Language training for remote teams: how distributed teams learn effectively online

Remote work and language: why distributed teams need their own language training

Distributed teams need their own language training because much of their coordination happens in video calls, chats and emails, often with colleagues in other countries. What gestures and quick questions make up for in the office has to work precisely in words when remote. And in hybrid meetings, anyone joining online in a foreign language quickly falls behind.

Hybrid working has become everyday reality in Germany. According to the Federal Statistical Office, around 25 per cent of all employed people worked from home at least occasionally in 2025, compared with only 13 per cent in 2019. In large companies the figure was 35 per cent, and in IT services as high as 74 per cent (Destatis, in German).

For communication, this means more coordination takes place in video calls, chats and emails, often with colleagues in other countries. What is smoothed over in the office by gestures, a quick question at someone’s desk or a chat in the kitchen has to work precisely in words when remote. Vague phrasing leads to misunderstandings more quickly, and people who feel unsure in a foreign language tend to stay on mute in large calls.

At the same time, a traditional classroom course is hardly practical for distributed teams. That is why online formats are not the second-best option here but the obvious one. Professional language courses for companies can be organised so that employees in Munich, Vienna and Zurich learn together in one group, without anyone having to travel.

Hybrid teams: the underestimated imbalance

Hybrid meetings, where part of the team sits together in the room and the rest joins online, are particularly tricky. The group in the room speaks faster, interrupts each other and, when in doubt, switches to German. Anyone joining online and working in a foreign language quickly loses the thread. Language training for hybrid teams should therefore train not only the language itself but also facilitation techniques that give everyone a fair chance to contribute.

Which online language courses suit remote teams?

Live formats work best for remote teams: one-to-one video sessions for managers, key roles and very different working hours; small groups of four, at most six, for teams with shared tasks; team training with real material for project teams; and blended learning when workloads fluctuate. Self-study apps complement lessons but don’t replace speaking practice.

Example: a study plan for one quarter

A project team of six people at three sites works at B1 to B2 level and has regular calls with a client in the UK. A realistic plan for three months might look like this:

• Month 1: status meetings and stand-ups, phrases for video calls, pronunciation of key technical terms
• Month 2: communicating problems and delays, asking for clarification, chat and email
• Month 3: presenting interim results, handling objections, a final simulation of a client call

There are two 45-minute lessons a week. Between sessions, each person completes a short task, such as a real email to the client, which the group then improves together in class.

Our experience at choices®: live lessons in small groups or one-to-one remain the core, because that is the only place where active speaking with feedback happens. Apps and AI tools are useful supplements for vocabulary and writing. Our article on learning English with AI describes where their limits lie.

Organising language training for distributed teams: time zones, schedules, technology

Organise language training for distributed teams with fixed weekly slots, early and late times shared fairly across time zones, and short 45-minute lessons that fit between calls. On the technical side, your usual video tool, a headset, a camera and a shared document for vocabulary are enough. Form groups by level and shared communication situations, not by location.

Scheduling and time zones

• Agree fixed weekly slots rather than changing individual appointments
• With several time zones, share out early and late slots fairly, not always at the expense of the same sites
• Prefer short 45-minute lessons; they fit better between calls
• Block learning time in calendars and have managers protect it

Technology

• Use the video tool that is already standard in your company, so there are no extra hurdles
• Agree on a headset and a quiet environment as the minimum standard
• Camera on, as it should be for any good meeting
• Set up a shared document for vocabulary and notes

Forming groups

Groups should be formed by level and shared communication situations, not by location. With distributed teams in particular, it is an advantage that colleagues from Nuremberg and Prague can learn in the same group. The basis is a placement test as part of a needs analysis. Our article on planning language training in your company describes the full planning process.

English in video calls: the content remote teams really need

Remote teams need English for situations that arise in video calls: running stand-ups briefly and clearly, naming technical problems, interrupting politely and taking the floor, asking again when the connection was poor, summarising results and assigning tasks, and writing precisely in chat and email. Good training starts here rather than with general topics.

Typical situations

• running stand-ups and status meetings briefly and clearly
• naming technical problems without derailing the call
• interrupting and taking the floor without sounding rude
• asking again when the connection was poor
• summarising results and assigning tasks
• writing precisely in chat and email

Useful phrases for video calls

If you chair meetings, you will find more phrases in our article on leading meetings in English. For calls without video, see our guide to telephoning in English. You can train these situations systematically in our Business English courses.

