Multinational corporations often are multilingual entities, yet surprisingly little is known about how foreign-language competencies in their foreign subsidiaries are related to local employees’ career success outcomes. This paper uses human capital and upward mobility theories to link local employees’ English language competencies through career encouragement and internal social capital development behavior to job promotions, wage increases, and career satisfaction in two independent studies conducted in foreign subsidiaries in Japan. Study 1’s findings are derived from 499 local employees at three points in time over 12 months in 376 foreign subsidiaries. These findings suggest that career encouragement mediates the positive relationships between English language competence and job promotions, wage increases, and career satisfaction. Study 2’s findings are from a sample derived from 448 local employees in 265 foreign subsidiaries with a similar time-lagged research design. These findings provide further support for the direct relationship of English language competencies to job promotions, wage increases, and career satisfaction, and that social capital development mediates the positive relationships between English language competencies and job promotions and career satisfaction. This paper contributes to the literature on international business by highlighting the importance of English language competencies to local employees’ career success outcomes in foreign subsidiaries operating in non-English-speaking countries.

跨国公司通常是多语种实体，但令人惊讶的是，对于其外国子公司的外语能力与当地员工的职业成功成果之间的关系知之甚少。本文使用人力资本和向上流动理论，通过在日本的外国子公司进行的两项独立研究，通过职业鼓励和内部社会资本发展行为将当地员工的英语能力与工作晋升、工资增长和职业满意度联系起来。研究 1 的调查结果来自 376 家外国子公司 12 个月内三个时间点的 499 名当地员工。这些研究结果表明，职业鼓励在英语语言能力与工作晋升、工资增长和职业满意度之间存在正向关系。研究 2 的结果来自一个样本，该样本来自 265 家外国子公司的 448 名当地员工，具有类似的时滞研究设计。这些发现为英语能力与工作晋升、工资增长和职业满意度之间的直接关系提供了进一步的支持，并且社会资本发展在英语能力与工作晋升和职业满意度之间起中介作用。本文通过强调英语能力对在非英语国家经营的外国子公司的当地员工职业成功成果的重要性，为国际商务文献做出了贡献。这些发现为英语能力与工作晋升、工资增长和职业满意度之间的直接关系提供了进一步的支持，并且社会资本发展在英语能力与工作晋升和职业满意度之间起中介作用。本文通过强调英语能力对在非英语国家经营的外国子公司的当地员工职业成功成果的重要性，为国际商务文献做出了贡献。这些发现为英语能力与工作晋升、工资增长和职业满意度之间的直接关系提供了进一步的支持，并且社会资本发展在英语能力与工作晋升和职业满意度之间起中介作用。本文通过强调英语能力对在非英语国家经营的外国子公司的当地员工职业成功成果的重要性，为国际商务文献做出了贡献。