Using business English as a lingua franca for written and spoken communication : challenges encountered by Thai human resources professionals in an American multinational company
Unquestionably, English is a medium for international communication, particularly in multinational companies (MNCs). In this regard, professionals who work in MNCs, including human resources (HR), inevitably encounter challenges in using English in the workplace environment where people are from di...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
2022
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| Online Access: | http://journalarticle.ukm.my/21271/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/21271/1/TE%202.pdf |
| _version_ | 1848815312196075520 |
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| author | Krich Rajprasit, Janista Sirisuksakulchai, Kanyanut Srimontra, Nutcha Pitakpornsin, Phatcharin Letakulkit, Picharee Phaiboontham, Soungkwan Dumrongruedee, |
| author_facet | Krich Rajprasit, Janista Sirisuksakulchai, Kanyanut Srimontra, Nutcha Pitakpornsin, Phatcharin Letakulkit, Picharee Phaiboontham, Soungkwan Dumrongruedee, |
| author_sort | Krich Rajprasit, |
| building | UKM Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Unquestionably, English is a medium for international communication, particularly in multinational companies
(MNCs). In this regard, professionals who work in MNCs, including human resources (HR), inevitably encounter challenges in using English in the workplace environment where people are from diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds. This study attempts to examine how Thai HR professionals perceived the role of business English as the lingua franca (BELF) and how they faced the challenges in using English for workplace communication. This survey study employed a mixed-methods approach for data collection. A questionnaire survey and semi-structured interview were developed to collect the data. Thirty-nine Thai HR professionals at an American oil and gas subsidiary in the Bangkok metropolitan area were purposively selected. Data collected from both instruments were analysed using descriptive statistics and content analysis, respectively. Our data analysis demonstrates that most of the respondents had a positive attitude about using BELF in their organisation. However, it was necessary for them to be aware of their interactants’ diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds and to effectively use BELF and avoid serious mistakes in their written and spoken communication. In summary, this study reveals that the Thai HR professionals understood the BELF concept and faced more difficulties in spoken communication tasks (e.g., press briefings and business negotiations) in comparison to written tasks. The findings can be beneficial for educators and HR trainers in terms of awareness of intercultural business communication and guidance for developing BELF-oriented courses for university students, graduates and HR professionals. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-15T00:47:58Z |
| format | Article |
| id | oai:generic.eprints.org:21271 |
| institution | Universiti Kebangasaan Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-15T00:47:58Z |
| publishDate | 2022 |
| publisher | Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | oai:generic.eprints.org:212712023-03-07T03:02:17Z http://journalarticle.ukm.my/21271/ Using business English as a lingua franca for written and spoken communication : challenges encountered by Thai human resources professionals in an American multinational company Krich Rajprasit, Janista Sirisuksakulchai, Kanyanut Srimontra, Nutcha Pitakpornsin, Phatcharin Letakulkit, Picharee Phaiboontham, Soungkwan Dumrongruedee, Unquestionably, English is a medium for international communication, particularly in multinational companies (MNCs). In this regard, professionals who work in MNCs, including human resources (HR), inevitably encounter challenges in using English in the workplace environment where people are from diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds. This study attempts to examine how Thai HR professionals perceived the role of business English as the lingua franca (BELF) and how they faced the challenges in using English for workplace communication. This survey study employed a mixed-methods approach for data collection. A questionnaire survey and semi-structured interview were developed to collect the data. Thirty-nine Thai HR professionals at an American oil and gas subsidiary in the Bangkok metropolitan area were purposively selected. Data collected from both instruments were analysed using descriptive statistics and content analysis, respectively. Our data analysis demonstrates that most of the respondents had a positive attitude about using BELF in their organisation. However, it was necessary for them to be aware of their interactants’ diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds and to effectively use BELF and avoid serious mistakes in their written and spoken communication. In summary, this study reveals that the Thai HR professionals understood the BELF concept and faced more difficulties in spoken communication tasks (e.g., press briefings and business negotiations) in comparison to written tasks. The findings can be beneficial for educators and HR trainers in terms of awareness of intercultural business communication and guidance for developing BELF-oriented courses for university students, graduates and HR professionals. Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia 2022 Article PeerReviewed application/pdf en http://journalarticle.ukm.my/21271/1/TE%202.pdf Krich Rajprasit, and Janista Sirisuksakulchai, and Kanyanut Srimontra, and Nutcha Pitakpornsin, and Phatcharin Letakulkit, and Picharee Phaiboontham, and Soungkwan Dumrongruedee, (2022) Using business English as a lingua franca for written and spoken communication : challenges encountered by Thai human resources professionals in an American multinational company. 3L; Language, Linguistics and Literature, 28 (4). pp. 13-28. ISSN 0128-5157 https://ejournal.ukm.my/3l/index |
| spellingShingle | Krich Rajprasit, Janista Sirisuksakulchai, Kanyanut Srimontra, Nutcha Pitakpornsin, Phatcharin Letakulkit, Picharee Phaiboontham, Soungkwan Dumrongruedee, Using business English as a lingua franca for written and spoken communication : challenges encountered by Thai human resources professionals in an American multinational company |
| title | Using business English as a lingua franca for written and spoken communication : challenges encountered by Thai human resources professionals in an American multinational company |
| title_full | Using business English as a lingua franca for written and spoken communication : challenges encountered by Thai human resources professionals in an American multinational company |
| title_fullStr | Using business English as a lingua franca for written and spoken communication : challenges encountered by Thai human resources professionals in an American multinational company |
| title_full_unstemmed | Using business English as a lingua franca for written and spoken communication : challenges encountered by Thai human resources professionals in an American multinational company |
| title_short | Using business English as a lingua franca for written and spoken communication : challenges encountered by Thai human resources professionals in an American multinational company |
| title_sort | using business english as a lingua franca for written and spoken communication : challenges encountered by thai human resources professionals in an american multinational company |
| url | http://journalarticle.ukm.my/21271/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/21271/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/21271/1/TE%202.pdf |