Chat and email in English: written communication in remote teams

In distributed teams, much of the coordination happens in writing. Short chat messages replace the conversation at someone’s desk, and emails document decisions. This is where typical weaknesses show, especially in German-speaking teams: messages are factually correct but come across as curt or demanding in English. In our courses, writing and speaking are often the bottleneck.

And those active skills are exactly the ones you need constantly when working remotely.

Before and after: making chat messages friendlier

Quick practice

Rephrase the following messages in a friendlier way. Suggested answers are below.

1. I need your feedback today.
2. You didn’t answer my email.
3. This is not what we agreed.

Answers: 1. Would it be possible to get your feedback by the end of today? 2. Just following up on my email from Monday. Have you had a chance to look at it? 3. I may have misunderstood, but I thought we’d agreed on a different approach. Could we quickly align?

You will find more templates for written communication in our guide to writing emails in English.

Intercultural communication in remote teams: fewer signals, more misunderstandings

Many non-verbal signals are missing in video calls. A frown goes unnoticed, a hesitation looks like a connection problem, and short chat messages quickly sound unfriendly. In international teams the effect is stronger, because cultural differences in directness and politeness come on top. Simple team rules help to compensate for the missing signals.

Team rules that help

• Go round the group for opinions instead of waiting for people to speak up spontaneously
• Speak more slowly and avoid idioms
• Always record decisions in writing
• Don’t skip a friendly opening line in chat
• Schedule regular informal calls without an agenda, so that relationships can develop

Our article on intercultural communication at work explains the background to directness, hierarchy and feedback culture. Which language applies in calls, chats and documents can be set out in a corporate language policy.

How do remote employees stay committed to an online language course?

Remote employees stay committed when the course isn’t sacrificed between two calls. What helps: content from real working life, a fixed group, teacher and time slot, short progress checks with feedback to learners and HR, managers who ask about it, and small groups where absence is noticed. The biggest risk in online training is gradual absence, not technology.

1. Make it relevant: content from real working life, such as the next presentation or a difficult client conversation.
2. Create commitment: a fixed group, a fixed teacher, a fixed time.
3. Make progress visible: short progress checks and feedback to learners and HR.
4. Involve managers: managers ask what has been learnt in the course and acknowledge progress.
5. Keep groups small: in a group of four, absence is noticed; in a group of twelve, it isn’t.

You will find more strategies in our article on motivating employees to learn languages.

Common mistakes in language training for remote teams

Common mistakes are relying solely on apps that hardly train spontaneous speaking, forming large online groups, scheduling lessons in the lunch break, learning with cameras off, forgetting new colleagues and doing without reporting. Each of these costs speaking time, commitment or the data HR needs to make decisions.

• Relying only on apps. Self-study programs hardly train the spontaneous speaking that calls demand.
• Large online groups. With twelve people in a call, each person speaks for only a few minutes per lesson.
• Scheduling lessons in the lunch break. This signals that learning is a private matter.
• Cameras off. Without video, facial expressions and pronunciation cues are lost, and the teacher can correct less precisely.
• Forgetting new colleagues. People who start remotely need particularly structured language support. Our article on onboarding international professionals offers tips.
• No reporting. Without attendance and progress data, HR has no basis for decisions.

Checklist: introducing online language training for remote teams

Before you introduce online language training for a remote team, check eight points: language needs and levels recorded, communication situations collected, groups of no more than six formed, fixed slots agreed across time zones, technical standards set, learning goals agreed with managers, reporting to HR arranged and German courses planned for international colleagues.

• Language needs and levels of all team members recorded, for example with a language audit
• Communication situations in everyday remote work collected (calls, chats, emails, presentations)
• Groups formed by level and need, with a maximum of six people
• Fixed slots agreed, taking time zones into account
• Minimum technical standards set
• Learning goals defined for each group and agreed with managers
• Reporting to HR agreed
• Online German courses planned for international colleagues as well

choices® teaches exclusively online and specialises in flexible formats for companies. Our teachers come from 10 countries and know the challenges of international collaboration from their own experience. Find out more on our page online corporate language courses, or write to us directly via our contact page.

Sources

1. destatis.de: PD26 N024 13
2. ef.de: germany

Frequently asked questions