English as an Official Language. In Japan?

In the past, Japan had a market primarily focused on business within the company and viewed the global market as an addition to its vast domestic market. However, things are changing rapidly. With the decline in general sales in the domestic market due to a catastrophic recession, many organizations are looking to move forward on a full scale globalization process. One of the first companies to get a jump start on this was Uniqlo, a clothing brand similar to H&M with fast stocking and affordable fashion. They have spread from Japan to England, America, China, Korea, France and have recently opened a new store in Malaysia. This is not the only factor which pushes Uniqlo into a global minded company. They have recently decided to use English as their official language in Japanese head quarters. All employees are expected to speak and pursue business in English at all times. Even the cafeteria has converted to English! Although keeping a global mind is a good idea, it can be problematic to convert a company residing in Japan into an English speaking company. It is quite obvious that communication will become more confusing and misleading when everyone uses a second language to communicate. Since using English as an official language in companies’ is a fairly new concept, it will be interesting to keep an eye out for if companies like Uniqlo will be successful in the future.

Article: http://injapan.gaijinpot.com/2010/06/30/english-speaking-japanese-companies/