Today I read a post in LinkedIn by Nithin Pathak about a company’s re-interview incident. This happened as the candidates were not so good with their communication in English. It goes like this, the candidates could not explain their achievements the first time as the interview was in English. However, the company was kind enough to give them a second chance to converse using Hindi along with English. And finally the candidates impressed the interview panel and got the job offer. Happy ending.

Readers were praising the good decision of the company. So many patriotic comments and some sensible comments. Couple of the sensible comments I would like to mention here –

Brave decision. However when management takes such initiative, it is their responsibility to empower them with resources to brush up their language skills. – Hiren Patel

English skills can always be improved. – Arnab Dutta

They should be prepared to improve their communication skills. – Shardul BHATT

You can read the full post here : Nitin Pathak – Linkedin

Now even I appreciate the company’s act which provided job to two well deserved candidates. Many deserve a chance to prove themselves in a language they are comfortable with. But are we trying to give a wrong message to the next generation? Yes, English is just another language, it’s just a tool. But there is nothing wrong with learning another language which will definitely help people to communicate globally. So it is very important to have that basic knowledge in English, regardless your career.

We don’t need to become an expert in English language. But know the basics to communicate. If this post is in a regional language or in Hindi, most of you wouldn’t be able to read it. Technology is only getting there to translate without mistakes. So let’s not tell the next generation, English is not required. Encourage them to learn English. Encourage them to improve. If you are good technically, definitely you can improve your English language too. You may not always get a second chance. Also let’s not ignore someone who did not get the chance to learn English. Give them a chance.