Many Malaysians have difficulty communicating in English in the workplace, especially when it comes to business-related matters.
Introduction The role of English language is important for communication between people especially in higher institutions and businesses in Malaysia. Since English is the second languag e in Malaysia, the concentration is on generating learners with the ability to communicate effectively in different social and professional contexts. Currently in Malaysia, communication sills play the fundamental role at worplace situations. The importance of communication sills is significant in the management sector as stated in different !ob advertisements. "ithout "ithout efficient communication sills in the management sector, a manager would never achieve success. In my opinion , I do agree with the statement which state that many Malaysians have difficulty communicating in English in the worplace, espec ially when it comes to business#related matters. In this matter, I do believe that between speaing orally and written communication, speaing fluently in English $anguage is the most problematic sills to most of the Malaysians worer. In recent years, the importance of e%uipping employers with good oral communication sills in English has grown with the demanding nature of current worplace communication. It is reported that employers believed that a low proficiency language sill was a difficult factor for employment. In the worplace contexts, employees need oral communication sills in English language to be successful in their !obs as they must carry out different communicative tass such as presentations, meetings and negotiations. There is ongoing debate on the importance of the English language in Malaysia and it receives much coverage in the local media. &ccording to the ST&' ST&' (ewspaper dated )* &pril *++, it stated that in the year *++-, institutions of higher learning in the country produced )/,-+0 graduates but only //.)1 of these graduates found employment within half a year. It is clear that a high proficiency in English language, especially in oral communication sills would be valuable to solve different problems that tae place in worplace situations.
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2nfortunately, despite the professional and formal training given to students and graduates, there is still a sill gap in worplace situations. It is mentioned that there are significant gaps between the expectations expectatio ns of industries and an d what the universities univer sities offer to the th e students.
Summary The on#going globali3ation of marets and trade in the *)st century has caused companies to come together to do business internationally. internationally. These businesses often gather people from a mixture of linguistic and cultural bacgrounds. In situations lie these, businessmen, negotiators, and those involved in international business usually employ the English language for communication purposes in multilingual settings. &s a result, Malaysian worers need to possess effective English language sills in order to complete various tass in their worplaces, especially when Malaysia has a vibrant economy with many multinational companies setting up their base here. These companies play an important role in Malaysia4s economy and it is widely acnowledged that multinational companies are responsible for an increasing share in world trade in the global economy and that a conscious decision must be made in relation to their employees. Therefore it is clearly important that English language needs to fit the organi3ational demands of these companies. &ccording to "ilson, "ilson, 5*+)/67789 , it stated that English Eng lish is becoming the lingua franca of the modern world at a fast rate particularly in such important areas as the new technologies, business, tourism and entertainment, and its global dominance encourages many speaers of other languages to gain at least a woring use of the language in many fields.4 :assi :as sim. m. ; and &li &li sta te d th at many st staf aff, f, inclu includi ding ng thos thosee in the ;uma n ' eso urc e
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The aforementioned study was conducted on ;uman ;uman 'esource multinational companies in Malaysia to examine their English communication needs. The findings of the study highlighted the need for graduates to e%uip themselves with oral communication sills to ensure that they can function effectively at the worplace. & recent survey conducted by the Multimedia
Many ;' graduates from higher education institutions in Malaysia can be included in these descriptions as well. &s stated stated by an experienced ;' manager from a multinational compan y in >enang, ;' staff often experience problems in interpretation when reading in English due to their limited English language proficiency and wea vocabulary. ?ther problems included having satisfactory writing sills, speaing English at an intermediate level, experiencing problems understanding native speaers who spea fast or with a foreign accent and using effective vocabulary to express ideas and thoughts. The ;uman 'esource enang were selected for this study. "hile %uestionnaires were sent out by email to 77 ;' staff, the final sample for analysis comprised 7 managers and */ ;' staff from both companies. The staff sample consisted of personnel with the following !ob descriptions6 officers, executives, ;' assistants and clers.
