More and more teams find themselves having meetings in Spanish: with clients in the region, with suppliers, with headquarters or colleagues in Spanish-speaking countries. And that's when a specific problem shows up: someone can have decent conversational Spanish and still feel insecure in a work meeting.
The reason is simple: meeting Spanish isn't the same as everyday Spanish.
Why Meeting Spanish Is Different
Chatting with a coworker in the hallway and leading a meeting with clients are two completely different scenarios. In a meeting, you need to welcome people, guide an agenda, express opinions with confidence, reach agreements, and close with clear next steps. These are specific language structures — "getting by" in conversation isn't enough.
That's why many teams who already have intermediate Spanish still feel uncomfortable in formal settings: it's not a level problem, it's that they've never practiced that specific context.
Phrases to Open and Guide the Meeting
Starting with confidence sets the tone for the whole meeting:
- "Buenos días/tardes a todos, gracias por acompañarnos." → Good morning/afternoon everyone, thanks for joining.
- "Antes de empezar, ¿les parece bien si repasamos la agenda de hoy?" → Before we start, is it okay if we go over today's agenda?
- "El objetivo de esta reunión es..." → The goal of this meeting is...
- "Vamos a tener aproximadamente [tiempo] para cubrir estos puntos." → We'll have about [time] to cover these points.
Phrases to Share Your Opinion with Confidence
This is where most insecurity shows up, since it means putting yourself out there. Having phrases ready helps you keep the conversation going without freezing up:
- "Desde mi punto de vista..." / "Me parece que..." → From my point of view... / I think that...
- "Coincido con ese punto, aunque agregaría que..." → I agree with that point, though I'd add that...
- "Entiendo la propuesta, pero tengo una duda sobre..." → I understand the proposal, but I have a question about...
- "¿Podemos profundizar un poco más en ese tema?" → Can we go a bit deeper into that topic?
Phrases to Close and Define Next Steps
A meeting without a clear close creates confusion afterward. These phrases help wrap things up in an organized way:
- "Para resumir, quedamos en que..." → To sum up, we agreed that...
- "¿Quién se encarga de cada punto y para cuándo?" → Who's handling each point, and by when?
- "Convocamos la próxima reunión para el [fecha] para hacer seguimiento." → We'll schedule the next meeting for [date] to follow up.
- "Muchas gracias a todos por su tiempo." → Thank you all so much for your time.
Why It's Worth Training Your Team in This Specific Kind of Spanish
A general Spanish course improves someone's foundation in the language, but it doesn't necessarily prepare them for a business context. A program focused on real work situations (meetings, negotiations, client-facing conversations) gets much faster, more visible results: the team gains confidence exactly where they need it, not in vocabulary they may never use.
At Concepto Español we design custom training programs for companies, focused on the concrete situations each team faces day to day. Check out our corporate program and let's talk about your team's specific needs.