Filipinos and Their English Communication Skills
Filipinos and the English language. While the language isn’t the country’s first language, it is spoken highly fluently by the Filipino people. As a matter of fact, according to the 2022 EF English Proficiency Ranking, the Philippines ranks as the 20th most English proficient country in the world, and the 2nd in the entirety of Asia.
This very fact is a primary factor as to why multiple foreign businesses outsource operations to the Philippines. Different sectors take advantage of the Filipino workforce, from telecommunications to the medicine industry. They turn to the country for customer service operations, virtual assistants, and so much more. Not only is the country filled with hardworking employees, language barrier is also little to non-existent.
Whether you’re a tourist or a business owner, if you’ve been to the Philippines or have interacted with multiple Filipinos in your life, you know how fluent they are in English. They can flourish in their respective industries no matter where they are in the world, especially if it is an English-speaking country. Many Filipinos are excellent customer service representatives, agents, writers, assistants, and more.
How Filipinos Have Excellent English Communication Skills
Over 47% of Filipinos are reportedly competent with the English language. People of all ages from the country are fluent in the language, whether they’re a primary school student or an adult who’s working full-time. For a country from the eastern half of the planet that doesn’t treat English as its primary language, how is it that Filipinos are so excellent at it?
As it happens, there are a lot of logical reasons for this. As an employer or a client who is looking to work with a Filipino, learning why Filipinos are so great at English is valuable so you can understand them better as workers. On top of that, it should give you a better appreciation of the country’s workforce.
ESL Classes
One of the reasons why Filipinos are highly adept at the English language is the country’s education system. English is taught as a subject in the country from the earliest levels all the way up to college. Students in schools and universities are highly encouraged to speak English while they are in their respective educational establishments.
It can even be said that English is the primary language in most, if not all Philippine schools. It is taught as much as Tagalog, the country’s national language. Lessons and presentations are done in English. As such, students are able to understand and speak the language from a very early age.
Exposure to Western Culture
Aside from learning English in school, Filipinos also learn a lot from Western media. The Filipino people are highly exposed to Western pop culture and its entertainment industry as a whole. Many Filipinos even prefer watching Hollywood movies and TV shows over local media.
From kids watching cartoons and young adults watching superhero movies, Western pop culture looms largely over the Philippines. On top of gaining entertainment from them, it is also a way for Filipinos to learn English. They learn the formalities and structure of it from school and learn the lingo and informal patterns of the language via movies and shows.
Excellent Conversationalists
Filipinos are widely known to be highly talkative people. Most of them, anyway. They love sharing their thoughts and they equally enjoy hearing stories from other people. As such, they converse with anyone they can whether they are speaking with a local or with a foreigner. Language could never be a barrier when it comes to a Filipino’s desire to converse with people.
The more they learn about the language, the more they speak it. The more they speak it, the more proficient they become at it. That being said, the English language has been a part of the country’s culture so much that the Philippines is now one of the best English-speaking countries in Asia.
The Country is a Tourist Hub
The Philippines is a frequently visited place by travelers from all around the world. Being an archipelago with various elevations, not only is the country filled with sprawling economic hotspots in the major cities for investors and business owners, but it also has beautiful beaches and mountains for adventurers and vacationers. The country has become a massive tourist hub over the years that tourism is one of the country’s major economic drivers.
The Filipino people are also known for their hospitality. They will always consider the comfort of their visitors. As such, they prefer to speak to tourists in English so communication is easier for them.
Language and Status
In the Philippines, when a person is fluent in English, they are often perceived as “intelligent” or “respectable.” It is almost a status English-proficient Filipinos wear with pride. While this isn’t truly the case in the general sense, many people believe it enough that they are motivated to learn the language merely to sound smart or competent to their peers.
This motivation may be unfortunate and is a byproduct of misconception but it has led to many Filipinos being extremely fluent in the language.
Filipinos’ Communication Skills and Their Impact on the Workplace
As an organization that interacts with other customers and clients on a regular basis, having employers that communicate properly is essential. That’s something you can expect when you hire workers from an English-proficient country like the Philippines. Aside from that, the following are the impacts that can be brought upon by a Filipino worker’s communication skills.
Comprehension
Because English is such a natural language for Filipinos, comprehension is almost never a problem for them. When you give them instructions or tasks in English, they will understand that completely. Not only that, they’ll also do that task impeccably.
This is why so many companies prefer hiring remote workers from the Philippines. All they’ll have to do is leave tasks to the Filipino employee and that task is considered done.
Interactivity Among Employees
English is the universal and unanimous language in the world of business. With that in mind, if your company is filled with workers who come from an English-speaking country and a Filipino joins the fold, interactivity won’t become a problem.
This ensures morale stays up within your organization. Your employees will be able to work together without an issue as they share tasks and projects and they can also socialize with one another. Considering the fact that Filipinos also enjoy engaging in conversations with other people, socializing within the workplace almost becomes a guarantee.
Clients and Customers Appreciate Them
Many businesses outsource their customer service department to the Philippines. Not only is it less costly, but Filipinos also make excellent customer service representatives. They are fluent in English and they’re cordial. Customers greatly appreciate the fluency and congeniality of a Filipino customer service rep. It’s why businesses employ from the country time and time again.
You can also rely on a Filipino employee or assistant to handle client relations. They’re highly competent at it for the exact same reasons why they make great customer service reps. On top of that, the Philippines as a country is generally multicultural, making Filipinos almost like a cultural chameleon. They’re able to adapt and adjust to anybody regardless of where they are from.
Workplace Productivity
Because Filipinos comprehend instructions well and are fluent in English, they perform tasks easily and correctly. They interact with workmates, making them great team players. They are friendly and hardworking. Combine all of those facts and the productivity in your workplace will rise.
Filipino employees are bound to talk to their workmates and socialize with them. This is something you’ll have to encourage rather than dissuade. Allow your employees to socialize with each other time and time again and watch their productivity rise. Hire a Filipino employee and this can happen easily.
Excellent Filipino Virtual Medical Assistants
Virtual assistants are becoming more and more needed in today’s economic climate. Most businesses prefer to hire remote workers and this includes their need for an assistant. Instead of hiring an in-house assistant, they hire remote assistants instead. As it happens, Filipino employees make some of the best virtual assistants in the world.
Consider everything you’ve just read above and you’ll realize that you’ll get an incredible virtual assistant when you hire one from the Philippines.
They are great at speaking English. They can communicate clearly with you and comprehend the tasks you assign to them. You can rely on them to handle your clients. In fact, multiple CEOs assign their Filipino virtual assistants to meet with some of their clients whenever their schedules are too loaded. Finally, they are highly productive, ensuring efficiency.
VMedX is home to highly qualified, carefully selected, and sufficiently trained virtual assistants. The ability to speak English fluently is a skill we greatly value. We specifically only hire workers who have excellent communication skills, are fluent in English, and have neutral accents. That way, the virtual assistant that ends up working for you can converse with you clearly and naturally, as well as with your clients.