The Fluency Gap: Combining language, intercultural communication and DEI to create business advantage

The Idea in Brief

The Problem - The advantages and inevitability of increasingly diverse

workforces are widely acknowledged. Not only do diverse organisations

outperform their less diverse competitors financially, but also in areas such as

innovation, decision making, productivity, customer satisfaction and last but not

least, employee retention. However, for a diverse workforce to (out-)perform, it

must be within an inclusive culture. One of the many challenges we see in

building an inclusive culture, is the Fluency Gap.

The Cause - When people with varying language capacities mix, communication

is hampered. Frustrations arise as people struggle to express themselves, feel

understood, and feel valued for their abilities and perspectives. Cultural

differences can enhance these issues as well, due to the different approaches to

themes such as time, hierarchical distance and direct or indirect communication.

The Solution – Creating and increasing awareness of the barriers felt by those

hindered when communicating in another language is key. Discussing this with

them, their team and organisation works towards the development of an

inclusive culture. This is built upon with structured interventions such as the

implementation of a lingua franca and rituals which create an equitable space for

contributions, development and visibility.

The Benefits - At an individual level there are positive impacts on interpersonal

relationships. Additionally, individuals can see an increase in confidence and

engagement in their work. At an organisational level the benefits that can be

seen include: Increased collaboration, innovation, productivity, customer

satisfaction, employee attendance and retention.

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