furrowed her eyebrows slightly. “Yes, yes, you. Do you have a hard time at work?”
“Well, like many Japanese it is really very difficult for us. We often sit in meetings and can't follow the meaning very well. Then there is what people call ‘brainstorming,’ but it just seems like people are guessing in public and people speak all at the same time – or even try to speak over each other. It is not very organized.” He hesitated. “I…I...I find it very difficult. I have gotten some cultural training where people told me this would happen, but I find it very frustrating, and I don't understand how this way is useful.”
Liz sat back in her seat and chuckled. “It's funny you say that, because when I worked in the U.S. brainstorming was second nature to me. But the first time I ran a meeting in Brazil, I opened up the chance for brainstorming and I was the only one speaking! It made me feel very uncomfortable.”
In disbelief, the Japanese man asked, “In Brazil?”
“Oh yeah! I thought brainstorming was second nature for people, but now I'm learning exactly what you're learning. What's your name, by the way?” asked Liz.
“I am Toshi.” He paused. “Yes, it is very difficult for me. And I worry sometimes how I will then get my ideas so quickly out in English. I really admire my American colleagues for just being able to speak to strangers, but for us Japanese it is very difficult.”
Pierre, sitting at the end of the bar, turned toward Toshi and asked, “Are you in a position where you have to speak up in meetings?”
“Yes, yes. I get feedbacks from my boss that I must speak more and contribute to team meetings, and all of that has to do with speaking. Sometimes I struggle to find when to start saying something because everyone talks already. I even don't know when to enter. Sometimes it takes me some time to express my ideas, and then I do not find the opportunity to respectfully inject my point of view. I am even more embarrassed since I am a vice president, and they expect to hear words from me.”
Liz chuckled and, shifting her gaze to Pierre, said, “American people are excellent at interrupting people.” Pierre added, “Well – the French do it, too!”
Liz and Pierre burst into laughter, and Toshi smiled slightly and said, “Yes, but that is impolite in my culture.”
Liz's laughter turned into a smile as she answered, “There is a way to do it gracefully, I guess. But if you don't do it, you won't get your ideas across.”
Toshi was still a bit uneasy with the direction of this conversation but felt comfortable expressing his true feelings after having overheard most of Liz and Pierre's previous conversation. “I feel that there are so many other ways for expressing your ideas – it doesn't always have to be in meetings in public, in front of everybody.”
Pierre could relate to Toshi's struggle with this. “Many corporations are really looking to become more global, and I think that everyone should recognize the extra effort it takes for non-native English speakers to work and lead in English. Frankly, I am not seeing recognition, sympathy, or encouragement from any human resources people or direct leadership. It's not taken into consideration. It's not on their minds at all. Yes, English is the language of business, but if we really, truly want corporations to be global, we need to address this question and acknowledge that there is work to do on both sides and get more support. I'm not talking about learning specific things in English – most of us speak English well enough. I don't know if Einstein spoke perfect English, but he was making remarkable presentations even with a heavy German accent.”
Pierre paused to take a quick sip of his sparkling mineral water that had finally arrived. “A good friend of mine – he is Greek – is one of the top experts in his field and is teaching in many universities around the world. One of his colleagues introduced him to a university in the U.S. and encouraged him to send over his resume to them. He sent an e-mail, and the person at the university basically said that based on his English and the grammar of his e-mail he would never be invited to teach at the university. I was finding it funny because it's as if someone had said to Einstein, ‘Your accent is too hard to understand to teach in our university,’” Pierre said in a mocking voice.
Liz was surprised. “He lost the job because of it?”
“He didn't get the job, no. All because of his casual e-mail where his grammar wasn't perfect.”
Toshi's eyes widened in surprise, but he remembered a time in his own company when grammar and the use of U.S. slang had caused a problem with a Japanese colleague of his.
“I also have one experience of a colleague who had a big problem because of a grammar issue – well, really it was the use of American slang. We have many American executives, and one of them came to Japan to make a presentation. He had a presentation slide that said in big letters G-O-T-C-H-A.”
Toshi finished spelling the word and Liz quickly interrupted and giggled, “Oh! Gotcha!”
“Yes, gotcha,” Toshi repeated. “My Japanese colleague, like many of the Japanese in my office, carries around an electronic dictionary, so he looked up what the meaning of ‘gotcha’ is and it did not come up in the dictionary. He was very upset that this American executive was making a presentation and using words that were not even in the dictionary. He actually got up from the meeting and left. The meeting was all about becoming a more global workplace and inspiring everyone to work hard to respect diversity in the organization, but using the word ‘gotcha’ was disrespectful to us, because we as Japanese had a very difficult time understanding or even finding the meaning in a dictionary.”
Pierre and Liz both shook their heads disapprovingly. Liz asked, “What happened to your colleague who left the meeting?”
“Nothing. The American executive didn't think it was a sign of misunderstanding. Apparently many people in America leave meetings to take phone calls or do other work, so for him it was not a big problem.”
Pierre and Liz both shrugged their shoulders, acknowledging that in the United States that happens frequently: people leave meetings, and nobody thinks twice about it.
“I have a good friend of mine whose name is Frederic,” Pierre began. “He was working for a joint venture between a French company and an American company in the aeronautics industry. The leader was very visionary; he wanted to have 50 percent American employees and 50 percent French employees, and he sent the French people to America and vice versa. When he was giving presentations in America he would make sure that the French people were heard. I think he is like…what is the expression – hmm, a poster child for what leadership should be – it really is the leader's responsibility to be, well…inclusive.”
Pierre, Liz, and Toshi all nodded their heads in agreement. A short silence in the conversation led them all to become aware of their surroundings. The lounge had become packed with travelers, many of whom were now sitting on the floor as all the seats at the bar and the tables were filled. A woman standing at the bar with her hand in the air caught Pierre's eye. He watched as she tried many times to get the attention of the bartender, but with no luck she slowly put her hand to her side and stood looking for a seat.
“Wait a minute – I'll be right back,” said Pierre.
Pierre slid off the barstool he was currently occupying, making sure to leave his slightly crinkled jacket there so as not to lose his place. He approached the woman to offer some help.
“Excuse me, madame. Do you need help to get the attention of the bartender?”
The woman looked up at Pierre. “Oh, I am just trying to order some food.”
Pierre
