Managing Business Communication Education in the Era of Artificial Intelligence: Linguistic Challenges and Opportunities

Abstract

Business communication has changed, and what is considered competent has evolved with the rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI), particularly generative AI. The advent of AI, and specifically generative AI, has reshaped what is considered competent in business communication and how it can be taught, practised, and assessed. This chapter critically analyses and synthesises relevant research in applied linguistics, business and professional communication, educational technology, and AI in education, examining their influence on this transformation. It posits that although AI could enrich the linguistic and pedagogical landscape with more opportunities for personalised feedback, multilingual rehearsals, simulations, and workplace-aligned practice, the pedagogical benefits of employing such tools must remain dependent on maintaining human authorship, pragmatic sense, intercultural sensitivity, and critical checking. Existing research is encouraging but fragmented, with most studies focusing on short-term language output in English. Remaining areas of research, including oral interaction, workplace transfer, multilingual business environments, disability, and long-term impacts on cognition, are largely under-researched. A holistic approach is suggested that combines the development of the ability to communicate effectively, the ability to act as a competent user of AI, genre awareness, ethical reasoning, and human-AI collaboration. The chapter ends with guidelines on what should be included in the curricula, strategies for assessing information, classroom applications, and a policy for responsible human-centred adoption.

Keywords: Artificial Intelligence in Education; Business Communication; Applied Linguistics; Generative AI; AI Literacy; Professional Communication; Language Learning; Higher Education