Language management and social interaction within the multilingual workplace

Purpose – This paper aims to identify communicative practices emerging from the management decision to implement English as a corporate language, assessing their implications for social interaction and relationships within the multilingual workplace. Design/methodology/approach – An exploratory study based on qualitative research interviews was used. Findings – The analysis highlights the discrepancy between a general openness to the use of English as a corporate language in Danish organisations and language users' communicative practice. This leads to the identification of language clustering and thin communication as characteristic behaviours within the multilingual workplace. Research limitations/implications – The interviews were performed in Danish organisations alone. New research is required in order to apply the findings to other linguistic or national settings. Practical implications – The research identifies two barriers to employee interaction within the multilingual workplace. This is relevant in relation to language planning as well as diversity management. Originality/value – The paper is original in its application of a sociolinguistic perspective to employees' linguistic practice. This points to the importance of language as a social resource and the possible limitations of corporate language policies.