their manager is the best engagement relay, so it definitely makes sense to involve them in a ceremony – but also for the whole duration of the program.
Why not use language training as an incentive itself? Unlocking a new training every time you complete one will feel like a game, and everyone likes a good challenge. Just as challenging, you could also simply make learning a new language a requirement for certain positions or promotions. This will motivate employees to learn so that they can compete for the positions they want.
Another way to motivate employees to learn a new language is to provide them with opportunities to speak it. If you are part of an international company, you can easily set up conversation groups with employees of different nationalities and meet up online or even IRL. If you don’t have this chance, you can still activate our Talk with the Teacher option in Solo. Talk with the Teacher allows your learners to practice their oral skills once a week with other professionals worldwide, by discussing a predefined topic under the guidance of an expert trainer.
Finally, you can keep your talent motivated by using bite-sized online learning activities. When the learning modules are short, varied, and can be accessed from a phone, it’s easy to fit learning into busy schedules and to learn at one’s own pace. Bite-sized self-paced, well-structured learning can increase the level of engagement without additional motivational factors.
However, it’s important to remember that every one of your employees has unique skill requirements and learning habits. Force a one-size-fits-all solution upon them, and they’re likely to feel ignored and unsupported. If your employees don’t feel heard, they’re unlikely to follow your enterprise learning programs. And when that happens you can waste a huge amount of budget.
Solo can help every business language learner, regardless of their abilities or learning preferences. Learnship Solo is a scalable learning approach — perfectly flexible, affordable, and measurable. And for those talents who prefer live communication to stay motivated, we added an optional virtual weekly session where learners can practice their oral skills in small groups with the support of a professional trainer.
Conclusion
Language learning is essential for global business success. Employees who can collaborate and communicate in a different language can help businesses become more efficient, productive, and competitive. Businesses can also benefit from the cultural exchange that comes with having employees who are able to speak other languages.
With this in mind, it’s essential for employers to consider corporate language training. It’s important, however, to note that language learning is not a one-size-fits-all solution. There are many different learning methods that can be used to teach different types of people in different types of businesses. Self-paced learning is a great option for those employees who don’t have the time or motivation to learn through traditional methods and prefer learning at their own pace, in their own time, from anywhere in the world.