Notes: International Trade & Investment Specialist
My name is Ian Ross and I am an International Trade and Investment specialist working with Scottish Development International, with geographic responsibility for China and India. The role sees me advise oil and gas supply chain companies on best practice for entry into new markets, particularly China and India.
I also am an Inward Investment specialist. This means that I work to ensure that any companies from outside Scotland seeking to develop trade partnerships with us register, hire people and begin to trade as smoothly as possible as soon as they set up here.
What languages have you learned?
I have kept up my Spanish from school and have recently completed an in
tense Mandarin course. I am planning to do an intense Japanese course over the winter.
How have any language skills helped you in your work?
I visit China at least once each year and host at least four Chinese companies annually, who visit Scotland to investigate the possibility of investing here. I find that general welcomes, introductions and other niceties in Mandarin are very well received in meetings and at corporate dinners.
What benefits do you think language skills bring?
Conversing with speakers of other languages in English can be difficult, particularly in the context of business. Frequently things can get lost in translation. In my role, when I use Mandarin, it helps to establish some cultural understanding, and this makes the overall interpretation between languages easier. Chinese people appreciate that I have put effort into learning about their country and language, and this can take the stress out of business transactions, making selling more efficient.
Do you have any advice for anyone learning a language?
Learning a language needs perseverance, time, effort and continual practice 
. There are resources on the internet that can help, and I have made use of online tutors. Why not sign up for a 90-day language challenge if you struggle to stay motivated? Language immersion is key, so watching films, listening to music, and talking to native speakers as often as possible are important.
Any tips on how to approach communicating in a new language?
Try to find and learn words that are close to their English equivalents and build sentences around them.
Develop a script around who you are, what you do, where you are from and why you are learning the language.
Learn some key questions as well as "please" and "thank you".
Try to pick out individual words until you are in tune with the speed of delivery.
How does cultural awareness help language learning?
Cultural awareness must be developed in parallel with language learning. Never believe that our humour or manners translate directly to another culture!
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