Client Background

Microsoft is a global technology company employing over 180,000 people worldwide. English is the official language of internal communication across Microsoft’s international offices, including its team in South Korea. For employees in non-English-speaking regions, this can present a daily challenge.

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At Microsoft Korea, employees with limited English proficiency faced barriers to effective communication at work. These challenges were amplified by limited speaking opportunities outside of the office and high levels of foreign language anxiety, a common issue among multilingual professionals working in global teams.

The Challenge

Microsoft Korea wanted to improve employees’ ability to communicate confidently in English. However, traditional language learning methods often emphasize grammar and vocabulary over speaking practice, and anxiety about speaking up in professional settings can prevent learners from progressing.

An international team of professionals gathered in a simple meeting space, using English in a business context.

The goal was clear: reduce foreign language anxiety and help employees become more confident using English in both professional and personal settings.

The Solution

To address these challenges, Microsoft partnered with IMMERSE to deliver a 16-week English language course using immersive learning. Each participant received a Quest headset and had the opportunity to join one-hour English sessions once or twice a week inside the IMMERSE platform.

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The course was custom-built to simulate real-world communication scenarios such as meetings and casual conversations and was taught by an MA-TESOL-qualified instructor trained to teach in virtual environments. Participants appeared inside the platform as avatars, which helped reduce performance anxiety and created a more comfortable space for learning.

Results and Impact

The results of the pilot were overwhelmingly positive:

  • 100% of participants enjoyed learning English in realistic immersive environments

  • 86% reported an increase in confidence using English at work and in their daily lives

  • 85% said they would like to continue learning English in immersive environments

  • 71% described their overall learning experience in IMMERSE as positive

Employee feedback emphasized how avatar-based learning environments lowered anxiety and made speaking practice feel more natural:

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“I felt like I was using English directly in the virtual world. I liked this a lot.”

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“When I joined the VR English training, I could speak up more confidently.”

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“I love the various types of environments I could attend.”

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These immersive experiences helped employees develop confidence, use English more freely, and enjoy the process.

Key Takeaway

By partnering with IMMERSE, Microsoft Korea demonstrated that immersive training can provide a low-anxiety, high-impact solution for workforce language development. The custom course allowed employees to build practical communication skills in a flexible, realistic setting, thereby paving the way for better collaboration within teams.