Developing team with language training

Multilingual skills in a company are more than just a nice bonus: It’s an investment in your team to equip it for the increasing requirements of an internationalized world and to establish an open, inclusive team culture. That’s how team communication and collaboration, even with customers and partners, can be strengthened in the long term. The positive effects of language learning have an influence at other levels as well: Training for the brain promotes strategic thinking, autonomy, and innovation. You can also reinforce your employer branding by offering language learning and present yourself as an appealing, internationally oriented employer — always a considerable advantage when trying to attract the best talent. It also boosts the feeling of accomplishment that comes with learning something new along with increasing self-confidence and motivation. That leads to more satisfied employees who perform better and feel more connected to the company.

When many people think of language learning, they picture traditional in-person lessons in a classroom, but the efficiency of e-learning is in fact scientifically proven! Learning success really depends on the choice of didactically based and high-quality language learning solutions that cover the requirements for all learning types. That’s why the creators of Babbel have spent years working with different learning approaches and language learning techniques to develop the Babbel Method: efficient and personalized learning in practical 15-minute lessons that are both user-friendly and engaging. The online learning provides maximum flexibility, allowing users to learn when and where they want, with short lessons that they can integrate into their everyday work life. That’s how digital language learning becomes a habit and leads to long-term success.

In general, digital language learning with an online platform is a great addition to in-house lessons because it lets learners independently review and further develop what they’ve learned. Because of COVID-19, in-person classes can’t take place for now and need a safe alternative. If you want to invest in your team’s continuing development in times of crisis, it’s a good idea to go for a digital language learning solution. That enables not only decentralized and socially distanced learning, it also saves money and resources that would otherwise be needed for teachers, rooms, and material. For companies that don’t want to do without guided lessons, Babbel for Business offers an effective learning method with blended learning, where independent learning with the Babbel app is combined with video lessons with a teacher. That guarantees quick progress, regardless of lockdown restrictions.

The digital language courses from Babbel are specifically designed for the complex requirements that companies have. Teams benefit from this in a number of ways. Employees learn practical, job-related vocabulary that they can use in the workplace right away. The digital format enables everyone to start at their own learning level, practice at their own pace, and review specific problem areas. The advantages of Babbel for Business go far beyond learning a new language: The multimedia learning activates all the senses, promotes creativity, and ensures an enjoyable learning experience with quick successes. A common learning experience strengthens cohesion within the team and promotes an inclusive and open company culture, where life-long and long-term learning is emphasized.

Culturally diverse and multilingual teams have become standard in our globalized world. That brings new communication challenges. For an efficient team that communicates without misunderstandings, as well as respectful and open collaboration, two strategies are foundational: improving communication in the common working language and highlighting the linguistic diversity in the team as an enriching factor. With Babbel, your company benefits from the possibility to offer multiple languages at different learning levels with the same language learning solution. That way, for example, your international team members can learn English, while English speakers can familiarize themselves with their colleagues’ languages. In this way, your team not only communicates more confidently in another language, they also develop connections and familiarity with each other.

There’s no question that language learning pays off financially for companies. It motivates and encourages employees in their personal growth and increases team performance as well as opportunities for more revenue. To make the effects of language learning concretely measurable, management should define ahead of time where language skills are important, which specific skills should be improved (e.g. making more efficient phone calls), and what learning intensity is needed. Babbel for Business provides usage statistics that give you insight into each team member’s learning time and completed lessons. That’s how those responsible for learning progress can follow along and make sure that the goals they’ve set are being reached.

It depends on what learning goals a company has. Babbel for Business offers different products for all situations and requirements. For more than 800 companies, Babbel is already the perfect language learning solution: That’s how forward-looking bank N26 introduced digital language learning with Babbel as an employee benefit for their international workforce to allow for more flexible learning and to overcome cultural barriers. Babbel can also be used for intensive language training in a blended learning format combined with individual or group lessons online. That’s how health service provider OneShare Health does it: To reach a new market, the company needed quick learning success and used the flexible and crisis-proof continuing development program Babbel Intensive, which includes learning with the app and individual video lessons online.

All the products include access to the Babbel language learning platform where learners can get started at their own language level, get explanations in their native language, and decide what they want to learn. The intuitive user interface motivates employees to learn and increases their self-confidence working with digital tools. Short 15-minute lessons allow for flexible learning during breaks or on the way to work, and they don’t create an additional burden for an already full schedule. That enables regular bite-size learning and ensures long-term learning success. For teams that want to build their language skills even faster, Babbel offers holistic blended learning solutions: With Babbel Live, employees deepen independent learning in group video lessons, which gets the learners speaking and strengthens team cohesion, even when working from home. The individual video lessons from Babbel Intensive enable effective language training that focuses on the needs of the individual so that learning goals are reached quickly.

It can be a challenge to keep up your employees’ motivation to learn. That’s why our Account Management team is by your side from the beginning to help you use your Babbel accounts optimally. Your team will be led through a professional onboarding process and receive valuable motivational material as well as sector-specific learning paths. As a manager, you can also contribute to learning success by motivating your team in targeted ways and establishing a long-term language learning culture: Set concrete learning goals from the beginning and encourage your employees to develop a regular learning routine. However, if you find that some users aren’t active, you can transfer their access at any time to other users to avoid any unnecessary costs.

Success in independent learning depends less on how flexible the format is and more on a learning culture that motivates and enables employees. That includes a company infrastructure that supports learning (e.g. physical and virtual learning spaces, learning coaches), common learning goals, and a fixed learning routine. The type of learning is also crucial for learning success: A digital product is more motivating for many people than in-person learning, which has also lost some appeal because of the pandemic and related risks.

A high degree of flexibility doesn’t have a negative effect on independent learning — quite the opposite: A lack of flexibility can bring challenges when the learning schedule doesn’t fit into the requirements of everyday life.

You’re welcome to try out our successful formula for corporate language learning and see for yourself. We offer you and your team a “test drive” so that you can familiarize yourself with our product. Just  book a product demo where you’ll get a detailed introduction to our award-winning language learning platform with all its features. We’ll give you individual advice on how your team can communicate more efficiently with Babbel for Business and which language learning solution fits your requirements best.