Investigating the effectiveness of a business English training programme for Malaysian government executives

This study evaluates the effectiveness of a targeted business English training programme, focusing on meeting etiquette for executives in the Malaysian government sector. The training design and evaluation were guided by an integrated conceptual framework combining Constructivist Learning Theory, Social Learning Theory, and Kirkpatrick’s Four-Level Evaluation Model. Pre-training and post-training tests were administered in this study, which consisted of 25 items relating to business English meeting etiquette that assessed the participants’ knowledge of appropriate behaviour and language to use during professional meetings. The participants comprised 18 executives (13 men and five women) from UiTM Sarawak, Kota Samarahan, who held diverse roles across various departments, aged between 20 and 60 years old. The findings revealed that the overall increase in the test scores suggests that the training programme was generally effective in improving the participants’ meeting etiquette skills, where a majority of the participants (77.8%) showed improvement in their test scores after engaging in the training programme. Although most participants demonstrated improvement, a few showed no change or a slight decline. this study highlights the crucial impact of a training programme on the executives’ skills, with outcomes influenced by various factors, such as individual motivation, goal clarity, and learning theories. These findings emphasise the importance of tailoring training programmes to individual needs and contexts to maximise effectiveness. While the programme effectively enhanced meeting etiquette, its long-term impact hinges on addressing demographic diversity, cultural relevance, and sustained practice.