The Positive Impact of Language Training

Background

A highly motivated language student pursued his HR representative for an exception to his relocation package to include language and cultural training, as he felt that both of these programs would positively impact his effectiveness in his new short-term role. The request was granted, and the student received a small, but beneficial, budget to be used toward language training.

Challenge

This student was located in an area that IOR had not actively worked in for many years, and our contacts there were unresponsive. The assignment was short-term, and time could not be wasted in finding a new instructor. That, coupled with the student’s small budget, encouraged us to be creative in our approach when setting-up this student’s language program.

Solution

The student was open to virtual training with an IOR certified language trainer over Skype, which allowed us to set-up his language lessons within 1 business day. Because the virtual trainer was located in a lower-cost area than the student, the student was allotted more hours than he originally thought he would receive. This is because we charge our client the pricing based on the teacher’s location which in this case, was cheaper than the student’s host location. While the student began with virtual training, our office continued to search for a face-to-face teacher, and within 3 weeks, we were able to introduce him to a face-to-face teacher to supplement the online training he received with in-person conversation practice.