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Tovarish-speak English
K Ray Beauregard-Goldstein, our CEO Stan's cost-effective & private chef is in France on a private vacation, so Stan ate in the 3rd floor cafeteria.
Stan called me to his room after lunch. He summoned me by text, using his Blackberry Q10, which he dislikes intensely. Stan calls his BB "Canadian crap".
"Glo, at lunch I noticed that the Chinese all sit together and speak Chinese and the Russians all sit at the same table and speak Russian and the Israelis sit at the same table and speak Jewish, arguing with one another."
Stan did not notice that, even worse, the Indians all sit at a the same table and speak 40 languages.
Stan was born in Minnesota whereas I am from Moose Jaw in Canada. I have a more global outlook, as it were.
Stan concluded: "Gloria, we are not acting like a global company. We need an English ambience; we need an English only police-Y. No one except the Russians speak Russian any more."
Stan guided me:"Gloria, use lunch as an opportunity to mix the populations and get everyone on the same page, speaking the same, God damn language-and I don't mean Russian, Jewish or Chinese."
I shall delegated this linguistic task to Cynthia Axe, who handles delicate issues like our Early Bird Retirement Plan.
I shall delegated this linguistic task to Cynthia Axe, who handles delicate issues like our Early Bird Retirement Plan.
Stan sent a text directed to Ms Axe, telling her to "stand her ground" in the dining hall.
That is very true, I work recently to the company where all are polishes, only me speaking different but in English. I am trying so hard to see what they are talking about. But it ok, I am smart and going to figure out
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone speak Polish any more?
ReplyDeleteI know that some Poles speak Russian but NO Russian speak Polish.
And in global business, Polish aand Russian and Chinese are useless. Almost like French. But French is global.
Yet English is the MOST global.
Gloria
ps it takes 80 years to learn Chinese.