Local to global: How English skills unlock a career in leadership

Samantha Ball
Two coworkers discussing some sticky notes on a class window
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Of the 1.5 billion English speakers in the world, over half learned it as a second or additional language.

The “language of business”, English has become a foundational skill for anyone looking to work in an international business or at a leadership level, and many English as a Second Language (ESL) speakers find themselves working in English on a daily basis.

But working in your second or third language comes with a unique set of challenges and opportunities.

We spoke to five global leaders about the role English has played in their careers, the challenges of being an ESL speaker, and how businesses can create a culture where everyone has a voice.

How English skills unlock a career in leadership
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A passport to leadership

Strong English skills open doors. More than three-quarters of people with advanced English skills are in senior or leadership roles, compared to just 32% of those with limited English proficiency.

app Languages CTO, , describes English as a “passport for this new world of opportunities, opening many, many doors I wouldn’t have had access to.”

There’s a cumulative effect, with one door opening and leading to the next.

Brushing up on his English skills was the spark that won Perrucci a scholarship to Denmark. That semester blossomed into a six-year stay, multiple degrees, his first international job opportunity, and a career with well-known global brands.

Whether it was getting onto a top MBA program or that first role at a big international company, for all the leaders we spoke to, English has proved to be a career catalyst.

More diversity, more innovation, more revenue

For companies looking to innovate and stand out in a competitive global market, an international team is essential.

“We’re aiming to build models of childcare that don’t exist at the moment”, explains Founder and CEO, .

“To do that, we need diversity of thought. With an international team, it’s more likely that someone will say “hey, I was living in Cape Verde for a while, and I saw this interesting thing”.

It’s an approach that pays off. found that businesses with more diverse management teams are more innovative, leading to 19% higher revenues.

Global customers, global team

A more diverse team can also help businesses stay close to their customers.

As technology has made it easier to operate across multiple countries, businesses quickly find themselves responding to the different needs, preferences, and expectations of customers all over the world.

“Reflecting the global nature of our business in our workforce means we can build a better, more effective service and a more successful business as a result”, explains , CEO of .

To help them stay close to their 5.2 million members across 420 cities, Zeeck’s team at InterNations is made up of more than 50 different nationalities.

English is the main language both for the InterNations team and platform, helping them create “a sense of oneness and community by using a shared language”.

The ultimate brain training

The leaders we interviewed spoke, on average, four languages, with many working across multiple languages on a day-to-day basis.

That experience of jumping between different languages also develops important leadership skills.

“When you speak multiple languages,” explains Perrucci, “different parts of the brain have to work together and make connections… It teaches your brain to be flexible about what you see and the way you interpret it”.

Zeeck likened it to working out: “Just as going to the gym improves your physical wellbeing, the mental challenge of learning a new language is good exercise for the brain”. It’s one of the reasons he provides all of his team language training.

The mental load of language

But hopping between languages and navigating different cultural nuances can take its toll.

“People whose first language is English often overlook the computing power it takes to work in your second or third language,” explains, Managing Director of International Wellbeing,, who only spends around a third of his time speaking his mother tongue.

“Even when colleagues are fluent in the language you're communicating in, it might still take them a bit more energy than you expect”, he continues. “By Friday afternoon, for example, I’m struggling to think fluently in whichever language!”.

The challenge of speaking up

For those who are less confident in their English skills, it can significantly impact the way they contribute at work.

Less than half (48%)of ESL speakers feel comfortable speaking up at work, andonly 10%of employees with limited English proficiency felt they could express themselves fully at work.

The dynamic can change depending on who’s in the room. “I see the difference when ESL speakers are on calls with confident, fluent English speakers”, adds, CEO and Founder of.

“They speak less”, she continues, “they caveat their contributions with “I might be wrong”, and you can see their English actually worsens because they feel more stressed”.

Without the right culture and support, businesses miss out on the benefits of an international team they’ve recruited.

Conscious leadership

The task of building a team and helping overcome the challenges of global working falls to business leaders.

The five leaders we spoke to shared practical tips for supporting global teams, including acknowledging and proactively addressing differences, avoiding interrupting ESL speakers, and using voice notes for sensitive communication to allow tone and emotion to come through.

More fundamentally, ESL speakers need business leaders to build a culture where it’s ok to make mistakes.

Leaders with first-hand experience of being an ESL speaker are uniquely placed to understand their increasingly global teams, pre-empt their challenges, and nurture a culture that allows difference to shine.

The journey from local roles to global leadership positions hinges on strong communication skills. The stories shared by our leaders demonstrate how English proficiency not only unlocks individual career potential but also drives organizational success through innovation and diverse perspectives. By fostering a culture that values and supports language learning, businesses can harness these benefits, ensuring their teams are prepared to excel on the global stage.

Find out how app Language Solutions for Work can support your workforce here

This article is part of app Languages’ series,Global Voices: Leaders on Language and Business, an exclusive exploration into the pivotal role of language in achieving international business excellence. For more in this series, check out the leaders’ full interviews, coming soon to

Read the blog post 'Language proficiency and succession planning: Developing future leaders'.

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  • A young girl working at a desk, there are others working in the background

    5 academic skills for primary students

    By Carol Higho

    In an ever-changing jobs market, the skills we all need to use have developed beyond numeracy and literacy – and part of our jobs as teachers is to give students the skills they’ll need in their future careers.

