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Questions From HR: 4 recommendations to help employees communicate effectively online
“An employee in our company is required to regularly present online. The problem is her presentations are very unclear. Are there some recommendations you can make to support internationally trained employees to more effectively present online?” In today's digital...
Questions From HR: 4 things to consider regarding accent modification and older clients
"We have an executive who has asked for accent training. It is true that she is often unclear but she’s almost 50. Is it too late to make changes?" The short answer is that it is not too late. People often assume that the younger one is, the easier it is to assimilate...
Questions From HR: 3 reasons someone may have an abrupt tone…and what can be done
"We have a senior VP who is really abrupt. People are finding her rude and hard to work with. How can we deal with this?" There are three principal factors that influence communication styles: Cultural conditioning Personal conditioning Emotional state Let me take...
Questions From HR: Dealing with confusing English
"One of our designers is brilliant and has an impressive work background. But her speech is confused - it can be difficult to know what she is trying to say or what the goal of the conversation is. Can she learn to speak in a more orderly fashion?" ---- It is...
Questions From HR: 5 ways to support people with comprehension issues
“We have several employees who perform exceptionally well but they seem to struggle with listening comprehension. What can we do to support them?” Even someone who speaks a language well can struggle with listening comprehension. Local accents, casual speech,...
Questions From HR: 5 reasons corporate language training might not be successful
“We have an executive who needs some help to refine his English communication skills. He could use some accent modification training and support with clear communication. What factors can influence the success rate of such training?” For best results, the person being...
Questions From HR: 5 tips for getting your new pronunciation into your speech
“An accountant at our company says she studied pronunciation previously. Unfortunately, her speech is still unclear. How can she get what she learned into her day-to-day speech?” 1. Develop a short pronunciation practice habit – piggyback it on a habit you already...
Practice Clear Speech: Mairzy Doats
Poems and songs are fun ways to practice clear speech. The following popular 1943 poem called "Mairzy Doats" is the perfect example of...
Avoid Uptalk & Communicate With More Certainty & Confidence
What is uptalk? When we ask a question which requires a yes or no answer – Do you live near here?⮵- our intonation rises. Sometimes we use this intonation throughout our speech. Because it is similar to the question intonation, it implies we are waiting for a response...
PART 1 of Our New Video Series – “The Schwa: The Lazy Vowel”
Over COVID, a close friend and videographer, Sue Mitchell helped me put together a series of videos about the most common vowel in English, one you likely have no knowledge of, even more so if you are a native speaker. It is called the schwa, what I refer to as “the...
