In a recent episode of the WRKdefined podcast 'You Should Know,' communications coach Peter Novak challenged the conventional wisdom that flawless English is the cornerstone of effective workplace communication. Novak, founder of Strictly Speaking Group and a former professor at the University of San Francisco, contends that clarity, confidence, and trust are far more critical, especially as global teams become increasingly distributed.
Novak, who holds an MFA in acting and a doctorate in dramaturgy, draws on decades of coaching executives at major corporations. He highlights how unconscious bias, particularly the well-documented like-me bias, often determines who gets promoted and believed. This bias, he argues, penalizes non-native speakers whose communication styles differ from the dominant culture, even when their ideas are superior.
A key insight from the conversation is the role of phrasal verbs—such as 'take off,' 'take up,' and 'take over'—in derailing non-native English speakers. Novak recommends using AI prompts to replace these with stronger, clearer verbs, making language more accessible. He also cites a McGill University study on foreign accents that links confident delivery to trust and credibility, regardless of grammatical perfection.
The implications for business leaders are significant. Novak reframes inclusive communication as a bottom-line issue, stating, 'The best way to position it is that this is a business issue, that you need your communication to be as clear as possible to everyone, not just to a select few.' He pushes back on the notion that non-native speakers must adapt, invoking a Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers analogy: 'Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did, only backwards and in high heels.' Non-native colleagues, he notes, are translating and interpreting in real time while native speakers barrel ahead.
Novak offers concrete tactics for leaders. He describes building executive 'voiceprints' by feeding hundreds of hours of transcripts into AI, allowing leaders to deliver scripts that sound authentically like them. He also shares a 20-question intake tool that helps executives communicate their preferences—from pre-reads to agenda formats—to their teams. Additionally, he notes how investor relations teams now run CEO earnings calls through AI to score language choice and tone of voice.
The episode underscores cultural intelligence as a competitive advantage. Novak references his own preparation for business in Tokyo and Dubai, and observes that Latin American teams often operate trilingually in Spanish, Portuguese, and English until a monolingual American enters and collapses the exchange back to English. By prioritizing clarity over perfection, leaders can foster trust and collaboration across borders.
The episode featuring Peter Novak is available now on 'You Should Know,' a WRKdefined podcast that tackles pivotal leadership challenges shaping the modern workplace.