    Primary students preparing to go to secondary school (and then university) will need academic skills too. While there are lots of courses offering to teach these skills to older learners, we can give our younger learners a head start in the classroom.

    A breakdown of academic skills

    There are a number of important academic skills that can be carried into many different areas of students’ lives. These include:

    • time management
    • prioritization
    • cooperative learning and delegation
    • research
    • analysis.

    Each skill will help students manage their workloads and work effectively and efficiently, whether working in an office, studying for a degree, or being self-employed.

    Activities to develop an awareness of academic skills

    Here are a few ideas for use with students of all ages, to develop students’ awareness and understanding of these skills.

    Time management

    For much of the school day, children are told where to be and what to do. However, knowing how to tell the time is not the same as managing time.

    Some students underestimate how long an activity will take and then feel cheated or ‘behind’ when their work takes longer (especially fast finishers). Others overestimate the time needed, feel overwhelmed, and want to give up before getting started.

    Helping each student understand what each activity involves will help them to plan and manage their time. It will also encourage them to recognize everyone has differing abilities and works at a different pace.

    Give each student sticky notes representing 10 minute blocks of time (6 pieces if your classes are in 1 hour segments).

    Explain an activity:

    • You will read a story, and they will need to listen for key information and make notes.
    • After that, they will work in groups to make a Venn diagram.

    Next, have the students think about how much time each part of the lesson will take using sticky notes. If they think making the diagram will take 20 minutes, they should put two sticky notes on top of each other.

    Have students share what they think the time allocation should be, taking into account how long your lesson is. Did any ‘run out of time’ or have time ‘left over’?

    After the activity, ask students how accurate their predictions were and if there was any time wasting.

    Let students practice using this type of task analysis throughout the week for different activities, so they begin to see which activities they work quickly through and which they find more time-consuming. This will help students plan and manage their time better.

    Also, involve the parents by sharing what has been done in class. Get students to manage the time allocation:

    • from waking up to getting to school (getting washed and dressed, having breakfast, the journey to school),
    • from arriving home to going to bed (homework, evening meal, any cores, time for watching TV or playing games, getting ready for bed).

    How does their time management change at weekends/in the holidays?

    Prioritization

    Prioritization is another big part of time management. Task analysis helps students recognize what they must do and how they must do it in order to get a good grade. It also helps them understand the things they will most enjoy about an activity.

    To teach prioritization, it should become a regular part of the class. At the start of each week list (approximately five) class objectives to be achieved:

    • Ask each student to number these objectives - 1 being their top priority, 5 being their lowest. Make a note of which students prioritize the same tasks in the same order to help with grouping.
    • Next, ask them if any of the objectives will need planning or preparation (for example; growing cress for a science experiment) – and if so, should that be started earlier in the week?
    • At the end of each day, review how the students are doing in reaching the objectives and if they need to reprioritize.
    • As the week progresses, add additional items that are not priorities. For example, clean out your school locker/sharpen all the pencils, as well as other new real priorities: revise for the quiz on Friday. This will give students an understanding of how priorities can change.

    Collaborative learning and delegation

    Delegation and collaborative working are both essential academic and life skills. Thankfully they are already quite familiar topics for students. Students often delegate roles and characters in their everyday play – ‘You be Spiderman, I’ll chase you’, etc.

    It’s helpful to encourage this behavior in the classroom too. It can help students (of all ages) to recognize what they can achieve through cooperation and delegation because of their different skills.

    Explain that a group project (e.g. a group play) will require students to share information and to work together. Make it clear there are rules to follow:

    • Everyone must take part in the performance.
    • The play must be at least one minute long.
    • The group needs to write a script and create some props.
    • As a team, all are accountable/responsible to each other (as well as to you).
    • The activity will only be classed as a pass/success if everyone takes part.

    There is a finite goal – the play will be performed at the end of next week to the Year 2 classes.

    Suggest that the group meets and plans together (reading corner, at lunchtime, etc.). As they prepare, ask for updates on who is doing which tasks and why. Also encourage the group to determine whether something could be done differently/better by sharing the jobs.

    Listen in to see how objections are handled (recognize some of this discussion may be in the students’ first language).

    At the end of the project ask each student to list what they enjoyed the most and what they found most challenging. Ask them what skills they would like to develop for the next project.

    Research and analysis

    This can sound daunting for Primary students, but laying the foundations for academic research is easier than you might think.

    Big questions are a gateway to developing research and analysis skills. Two examples are, 'Why are plants and animals important in our world?' Or 'What can you do to help people in need?'.

    Providing students with a way to remember the important steps in any kind of research makes this type of activity less daunting.

    'Hands On’ is a five point guide that can be demonstrated by drawing a hand with five fingers:

    • Hypothesis
    • Research
    • Gather data
    • Create a report
    • Present evidence
    • Research and analysis (written on the palm).

    Following the five point guide students must:

    • give their thoughts and ideas on possible answers (create a hypothesis)
    • use books, the world around them and the internet to find information (research)
    • learn how to recognize what is fact and what is opinion (gather data)
    • review the data and summarize the main points (create a report)
    • use examples from their research to support their argument (present evidence).

    Any research needs to be methodical; using the five points above helps students build a clear structure that can become more detailed and complex as they advance through school.