The Language Leaders Podcast

Steering Success: Sana Ronda's Journey to Building One of France's Leading Corporate Language Training Companies

How did Sana Ronda transform a struggling 20th-century brand into a thriving 21st-century corporate language training empire, now serving over 13,000 learners annually?
Discover the secrets of B2B success in the latest episode of the Language Leaders Podcast.
Sana is one of the most resilient and charismatic language leaders I've interviewed. In our conversation, we explore:
The founding of Linguaphone, tracing Sana's journey from scrappy startup in 2005 to the leader of a language empire today;
No-nonsense advice on how to thrive in corporate sectors in France;
Turning crisis into opportunity time after time during Sana's 19-year entrepreneurial journey (You'll respect her as much as I do once you hear her stories from the 2008 financial crisis and COVID-19.).
👉 Don’t miss out on these exclusive insights from a seasoned language leader. Tune in today.

Governing Languages: How a Family-Owned Business Became the Leading Provider of Language Services to the Government of Canada (B2G).

Discover the unique journey of a family-owned business that has emerged as the leading language training provider for the Canadian government.
 
In this episode, Jeremy Frohlich, COO of LRDG, offers an insider's look into blending family values with the aspirations of building a globally recognised language training service.
 
In our conversation, we delve into:
The origins of LRDG, highlighting Jeremy's transition from sales to leadership within the family business.
The intricacies and strategies behind successfully navigating government tenders and contracts, offering invaluable insights for businesses eyeing public sector partnerships (B2G).
How governments are thinking about AI and how to find the right balance between compliance and progress.
Tune in today. 

Empowering Language Learners: Katie Brown’s Journey to Revolutionize ESL Education

The U.S. presents unique challenges and opportunities for ESL education, catering to a diverse population of immigrants, refugees, and speakers of other languages. In this episode with Katie Brown, founder and Chief Education Officer at EnGen, we delve into:
The founding journey of EnGen, aimed at empowering non-native speakers with essential English skills for inclusion and economic mobility.
A deep dive into the ESL education landscape in the U.S., highlighting the needs of immigrants and refugees, and how EnGen addresses these through technology and personalized learning.
Expert advice from Katie on navigating and succeeding in the ESL education space, and the upcoming trends poised to reshape language learning.
Join us for an insightful conversation on transforming ESL education with Katie Brown.
Tune in today.

Breaking Into Japan: Tyson Batino’s Secrets to Language School Success

Japan is one of the largest markets of language education in the world but is a challenging market to enter. In this episode with Tyson Batino, the visionary behind two successful English language schools in Japan, we discuss:
How Tyson founded and scaled his language businesses, One Coin English and Japan Switch
Explains the language education ecosystem in Japan including Eikaiwa, Gakudo and afternoon schools, Jukus (cram schools), online teaching and more.
Provides advice on how to win the Japanese market and what trends are likely to impact the future of language education.
Tune in today.

From Startup to Scale-up: The LiveLingua Story with Ray Blakney

Want to learn from an entrepreneur who completed the language entrepreneur journey from founding to selling? If so, then you won't want to miss this episode featuring Ray Blakney. Ray is the mastermind behind Live Lingua, an online language school that he co-founded in 2008 and sold in 2023.
In this episode, Ray shares his remarkable journey and discusses a variety of topics related to entrepreneurship and the language teaching business:- The founding story of Live Lingua- How to scale an online language business (and get to the top of Google)- The future of the language learning sector- The potential impacts of AI on language learning
You will want to listen to this podcast episode if you want to gain valuable insights on entrepreneurship, language teaching, and business success. Gain practical tools and perspectives to navigate today's dynamic landscape.

Building the fastest-growing language business in Europe: An interview with Michal Kelles-Krauz

In this episode, we talk with Michal Kelles-Krauz, the co-founder of Angloville and Tutlo, about his entrepreneurial journey, the challenges he faced, and the unique concepts behind each of them.
If you’re interested in startups and the power of pursuing one’s dreams, this conversation is definitely worth a listen.
 
Note: If you prefer to read the transcript of this episode, please visit https://blog.learncube.com/tutlo

Balancing Learning & Product with Natalia Jaszczuk

How do you lead product at a top-tier corporate language training company? 
In this episode with Natalia Jaszczuk, Head of Product at Learnlight, we dive deep into the crossroads of pedagogy and product development to answer:
- What's the right balance (or "tension") between pedagogy and product?
- How do we overcome the common challenges for product teams in language businesses?
- What is the role of AI in language education now and looking into the future?
 
This was a fascinating conversation and one you won't want to miss. Tune in today.

Giacomo Moiso - A Founders Story, Pivoting from B2C to B2B in Language Training

In this episode, I sit down with Giacomo Moiso, the co-founder of Fluentify. 
Together, we dive into Fluentify's impressive transformation: from a budding B2C startup to a key player in the B2B corporate language training sector in Europe.
We'll follow Giacomo's inspiring story, the key strategies to sell successfully to large organisations and get a sense of where the market is going.
If you want to learn more about how to succeed in the corporate language training space, this is an episode you won't want to miss.
Tune in today and don't forget to subscribe.
 

Welcome to the Language Leaders podcast

Welcome to the Language Leaders Podcast! I'm your host, Alex Asher. The aim of this podcast is to provide insights, inspiration, and foresight into emerging trends for leaders in language education.
I started this podcast because I felt there was no one else, and nowhere else, where these important conversations were happening around to grow a successful, scalable language business.
In each episode, I interview a leader in the language education or LangTech space. Together we will dive deep into the diverse challenges and opportunities of our sector, covering all angles including product, technology, operations, pedagogy and leadership.
I hope you enjoy it and please subscribe so you don't miss out on ideas that could transform your business.