In the book International Dimensions of Organizational Behavior, Nancy Adler suggests the following strategies if you encounter a language barrier:

Verbal Behavior

• Clear, slow speech. Enunciate each word. Do not use colloquial expressions.

• Repetition. Repeat each important idea using different words to explain the same concept.

• Simple sentences. Avoid long, compound sentences.

• Active verbs. Avoid passive verbs.

Non-Verbal Behavior

• Visual restatements. Use as many visual restatements as possible such as pictures, graphs, tables and slides.

• Gestures. Use appropriate facial and hand gestures to emphasize the meaning of words.

• Demonstration. Act out as many themes as possible.

• Pauses. Pause more frequently.

• Summaries. Distribute written summaries of your verbal presentation.

Accurate Interpretation

• Silence. When the other person is silent, wait. Do not jump in to fill the silence. The other person is probably just thinking more slowly in the nonnative language and translating.

• Intelligence. Do not equate poor grammar and mispronunciation with lack of intelligence; it is usually a sign of nonnative language use.

• Differences. If unsure, assume difference, not similarity.

Comprehension

• Understanding. Do not just assume they understand; assume they do not understand.

• Checking comprehension. Have colleagues paraphrase their understanding of your presentation back to you. Do not simply ask whether they understand. Let them explain what they understood.

Design

• Breaks. Take more frequent breaks. Second language comprehension is exhausting.

• Small modules. Divide the material you are presenting into smaller modules.

• Longer time frame. Allocate more time for each module than you usually need for presenting the same material to native speakers of your language.

Motivation

• Encouragement. Verbally and non-verbally encourage speaking by nonnative language participants.

• Drawing out. Encourage marginal and passive participants to contribute.

• Reinforcement. Do not embarrass novice speakers.

Adapted from International Dimensions of Organizational Behavior, Adler, with permission from Thomson Learning