Businesses can miss out on almost as much as individuals can when they encounter a language barrier, except businesses need the individuals to get them through the problem. One can imagine how hard it might be for an English speaking company to market their products in an Arabic speaking country, for example. Another situation might involve two branches of a company, each located in a different country with their own languages. They would need assistance communicating with each other unless some employees were well versed in the other language. Businesses need these people, sometimes dedicated translators and sometimes they have other duties within the company, to facilitate their communication with the foreign branch or marketplace.
“Photos: Cutting-Edge Coca-Cola Offices Around the World.” The Coca-Cola Company, The Coca-Cola Company, 6 June 2016, www.coca-colacompany.com/stories/12-cutting-edge-coca-cola-offices-around-the-world.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that the job market for interpreters and translators will expand by 18% over the next ten years. This is an increase that they claim as much faster than average, as the estimated roughly twelve thousand jobs added are joining a market of only about sixty eight thousand. Additionally, this market is just for those who only interpret or translate. Surely, having other skills on top of your language abilities that you can lean back on will be greatly helpful, if the company does not have a spot for someone who can only interpret, but would still benefit from an employee with some language experience.
There are even programs set up to help fill this need for people skilled in language. One of these programs, the National Security Language Initiative, was started by President George W. Bush to help fill these jobs, by sending students to other countries to learn the language there. The aim for that program was most likely to get students ready for government jobs rather than employment in the private sector, but the initiative was started nonetheless. But still, Abbott notes that the federal government has continuing problems with fulfilling these language-intense jobs. Other programs also try to prepare children for these jobs, or just so that they can experience the other benefits. One method of encouraging students to be bilingual is the Seal of Biliteracy. When Abbott had written about it, there were thirty states using the Seal to encourage students to learn other languages. If a student graduated with a proficiency in two or more languages, they earn the Seal on their diploma.