A business English course is usually looked for only after things have gone wrong a few times: a quote that landed badly, a trade fair where colleagues fell silent, a video call in which half the nuance disappeared. At that point the question is not “how do I learn English”, but “how do we make sure the team performs better in English tomorrow”. That calls for a different kind of training than an evening language class. This article sets out what a business English training programme has to deliver, which formats exist and how to work out what suits your organisation.
What makes business English different from general English
Most employees in the Netherlands speak reasonable English. They order without difficulty abroad and follow an English-language series without subtitles. Even so, things often go wrong at work, and that has little to do with vocabulary. Business English comes down to three things that a general course barely touches on:
- Register. Handling a complaint, moving a deadline or defending a price calls for wording that is polite and clear at the same time. Dutch speakers often sound blunter in English than they mean to, simply because they translate literally.
- Sector vocabulary. A sales adviser at an electronics firm needs different words than an HR officer calling international candidates. General courses do not cover those words.
- Confidence to speak. Understanding is rarely the problem. Taking the floor in a meeting with native speakers is. That is only solved by practising in realistic work situations, not with grammar exercises.
A good business English course therefore starts not with grammar but with the situations in which the team needs English. Who calls customers, who writes quotes, who stands at trade fairs? The content of the training should be built around that.
Three formats for a business English course
Broadly speaking there are three ways to learn business English. They differ sharply in time investment and result.
1. Open group course at a language institute
An employee joins a group of learners from different companies, usually in the evening. Advantage: low cost per person and quick to arrange. Disadvantage: the content is general, the level within the group varies and the material rarely matches the job. For someone who wants to brush up their English for themselves this is fine. For a team that needs to perform better towards customers tomorrow, it works slowly.
2. Online self-study or e-learning
Apps and online modules are useful for vocabulary and listening, and they fit easily into a busy working week. What they do not offer is practice in speaking under pressure, with feedback from a trainer who hears where it goes wrong. As a supplement to a training programme e-learning is valuable; as a replacement it usually is not. At Speak And Spoke, e-learning is therefore combined with remote support through the Online Academy, so that learners keep practising between training days.
3. Tailored in-company training
The trainer comes to the company, during working hours or straight after the shift, and works with the situations the team meets every day: the phone calls, the emails, the product presentations. An intake establishes each participant’s starting level and the learning goals are recorded. This is the format that produces visible results fastest, because no translation from “course” to “work” is needed any more. It is also the format an organisation sees most of in practice: fewer misunderstandings with customers, more confidence among staff and shorter lead times in communication.
How to recognise a good training programme
Anyone comparing quotes for a business English course can look at a few points that make the difference between a pleasant course and a training programme that delivers.
- A level assessment beforehand. Without an intake nobody knows where the team stands. A good provider measures the starting level against the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR), the A1 to C2 scale also used in vacancies and diplomas.
- Content from your own practice. Ask whether the trainer observes on the shop floor beforehand or speaks to managers. If the material comes from a standard textbook, that is a signal.
- One fixed trainer. A trainer who gets to know the team hears after a few sessions exactly where someone gets stuck. Rotating teachers start again every time.
- Native or near-native speaker. For business English it matters a great deal that the trainer knows the nuances of register and politeness from the inside. At Speak And Spoke, for instance, native trainers such as Carla prepared the sales and advisory department at TBP Electronics for international trade fairs.
- A measurable conclusion. A final assessment per participant, with a level indication and concrete next steps. That also makes the investment explainable to management.
How long before you notice a difference?
That depends on the starting level and on how much practice happens between sessions. In practice, managers notice after three or four weeks that staff take the floor more often themselves and ask for confirmation less. A full programme from intake to final evaluation usually takes twelve weeks at Speak And Spoke, followed by aftercare through e-learning. Anyone looking for a crash course in business English for a trade fair three weeks away is better served by a short, intensive series aimed at that one situation than by a broad course that only gathers speed after the fair.
Funding and subsidies
Business language training is a training cost for the employer and deductible as such. In addition there are schemes that support staff development, such as the Dutch SLIM scheme for SMEs and sector training funds (O&O funds). Whether a training programme qualifies differs per industry and per application round. It is sensible to check this with your own training fund in advance; a good provider will think along with you.
English is not always the only language needed
Many companies looking for a business English course discover at the intake that the issue is broader. Part of the team does not speak Dutch, another part does business with German customers and English alone is not enough. Speak And Spoke provides in-company language training in Dutch as a second language, English, German, French, Spanish and Polish, always with the same approach: intake, tailored training, coaching on the shop floor and a measurable conclusion. For companies working mainly with German partners there is a separate article on choosing a business German course.
In short
A business English course only delivers if the content comes from your own working practice, the starting level has been measured and practice takes place in real work situations. An open group course suits individual development; tailored in-company training suits teams that need to perform better towards customers and partners quickly. If you are unsure which format fits, you can arrange a no-obligation introduction with Speak And Spoke. In sixty minutes the situation is reviewed and you receive tailored advice straight away.