Translated from 日本語 • View original ISAO's personnel system has English standards, and if you don't clear it, your salary will not increase, and in some cases, your rank will be demoted.
ISAO calls people who cannot receive a salary increase due to English as "TOEIC refugees".
*English standards are currently based on TOEIC.
This system is very unpopular with some people.
I would like to write about why ISAO is particular about English.
Japan's Decline in the World
In recent years, Japan's presence in the world has continued to decline.
In 1994, Japan's share of the world's economic size (GDP) was 17.7%. It was the second largest in the world after the United States.
Since then, Japan has experienced a long-term stagnation called the "lost 20 years," and the world's GDP share fell to 6.1% in 2017, one-third of what it was 20 years ago.
Japan's future is not bright as for the future.
The decline in population and the decline in the working population due to aging have spurred the market share, and its market share will continue to decline in the future.
According to a PwC report, by 2050, it is expected to rise from its current third place to eighth place, surpassing Indonesia and Brazil.
Still, I think many of us Japanese people think that Japan is safe and our lives are not bad.
However, if you look at it calmly, the number of non-regular jobs has increased in the lost 20 years, and the number of poor people has doubled.
Due to the declining birthrate, the proportion of the younger generation is decreasing steadily, and pensions are decreasing by at least 20-30%.
Today's elderly are a relatively wealthy generation, but it is expected that the number of elderly people suffering from poverty will increase rapidly in 30 years.
The number of tourists has increased, but it is because they feel that "Japan is cheap".
The average annual income in Japan is about 4.5 million yen, while the average annual income of office workers (200 million people) in China, excluding rural areas, is now 7.5 million yen.
It is significantly higher than Japan.
It is said that the sales manager of a major Chinese company earns 30 million yen a year.
Japan is no longer a wealthy country.
Human resources are being taken away by foreign capital
Let's turn our attention to companies.
The semiconductor industry, which dominated the world 30 years ago with a 50% market share, has been sluggish and is now at 7%. Even in the manufacturing industry, except for the automobile industry, it is lagging behind other countries.
Toyota Motor Corporation, the top Japanese company by market capitalization, is 22 trillion yen.
China's Alibaba is 45 trillion yen. Samsung is 40 trillion yen.
Microsoft, the world's top company, is 110 trillion yen, five times that amount.
With its abundant financial power, major overseas companies are attracting more and more excellent Japanese human resources.
In the IT industry, it is common for foreign companies to be offered 1.5 times or twice the salary of a Japanese company and be poached by a foreign company.
In this era of rapid change, human resources determine competitiveness.
In particular, how to secure excellent human resources is probably the most important issue for Japanese companies today.
Companies that stay in Japan have no future
It can be said that the future of companies that continue to do business only in Japan, which continues to lose excellent human resources and shrinks, is very bleak.
For companies, there is only one option for the future.
It's about globalizing your team and expanding your business to the world.
It is to retain human resources by overwhelmingly growing businesses in the world and raising salaries.
Global Team
In order to develop global business, it is necessary to form a global team, not just Japanese people.
So we must first globalize our team.
As with ISAO, in companies that do business mainly domestically, mixing global human resources doubles communication costs, which initially reduces productivity. In addition, compared to a team with a high degree of homogeneity and only Japanese people, we have to accept diverse values, which can be confusing in management.
If you don't overcome this painful process, you won't be able to achieve team globalization.
If you can overcome this, build a diverse global team, and become a company that can compete in the global market, you will be qualified to survive strongly in the 21st century market.
English as a Common Language
When it comes to the common language of global teams.
This is only "English".
English is no longer the language of the United Kingdom or the United States.
It is the common language of business in the world.
Conversely, since it is a language for business communication, you don't need to be a native speaker.
Logical thinking that can be used globally and the ability to communicate in English.
Even if you are Japanese, having these is a prerequisite for the coming era.
Speaking English is Not Meaningful
English is a tool.
The most important thing in work is the content. Without it, it is completely meaningless to be able to speak English.
Just because an American elementary school student speaks English doesn't mean they can do global business.
But if you can't speak, you can't even stand on the starting line of global business.
Therefore, it is absolutely necessary to be able to speak English first.
English Comes Suddenly
A long time ago, a song like "The new boss is a foreigner" became popular.
Just because you don't need English now doesn't mean you won't need it next year.
Your company may start expanding globally.
Also, your company may suddenly be acquired by a foreign company one day.
There is a much higher possibility that you will find yourself in an environment where English is required at your new job.
**English comes suddenly. **
And unfortunately, it can't be done suddenly. We can only build up steadily.
I hope that even one of the people who have thought that "I don't need English" will read this blog and think, "Let's start studying English!"
If you are interested in learning English, please read the story of ISAO's ace who overcame English.