Press Releases

2005 Mar 29

GIVE US CHARISMA NOT CLASS, SAY BRITISH BOSSES

Almost half (49 per cent) of UK company directors and senior managers believe that a plummy or posh upper-class accent is now a hindrance rather than a help when it comes to succeeding in business, according to research from The Aziz Corporation, the UK’s leading independent executive communications consultancy.

However, having a working-class accent is considered even worse, with 86 per cent of those who took part in the survey feeling it is a disadvantage in business. 64 per cent of businessmen believe that in fact a neutral accent is a strong advantage.

Professor Khalid Aziz, Chairman of The Aziz Corporation, which conducted the survey as part of the eighth annual Aziz Management Communications Index, comments:

“The days when merely speaking with ‘the right accent’ was a prerequisite to rising in the business world are now all but gone, although being an effective communicator is still paramount.”

“The rise of Britain’s self-made men, often from working-class backgrounds, such as BHS boss Philip Green or Ryanair’s Michael O’Leary reflects the changing profile of the successful boss. These are people who aren’t afraid to speak their minds, and are proud to make a virtue of the fact that they have worked their way up from humble beginnings to positions of influence. In both cases though, they are better known for their forceful and charismatic personalities than for their class origins.”