1. Mary E. Risner
University of Florida
CIBER Business Language Conference
UNC Chapel Hill
March 21-23, 2012

2.  Importance of Advocacy
 Professional Learning Network (PLN)
 Connecting Business to Foreign Language
 Connecting Language and Culture to Business
 Curriculum Development
 What Can You Do?

3.  Power of a more visible consolidated group to
demonstrate strength of the field
 Disseminate existing resources, models, and
research to those just starting out (avoid re-
inventing the wheel)
 Provide tools for faculty to present to admin
for support of programs

4. Post-secondary
Secondary
Professional
Foreign Language
Schools

5.  Social Media: Free platforms and tools to
connect professionals at a distance
 Leverage “Globalization”/21st Century Skills:
More focus and media covering the need for
“global” skills across the curriculum

6.  Larry Summers Is Wrong About Languages
 How Global Language Learning Gives Students the Edge
 Is Learning a Foreign Language Necessary for a High School Education?
 4 Reasons Why “Global Fluency” Matters – an open letter to 6th graders
everywhere
 Current and Future Language Demands in the Workplace: Proficiencies
and Gaps
 Engaging Business Students with Real-World Situations
 Workforce Skills Reality Check
 Global Competitiveness Report
 Future Work Skills 2020: Cross-Cultural Competency
 Global Citizenship – What Are We Talking About and Why Does It Matter
 Bloomberg- Mandarin Chinese Most Useful Business Language After
English
 Globalizando al MBA

7. Success in the Global Marketplace Through
Language and Intercultural Competence

8. Network of Business Language Educators
 www.nble.org Resource Portal
 First meeting- August 2009
 Site live- October 2009

12.  Local, regional, national conference
presentations: foreign language, business
education, technology
 Conference exhibit booths
 Support K-12 lessons, teacher presentations
 Twitter @langforcareers
 Presence on other social networks, resource
sites

14.  FFLA-One business language session each
year
FFLA 2011:
 Pre-conf workshop (corporate site visits)
 Business keynote speakers
 Series of sessions on specific languages,
business language teaching in general
 Proposing translation/medical sessions for
2012

17.  Toward a New Generation of Globally Aware
Citizens
 Need for Language Training Across the
Disciplines

18. Collaboration with business education
associations
 State
 Regional
 National
 Propose international themed sessions at
conferences
 Suggest names for international speakers
 Share resources

20. Language, Business and the “Halo Effect”

21. International Retail Education and Training
(IRET)
 Project addressing need for enhanced
international retail training through a variety
of activities:

22. Areas of Focus- Emerging Markets (China,
Brazil)
 Multimedia resources on retailing in Brazil,
appropriate for infusion into
marketing/retailing courses
 Faculty collaboration
 Case studies
 Corporate speaker visits (virtual and F2F)
 Study Tour

24. Project integrating online modules designed to
develop intercultural competence and
knowledge of area studies into undergrad
business courses.

26.  Time
 Marketing know-how
 Participation rate
 Consolidation of materials/efforts
 Buy-in at language associations (fear of
“business”)
 Buy-in at business education conferences (more
culture/area studies concern over language)

27.  Connect and stay up-to-date through NOBLE
PLN
 Present on business language/advocate at
local/regional conferences
 Help by sharing resources specifically on
business language: program models, events,
presentations, initiatives

28. Should Have Studied a Foreign Language…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5G1L-
YpTXWs
What if you had the chance of a life time, but
blew it because you didn’t understand the
language?
http://actflvideocontest.org/?p=268

30. mrisner@latam.ufl.edu
@langforcareers