HR is often not aware of the problem. And the employees themselves are often initially unaware of the problems that their accent is causing because they have the certification. They’re certified as a competent English speaker and they may have a C1 or C2 level certification from IELTS or Cambridge or some other reputable examining board.

The situation is thrown into stark relief when the employee is promoted to manage or present to an international team. And that’s often when it becomes apparent, particularly if they have to lead a team and do presentations online where the spoken language skill is so essential.

Language training can bring improved efficiency in task completion and better relationships with clients and international colleagues.

‘When you work in the finance sector, how well you can communicate is of utmost importance. In this industry, there are many chances for miscommunication and misunderstandings to happen without solid communication skills.

Moreover, it becomes challenging to share insights or collaborate with other people on projects if your vocabulary is insufficient.’

This analogy can be applied to those who are using their second language to achieve success in their careers or education. Despite their hard work and functional ability, they may be unfairly criticised for their accent and receive less credit.

We are so conditioned to think of accents in terms of status, prejudice and other factors related to social signifiers (which sometimes provoke emotional reactions) that we can easily overlook the technical factors involved in speaking another language clearly.

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