For more information, visit a specific college or university's customized training center, call the system-wide toll-free hotline at 1-800-366-7380, or or e-mail business services.
Fact Sheet: Multiple Language Issues in Business
Changing landscape of business
As communities become increasingly
diverse, so does the workforce. This growing diversity creates multiple
language and cross-cultural sensitivity issues that businesses need
to be aware of and deal with, whether they operate in the U.S. or
abroad. In large and small companies in Minnesota and across the
country, employers and employees are being faced with the need to
understand how different cultures communicate and what their perceptions,
experiences and beliefs are. This emerging issue is particularly
relevant in Minnesota - a state that is rapidly becoming a patchwork
quilt of different ethnicities.
2002 immigration highest ever
New data released from the U.S. Department
of Homeland Security showed 13, 522 legal immigrants arrived in
Minnesota in 2002 - the highest number of legal immigrants since
1982 and 2,000 more than 2001, as reported on Aug. 18, 2003 by the
Minnesota Department of Administration. Immigrants from 160 countries
came to Minnesota in 2002. Immigrants born in Somalia (1,588) outnumbered
all others, followed by India (1,001), Ethiopia (918) and Mexico
(756).
Number of non-English speakers triples
According to a July 21, 2003 "Immigration
Trends in Minnesota Report" by the Minnesota State Demographic
Center, the number of non-English speakers has tripled in the past
eight years.
Language abilities vary
Multiple languages and contrasting
beliefs, values and practices can create challenging employee language
and culture sensitivity issues that affect communication, productivity
and the bottom line.
According to a Nov. 2000 report of Hispanic, Hmong, Russian and Somali immigrants in Minneapolis-St. Paul by Wilder Research Center, almost all immigrants said they speak a language other than English most of the time at home (86 to 98 percent in all four groups). About one-third reported that they can "speak and understand English very well". Somalis (39 percent) were the most likely to have this level of confidence; Russians (13 percent) and Hmong (12 percent) were the least likely. At the other end of the spectrum, about one-fifth said that they cannot speak English at all. Hmong immigrants (40 percent) were the most likely to put themselves into this category, and Somalis (11 percent) were least likely.
Workplace training programs
In the global market, prejudice and
stereotyping can become a significant business risk. But, this new
reality can also be used positively to meet current and future business
challenges. The Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System
believes that an important key to harnessing this diversity is to
design and implement innovative training programs that break through
cultural and language barriers to improve communications and understanding,
thus increasing productivity, quality and performance.
Minnesota State Colleges & Universities
The Minnesota State Colleges and
Universities System comprises 32 institutions on 53 campuses throughout
Minnesota and is a critcal source of occupational training and education
in the state. The system serves about 240,000 students per year
in credit-based courses and an additional 130,000 students in non-credit
courses. The system is responsive to the needs of business, collaborating
with employers to provide affordable, customized training and education
programs. Following are two examples that illustrate how the system
has responded to the needs of local businesses by developing customized
training programs that address the increasing multiple language
challenges in the workplace.
System training programs that address issue
Innovative English language learning partnership for St. Jude Medical
Situation - A unique customized English Language Learning pilot project in a manufacturing setting in Minnesota began in October 2003 at St. Jude Medical, a leading medical device manufacturer in Little Canada. This innovative public-private learning partnership is specifically designed to improve the communications and performance of St. Jude's increasingly diverse 1,200-employee DAIG Business Unit of which over 50 percent are immigrants or refugees from 26 countries.
Strategy - The program is being led by Dakota County Technical College and St. Jude Medical in collaboration with a team of language development facilitators from four public Adult Basic Education providers in the Twin Cities. The pilot program involves 120 production staff and 60 supervisors, team and group leaders and is conducted onsite to make it cost-effective and easily accessible for participants.
Results- The partnership also will create a "Best Practices" customized training model, which may be marketed to other medical device and biotechnology companies in Minnesota. Key outcomes will include:
- Increased productivity and quality through better communications.
- Reduced scrap and waste, due to better employee understanding of systems and concepts.
- Greater understanding of "concepts" of quality, teambuilding, performance and productivity.
- Improved employee retention.
- Greater opportunities for employee advancement.
- A positive impact on the bottom line.
Training focuses on non-native English speakers at Goodrich Sensor Systems
Situation - Increase understanding and enhance the communication skills of approximately 280 staff whose first language is not English, and approximately 40 of those who must manage English as a Second Language (ESL) staff at Goodrich Sensor Systems facilities in Burnsville and Eagan.
Strategy - Inver Hills Community College worked with the aircraft sensor manufacturing company to design a three-year program customized to a precision manufacturing environment. The onsite training focused on reading and writing language skills, regional speech patterns and cross-cultural understanding.
Premliminary qualitative results - By demonstrating a willingness to invest in all employees, ESL and native English speaking employees feel more valued knowing they are employed in a supportive work environment. Other qualitative results according to the HR manager at Goodrich Sensor Systems include:
- Enhanced employee skills and improved ability to read technical drawings and job instructions.
- Improved level of participation by native English speakers in the work done by ESL employees.
- Increased appreciation of the challenges and obstacles ESL employees face in the workplace.
- Improved communication between managers and frontline employees.
- Manager participation in the training sent a positive message to employees, improving organizational communication.
Contact: Nancy Conner, Public Affairs, at 651-296-0541 or nancy.conner@so.mnscu.edu for more information.
