> I am helping a friend with something. I would appreciate hearing what > comes to mind when people think of Asians, Asian-Americans and > specifically Chinese or Korean women. There are no correct answers > here, nor will I be showing the answers to anyone. I am just > interested in seeing how she I comes.
The first thing I think of is a social quietness or reticence, even in business settings. I see it more with Asian women just coming to the U.S., but it seems to wear off over time. > Part two: You have two applicants for a position that involves cutting > edge knowledge of science, let's say, as well as coding ability. Both > are female, have a PhD and are otherwise similarly qualified. One is > Asian, one is white. Do the latter factors matter and if so how? I don't think it matters. > Part three: as above but the position is purely clerical. Both women > have appropriate and very similar qualifications. Again, does > ethnicity matter and how? Again, doesn't matter. > If you answered yes to one of the above questions, would it make a > difference whether the Asian candidate was an immigrant who had a good > grasp of the language, but had a heavy accent, vs being born in the US > and having speech patterns very similar to yours? Of course fluency > matters, but enough to change your reaction in the above situations, > and if so how? Language matters because communication matters. Having said that, I have hired Asian men and women with significant accents and communications challenges. I try to judge who will be the best at their job. If verbal communication is a significant part of the job, then a person's speaking skills become an important criteria in weighing their potential for success. The thing I advise any non-native english speaker is the same thing I have done in learning foreign languages. Get an expert native speaker to teach you cadence, intonation, speech pattern, local idioms- anything to improve your abilities. I don't necessarily advocate mimicking a local accent completely. A slightly different accent can come off as worldly and sophisticated, as long as it sounds polished. For young people just coming to the country, especially engineers who may not have top-notch communication skills to begin with, I recommend finding a local college and taking speech classes through the drama department. It's a big committment, but for someone who wants to get ahead, it's a great investment in time and effort. Some Indian firms are doing this with employees who work help desks. The Chinese by reputation have the toughest time with this aspect of english. Sorry for the long answer but the subject is really interesting and apropos for my business. > thanks for any answers. Dana ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Message: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=i:5:198127 Archives: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/threads.cfm/5 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=s:5 Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=89.70.5 Donations & Support: http://www.houseoffusion.com/tiny.cfm/54
