The quiet organization - why a common language does not always create a linguistic community - By : HANNE TANGE

Imagine an office environment in an international company in Denmark. Around you employees are going about their daily routines. They write e-mails while chatting to their neighbours, exchange a few comments on their way to the photocopier, and gather in the break to discuss their boss, holiday plans or news on a joint project. Try then to imagine the same space, only without the noise: A work environment where employees perform their duties quietly and most of the chit-chat has disappeared. This is the situation in many organizations that have adopted English as their corporate language. In spite of arguments for a common medium, Danish employees find that the language change has implications for social interaction within the workplace; that the corporate language does not facilitate the informal and relaxed style of communication that they associate with conversations in their mother tongue.