MADINAH, 3 January 2005 — If you are serious about increasing your company’s share price and profits, then it’s worth considering investing in English.
In theory, an increase in investment by a quoted company (or even the mere announcement) should result in the company’s share price rising. Why? Well, investment is a sign of confidence and is often seen as an indicator of the company’s confidence in its future, and importantly as a commitment to improving its bottom line figures. Future profits should improve as a result of the investment and therefore, what should follow is increased dividends and capital growth. Investors will want a stake in such an organization and so will start buying up the companies’ shares.
So, what does all of this have to do with “Invest in English”? You may ask.
Well, successful companies have a skilled work force. In the context of Saudi Arabia, the top 100 companies have a motivated and skilled work force. Typically, top management are expatriates, who not only possess a varied and matured skill set, but in comparison to the local population, have a head start in their language skills. Amongst expatriates the language advantage actually spans across all levels and this includes low level jobs.
“Invest in English” is about companies investing to improve the language skill set of their employees, specifically, their Saudi employees. We all know that English is the Lingua Franca of the business world. By equipping their Saudi employees with the means to speak English, they are not only helping to improve their language skills, they are actually in the long-run benefiting various stakeholders. Some brief examples might include the following:
Benefits to the Company
As stated earlier, a motivated and skilled work force is one of the main factors for company success. The chances are that locally produced talent will cost less in terms of salary costs and so the benefits will filter through the company, and ultimately result in a more positive financial statement. An English speaking work force is more likely to be able to communicate effectively with international partners than non-English speaking staff. If anything, the company’s message will come across more clearly especially to potential investors from overseas. Even locally, staff who can speak English are highly appreciated. A large majority of customer service material is in English. In the modern world, it is a well known fact that good customer service, results in repeat business and more satisfied customers. Good customer service is a serious competitive advantage in today’s business world. Furthermore, English speaking Saudi employees will be better placed to learn the skills from expats. This is where knowledge management plays its part. When a key employee has left, much of that knowledge goes too. Knowledge is vital tool in the future and the reality is to access to that is via English. Most successful companies and economies have an English speaking work force e.g. India, Japan and Europe. English will facilitate knowledge transfer.
Opening Up of New Markets
An example of this is India. A certain section of Indian society is highly educated and fluent in English. This pool of talent is now being used to good effect through call centers. Blue chip companies from across the world are opening up call centers there to serve the needs of customers in the Western hemisphere. Foreign companies are jumping over each other to get there. Why? Because of a work force that is familiar with the English language and highly flexible.
Benefit to the Employees
English speaking Saudis will be in a position to compete with the expatriates for more senior positions. This assumes of course that Saudi staffs are qualified in the first place to be considered for the relevant positions. Furthermore, English will be the additional boost that Saudis need to give them that extra confidence. Investing in employees and showing that the company cares for their welfare and future development will help motivate staff. Motivated staff perform better. For Saudi staff, the possibility of being able to get to the top without the disadvantage of knowing little or not enough English will no longer exist. Nowadays, jobs advertised in the local press typically have the “Saudi National preferred” line, and then insert the “must have English language skills”.
Benefits to Customers
A work force that communicates in the business language of the world is a valuable resource for any Saudi company. Customers will be dealt with more quickly and few delays will occur because of language differences. If the cash point machine gives us the option to select a language, then why can’t a customer be able to speak to a customer advisor who can speak both Arabic and English?
Benefits to Suppliers
Communication is extremely important when dealing with suppliers. This comes into play especially when trying to negotiate, or renegotiate payment terms and credit limits. If the parties concerned do not understand each other, then misunderstanding can occur. A person speaking in the English language may add the confidence to the company supplier relationship.
Benefits to Society
Learning English has many other spin off benefits such as, better understanding of Saudi culture & religion by the international community. It will also help the Saudi people gain a more accurate awareness of the concerns & issues of the wider international community. If anything, this may lessen concerns about political risk. International political analysts are consulted by companies to help them decide which country to invest in.
Benefits to the Investor
Having outlined briefly the potential benefits above, hopefully this should translate into an increased turnover, lower costs, higher profits and an improved share price and therefore a more successful company.
By no means is the world as black and white as the examples illustrate, but the usefulness of the English language to the business world can not be understated. So, a win win situation for all concerned.
Investment encompasses many facets. In Saudi Arabia today, any company that wants to improve its future prospects needs to include investing in English as part of its overall investment strategy. By doing so, it will also be helping Saudi Arabia’s work force become more competitive on the world stage as well as helping to strengthen the economy.
(Sohaib Sandhu, [email protected], is an associate of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (UK) and is a senior English instructor in Saudi Arabia.)