English fluency can often become an important part of job interviews in India. But what happens when a candidate struggles with the language while excelling at the actual work?Mumbai entrepreneur Kanan Bahl recently shared a hiring experience that raised this question. He interviewed a candidate from a Tier-2 city whose English was weak, but whose sample task impressed him. Since the job involved clients, Bahl initially had doubts. He still decided to give the candidate an opportunity.According to Bahl, that decision eventually led to his best hire.
A strong task changed the decision
The candidate’s technical performance stood out during the interview, despite his difficulty with English.“I interviewed a guy from a Tier-2 city whose English was terrible. But he was too good with his sample task. I was still overthinking about hiring him because his role involved facing the clients. I still hired him!”Bahl said his decision also came after seeing candidates who were comfortable with English but lacked the technical skills he needed.
The employee communicated in Hindi
Bahl chose a practical approach for client communication. He asked the employee to speak confidently in Hindi instead of making English the requirement.“I was tired of hiring people great with their English but terrible with their technical skills. Today he’s my best hire. I asked him to communicate confidently in Hindi with clients.”
His larger point about English
Bahl used examples of people who communicate successfully in their native languages to explain why English should not be treated as a measure of intelligence.“People like Kumar Vishwas attract the highest speaking audience because he’s great with his Hindi. Never heard him speak in English. The Japanese, Chinese, Koreans – all speak in their native languages and they hardly know how to speak in English. Speaking good English is important but it isn’t the a barometer of your intelligence or capabilities.”
Social media users share their views
The post led to several comments from people discussing their own experiences with English and employment.One user wrote, “Let me tell you. Here in Australia, hardly any hiring managers take English into account for any technical job, even if the job is client-facing.”Another said, “In other countries, English is a language; however, in India it is treated as a skill. That’s a sad trend.”A third commenter shared their experience of moving to the US without being fluent in English.“I relate to this one. I moved to the US without being fluent in English. You figure it out when you have to. Fluency can be learned. Curiosity, capability and the willingness to figure things out are much harder to teach.”Another user focused on the expectations placed on Indian candidates.“Companies expect English-speaking skills like a native English speaker from the candidates. How could anyone speak like native English speakers when we speak our mother tongue most of the time? The majority of Indian parents don’t speak English, so we can’t speak in English at home either.”Disclaimer: The information in this article is based on the social media post and comments referenced in the report. The views expressed are those of the individuals quoted and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Times of India.Thumb image: Canva (for representative purposes only)
