The term “broken English” is often used in a negative context, insinuating that someone isn’t speaking the language correctly. But as the CEO of a global security enterprise, I think of broken English as my company’s lingua franca.
At Trend Micro, our senior management team speaks eight distinct languages, oversees employees in 65 countries, and spans over a dozen time zones. Operating in a melting pot of cultures and communicating in our shared language, broken English, is how we unite the efforts of all our teams. It’s far from a weakness–it is one of our greatest strengths.
Cybersecurity is inherently global
At Trend Micro, embracing linguistic diversity isn’t just a cultural decision. It’s a strategic one, too. Today, cybercriminals operate in every corner of the world and speak every language. They, too, work together across cultures and languages to achieve their goals. In fact, our own research has found that cybercriminals often choose to communicate in “broken English” rather than their native tongues, both to communicate more easily when coordinating malware attacks and to obscure their origins.
The truly global nature of the threat landscape highlights the need for a security workforce that’s not just technically proficient but also capable of working across time zones, languages, and cultures. With thousands of multilingual researchers stationed around the world, we’ve successfully unraveled threats much more efficiently than we would have with nothing but raw data to look at. Our teams are able to address cyber threats no matter which country they originate from and work with organizations around the globe to defend their critical assets.
Some of the most significant, real-world impact we’ve achieved is through our partnership with global agencies like INTERPOL. We’ve worked with law enforcement agencies worldwide to address cyber threats across Africa, and most recently, in Singapore, among many others.
Linguistic diversity powers innovation
English is considered the global language of business, but it is not my mother tongue. Although I am fluent in English, I grew up speaking Mandarin. As CEO, I bring my unique, multi-cultural perspective to the role. Being bilingual helps me understand the world better. Ultimately, it enables me to be a more empathetic, effective leader.
There’s an intrinsic value in multilingualism that should be clear to business leaders. Research has shown that multilingualism isn’t just good for the individual–it also benefits companies, the economy, and the workforce. Organizations that embrace linguistic diversity are well-positioned to innovate ahead of their competition and succeed in global markets.
We actively encourage this diversity. At our upcoming 2023 AI Contest (we also hosted one in 2018), thousands of Trenders worldwide will participate in an AI hackathon and many different languages (including coding languages) will converge in the pursuit of learning. We designed the competition, which will take place in Japan, to enhance our awareness of and expertise in AI. Communicating in “broken English” is how employees from around the world will work together and compete.
It’s important for people to innovate and collaborate freely, and being able to overcome language barriers is an important part of that.
Diversity beyond language
I am one of the few women CEOs in the cybersecurity industry today. As such, my philosophy on “broken English” isn’t just about language–it supports my goal of creating a more diverse cybersecurity and tech industry. This includes the vital task of developing cybersecurity knowledge in regions that are often overlooked by the technology industry.
A tenet of building a company that can succeed in every region of the world is creating opportunities for diversity to flourish. With this in mind, we sponsor scholarships for women in cybersecurity, provide internships for underrepresented communities, and foster partnerships with universities worldwide to nurture a diverse pool of future cybersecurity experts. For example, we run a training program tailored for women in the Middle East, aimed to equip them with the skills they need to thrive in an industry experiencing an ongoing cyber skills shortage.
Each of these initiatives moves us forward as a company and as an industry. I strongly urge my fellow leaders to be intentional about bridging the skills gap today to bring more underrepresented voices into cybersecurity.
In a world that has never been more interconnected, “broken English” isn’t a term of derision, but a testament to what we gain by uniting cultures, ideas, and expertise. It empowers us to better serve our customers, understand and mitigate cyber threats, and innovate more efficiently than the bad guys.
It’s not just about speaking a common language–it’s also about understanding and valuing the unique perspectives that every voice brings to the table. Let’s work toward a future in which “broken English” can bring us all together.
Eva Chen is the CEO of Trend Micro.
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