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=rom the analysis of the results of the %uestionnaire survey, the English language sills of the ;' staff of this company do not match the re%uirements o f the English language sills that they re%uire in order to function well at their worplace. The only sill that they are competent at is the listening sill. The manager stated that it would be better if the staff had better English language sills. "hen ased if they needed to attend English classes, most of the staff stated that they did not mind attending English Eng lish classes to further hone their language abilities Comstoc 5)+9 states that the ability to listen is the most important of all communication sills in any organi3ation and states that there are problems involving the listening sill at worplaces This is because there is a tendency tendenc y at times for some executives, supervisors and worers to tal more and fail to listen and not comprehend the notions of listening and hearing. The challenges of having an effective communication in English $anguage at a worplace can be a serious obstacles in carrying out individuals responsibilities as a good worer. Each person has nuances, intonations and facial expressions that can influence the way a message comes co mes across. &dding on the challenges of effective communication in the worplace maes it even more important to ensure verbal and written messages are delivered effectively and a ccurately. I believe that in order to improve the difficulty communicating in English in the worplace, especially when it comes to business#related matter, as a worer we have to face and overcome a few obstacles within ourselves which is called insecurity in believing b elieving one4s ability. ability. ;ere are a few suggestions which I hope can contribute in improving a good communication co mmunication in English in the worplace, especially when it comes to business#related matters. ). =ear
"orers who use English as their second language can have a fear of mispronunciation or misinterpretation of their communications by their &merican counterparts. If an employee feels he or she will be !udged or made fun of for not using grammatically correct English, or if he or she will be reprimanded for less#than#perfect written reports, there may be a breado wn in communication. To be able to effectively wor on improving English sills, the ES$ worer should feel comfortable in her wor environment and not be afraid of maing a mistae in front of co#worers. 4
*. Time
$earning any language can ca n be a lengthy process. The Center for &dult English $anguage &c%uisition estimates that it can tae five to eight years for a person to learn a second language on par with native speaers. ?ftentimes employers are unrealistic about their expectations of ES$ worers to get up to speed. 7. Support
If an ES$ employee is surrounded by empathetic co#worers who help the employee through her communication difficulties, it can increase the chances of effective communication. @ut if an ES$ employee feels she is in an unsupportive wor environment, she may shut down emotionally and begin to loo for other !ob opportunities. ;aving a diverse group of employees is important, yet providing a sense of connec tion to employees through an informal wor AfamilyA is also very important, especially with the ES$ worers. If the employee doesnBt feel lie anyone understands her, she can start feeling low and depress.. 8. $imited ?pportunities If there are no opportunities to improve English sills, the ES$ worer can beco me stagnant in her communication sills. ItBs important to provide opportunities for communication improvement, such as worshops or an ES$ coach. ?ne#on#one training can be very effective as well, where the employee can wor on improving her communication sills without worrying about maing mistaes in front of superiors or co#worers. /.2nrealistic Standards
&ny !ob can be stressful, but placing unrealistic standards for perfection on ES$ worers can compound the stress further. If an employer demands perfect grammar on a report, for example, this may be an unrealistic expectation on the ES$ employee and can mae things worse, unnecessarily adding more anxiety to an already stressed worer.
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Conclusions @efore I end my report, I would lie to stress on these important points as a reminder to myself and anyone who read this report. @ased from the the discus discussio sions ns of the finding findingss obtained obtained,, I c a n s e e t h r e e mai main n conclusions conclusions w h i c h can be drawn drawn reg regard arding ing the iss issues ues tha thatt st state ate tha thatt many Malaysians have difficulty communicating in English in the worplace, especially when it comes to business#related matters.
=irst of all, perception on oral communication sills play a crucial role at the worplace. In addition among the most important communicative activities include establishing social rela re lati tions onshi hips ps wit with h clie client nts, s, mai maing ng and and argu arguing ing fo forr an an iss issue ue w h i c h i n v o l v e d su super perio iors rs or colleagues, and providing training through discussions, worshops, etc.
Secondly, the perception of the worers
clear l y
reported that they often face problems
speaing fluently and speaing in front of an audience. In addition, are sills which must be given emphasis in English language courses. The Th e findings findin gs provide important input in put to to course developers in their efforts to develop new course or improving on existing courses geared at ;'< undergraduates. Thirdly, an ES$ course is meant to enable a group of target learners to function ade%uately in a target situation which means that the place where the learners will use the specific English for specific purposes. This study revealed that there are differences which exist between the expected English language sills and the the actual performance of the ;' staff. staff. In regards of the staffs opinion, all four English language sills are re%uired by the ;' staff at the worplace. enerally, all the four English language which comprise of the sills of listening, speaing, reading, and writing were all given the same level of importance.
;owever, the ;' staff at both the companies perceived that they did not possess satisfactory English language sills which would allow them to perform well in their !obs as well and their 6
managers comments also support this fact. &s most of the staff expressed the view that they were not satisfied with their current English language abilities, it is recommended that the management of both companies loo into the possibility of arranging for English for specific purposes 5ES>9 classes for the ;' staff. staff. The result of the needs analysis suggest that the ;' staff would greatly benefit from such content specific English classes as it would contribute significantly to their future performance at their !obs. In order to stimulate and motivate learners, classes need to be challenging yet achievable to offer new ideas and information whilst being grounded in the learners experience and nowledge and to encourage fun and creativity. Instructors can motivate learners by informing them about the importance of improving their English language sills. ?ne thing for sure, it is very important as the ;' staff staff had previously learned English language sills during their school#going days and have expressed a desire to attend training courses in enhancing their English language ability in an effort to boost their self confidence in using English more effectively to perform their !ob functions. $astly but not least, private and government institutions of education offering courses in ;' should form collaborations with ;' departments to note the English languag e sills and repertoires that are essential for ;' staff.
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'eferences ). :assim, ). :assim, ;., and &li, =. English communicative events and sills needed at the worplace6 feedbac from the industry. English industry. English for Specific Purposes P urposes *+)+ , 29, 29, )0-#)-*. *."ilson, D. >. 5*++/9. 5*++/9. Human Human resource resource development: Learning and training for individuals and organizations 5*nd ed.9. $ondon6 :ogan >age. 7.The Star. &pril )* *++. The Grad ilemma. ilemma. 'etrieved online on 8 May *++ from http6Fthestar.com.myFnewsFstory http6Fthestar.com.myFnewsFstory.aspGfileH*++F8F)*FeducationF70877-FsecHeducation .aspGfileH*++F8F)*FeducationF70877-FsecHeducation 8. Comstoc, T.". 5)+9. !ommunicating in "usiness and #ndustr$ 5*nd ed.9 2S&6 ublishers. /. @lair, /. @lair, <., Deanson, S. %or&place 'ral !ommunication !urriculum. !urriculum. "innipeg, M@6 "orplace Education Manitoba Steering Committee, Manitoba
Dohn, M. D. 5)-9. -9.
ES>6 & mult ulti#
disciplinary approach. Cambridge6 Cambridge 2niversity >ress.
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