More about Leading Language
Our Mission
At Leading Language, our mission is first and foremost to provide our clients with the highest quality of services for their employees to better understand one another, bridge communication gaps and improve company-wide collaboration.
Our Values
Through our work, we want to apply the best practices and principles that contribute towards a more resource-efficient and more inclusive society.
Our Story
-
Leading Language is a proudly women-owned business, founded in Johannesburg in 2013.
-
We provide language training, business skills training and translation services to our corporate clients with our experienced team of freelance trainers and translators delivering training and services remotely using video-conferencing platforms.
-
Training is instructor-led and all lessons are specifically curated to our clients’ requirements.
-
Our client base includes top South African and foreign companies that have invested in the African continent.
Meet the founder
Our CEO and founder, Karen Longley, has dual French and South African citizenship and has spent most of her professional life working in France. She returned to South Africa in 2012 and created Leading Language in 2013. With more than 30 years in the corporate training industry, she is highly skilled in the creation, organisation and implementation of training programmes and in 2020, with an impending lockdown, she made the decision to digitise her business activity to concentrate exclusively on online training. As a committed woman entrepreneur, she was a member of the Board of Directors of the FSACCI from 2017 until 2023. In addition, as an alumni of the Graça Machel Trust Women Creating Wealth 2020 programme, she has continued to provide mentoring and inspiration to women entrepreneurs across the African continent.
Our Statement
The people of our African continent are immensely resourceful with thousands of languages and cultures that make it such a vibrant workplace. However, people speaking languages native to different regions can create misunderstandings, gaps in communication and prevent companies from accessing the highest levels of efficiency.
Our Solution
Language barriers and culture-based communication barriers are the most common challenges encountered but working with people of different cultures and backgrounds is actually what drives innovation, creativity, and ultimately success.
Our Belief
At Leading Language, we believe that diversity should be embraced as a driver for creativity and success. We want to promote a better working environment that makes everyone comfortable, where everyone has an equal chance to shine and where diversity is celebrated.
Our Sustainability Commitment
At Leading Language, our mission is first and foremost to provide our clients with the highest quality of services for their employees to better understand one another, bridge communication gaps and improve company-wide collaboration.
Ethics and Anti-Corruption Policy
As part of our Sustainability Policy Statement, Leading Language is committed to transparency, integrity and accountability, ensuring that our business is conducted according to the highest ethical standards.
Policy on Reporting Unethical Activity
Leading Language is committed to transparency, integrity and accountability, ensuring that our business is conducted according to the highest ethical standards.
Grievance Policy for External Stakeholders
External stakeholders are those who do not directly work for the Company but are affected somehow by the actions and outcomes of the latter. Clients, suppliers, creditors, and public groups are all considered external stakeholders.
