Excerpted from article by Jessica Holbrook Hernandez.
I recently helped out a friend who had grown up on an UN military base in Germany; as a result, he was fluent in both English and German. Although he has resided in the North America throughout his entire adult life, most of his professional positions have involved interacting with German companies. Another friend who is a native of the Philippines has spent much of her career handling Filipino business deals for her American employers. If these candidates hadn’t thought to mention their fluency in a foreign language, imagine the value that would have been lost from their resumes.
Experience with international business travel:
Let’s be honest, your company doesn’t fly just anyone over to Europe or Asia to handle its international business partnerships. It sends a person who is considered to be the best representative of what the company is all about—and that’s you. You should mention your experience with international travel in your cover letters; and if it’s appropriate, you can also include it when describing accomplishments from specific positions you have held in the past.
As an executive, you are looking for a higher level of responsibility and reward from your next position. With less than 25% of North Americans able to converse in a foreign language—mentioning these attributes helps paint a picture of you as the distinguished candidate that you are.
