Language and Globalization: The Mandate to Speak English at Rakuten

Japan’s largest online retailer Rakuten is rapidly expanding into global markets. In order to ensure the success of the organization, but also to break down linguistic and cultural boundaries in Japanese society, CEO Hiroshi Mikitani mandates English proficiency within two years for all employees. Harvard Business School professor Tsedal Neeley discusses her cases entitled “Language and Globalization: ‘Englishnization’ at Rakuten” — the thinking behind Mikitani’s mandate and why there’s such a strong connection between language and globalization.