|
Language Barriers Blamed for Miscues 跨国公司高管认为语言障碍导致重大损失 Nearly half the executives at global companies believe language barriers have spoiled cross-border deals and caused financial losses for companies, says a report from the Economist Intelligence Unit, a business research unit of Economist Group, the Economist magazine's parent. The report, sponsored by language-training company EF Education First, was based on a poll of 572 senior executives world-wide. Executives at companies based in Brazil and China said they were most affected by misunderstandings, with 74% and 61%, respectively, reporting financial losses as a result of failed international deals. Nearly two-thirds of respondents said that misfires in their internal cross-border communications resulted in lost productivity. Among Brazilian managers, the figure jumped to 77%. To improve communications, many global companies are trying to adopt English as an official language. A multilingual approach 'is inefficient and can prevent important interactions from taking place and get in the way of achieving key goals,' Harvard Business School professor Tsedal Neeley wrote in this month's Harvard Business Review 经济学人信息部(Economist Intelligence Unit)的一篇报告说，近半数跨国公司的高管相信，语言障碍曾让跨境交易流产，给公司带来经济损失。经济学人信息部是《经济学人》(Economist)杂志母公司经济学人集团(Economist Group)旗下的商业研究机构。 | 
