How to Conduct Your Business Meeting in Spanish: 50 Key Words and Phrases
Are you prepared for a crucial business meeting in Spanish?
Business is discussed in many languages. As Spanish is the official language in more than 18 countries, it’s used by many companies and organizations.
Bilingual employees are highly valued in the workplace. They’re a communication bridge with suppliers, customers, and colleagues around the world.
Do you know bilingual employees earn more money? Discover eight reasons why bilingual employees get paid more.
Conducting a successful business meeting in Spanish requires you to use proper vocabulary and phrases. Learn them in this foolproof Spanish lesson!
Let’s get to business.
Hold a Productive Business Meeting in Spanish
A business meeting in Spanish is essential for productivity and success in the workplace. Meetings are a space to discuss common goals, projects, and important decisions.
Las reuniones de negocios (business meetings) also create a space for quality improvement—they’re a place to reinforce teamwork and company values.
Whenever you conduct a business meeting in Spanish, you have to define a structure and goal. Communicating your objective clearly to your peers sets the tone and focus of the meeting.
Why Conduct a Business Meeting in Spanish?
The goal of a meeting depends on a company’s activity. Schedule a business meeting in Spanish to address any of the following topics:
- Approving a project, supplier or partnership
- Making important decisions
- Asking for feedback
- Discussing an employee’s performance
- Aligning tasks to company objectives
- Sharing changes and essential information
Example Sentences in Spanish
Tengo una reunión de negocios.
I have a business meeting.
Tengo una cita, es muy importante.
I have an appointment; it’s important.
Tengo una reunión a la que no puedo faltar.
I have a meeting I can’t miss.
Your work requires more than attending business meetings in Spanish, of course! To start a conversation about work, read How to Talk About Your Job in Spanish.
Elements and Phrases of a Business Meeting in Spanish
An agenda is the basis for defining the flow of a business meeting. When you define the topics to discuss ahead of time, you’re taking the necessary steps to ensure your meeting stays on track.
La agenda (agenda) for a business meeting in Spanish is ideal for setting expectations for attendees. You inform them in advance what you’ll be discussing and allow other participants to add any items as needed.
It’s also a time-saving resource, as it keeps the meeting flowing and sticking to schedule.
Learn how to write a meeting agenda.
Consider the following parts of a business meeting in Spanish when designing an agenda and get inspired by the common phrases used during each part.
1. Introduction (Introducción)
This part of a business meeting in Spanish is the starting point. Use it to introduce the topic(s) at hand to your team. It’s also the opportunity to present new team members or commend someone for an accomplishment.
Bienvenidos, gracias por asistir a esta importante reunión.
Welcome; thank you for attending this important meeting.
Parece que ya estamos todos, comencemos.
It seems like we’re all here; let’s begin.
Quiero agradecerles por asistir a está presentación.
I want to thank you for attending this presentation.
El día de hoy discutiremos un tema de gran importancia.
Today we are discussing a highly important topic.
La agenda de hoy tiene cinco puntos a discutir.
Today’s agenda has five items to discuss.
El objetivo de esta reunión de negocios es…
The objective of this business meeting is…
En seguimiento a la reunión anterior, hoy estaremos discutiendo…
Following up on our last meeting, today we’ll be discussing…
El primer punto en la agenda de hoy es…
The first item on today’s agenda is…
Lamento el retraso.
I apologize for the delay.
Desafortunadamente Ana no podrá acompañarnos, le enviaremos la minuta de hoy.
Unfortunately Ana won’t be able to join us, we’ll send her today’s minutes.
Empezamos con el primer tema en la agenda de hoy.
We’re starting with the first topic on today’s agenda.
Antes de empezar, quisiera presentarles al nuevo miembro del equipo.
Before we begin, I’d like to introduce you to the newest member of our team.
Become a member of your dream team and conquer job recruiters with this Human Resources Vocabulary Guide.
2. Meeting Flow (Flujo de la reunión)
Many things happen during a business meeting in Spanish. There may be unexpected interruptions, distractions from small talk, and unscheduled breaks. Your agenda reminds you to stay on track.
El siguiente punto en la agenda es…
The next item on the agenda is…
Si me permiten agregar algo…
If I may add something…
Creo que es importante mencionar…
I think it’s important to mention…
¿Puedo compartirles una idea?
May I share an idea with you?
Me gustaría hacer una observación.
I’d like to make an observation.
Sigamos con el próximo punto en la agenda.
Let’s continue with the next item on the agenda.
No podemos dedicarle más tiempo a este tema, continuemos por favor.
We can’t dedicate more time to this subject, let’s continue please.
Antes de seguir avanzando, permítanme terminar por favor.
Before moving forward, allow me to finish please.
¿Alguien tiene algo que agregar?
Does anyone have anything to add?
Handling Interruptions Politely and Professionally
Lamento la interrupción…
I’m sorry for the interruption…
Volviendo a la agenda…
Coming back to the agenda…
Retomando el tema…
Coming back to the subject…
Permítame un momento, ahora volvemos con usted.
Just a moment, we’ll come back to you.
Un momento, hablen uno a la vez por favor.
One moment, speak one at a time please.
Por favor no más interrupciones, es importante que avancemos.
No more interruptions please; it’s important we move forward.
3. Actions and Decisions (Acciones y decisiones)
A business meeting in Spanish allows you to assign tasks to your team and colleagues for a specific project or goal. It’s also an opportunity to make important decisions and lay out reasons, consequences, and changes.
¿Que proponen que hagamos al respecto?
What do you propose we do about it?
Tenemos que tomar una decisión.
We have to make a decision.
¿Están todos a favor de esta decisión?
Is everyone in favor of this decision?
Necesitamos llegar a un acuerdo antes de continuar.
We need to reach an agreement before continuing.
¿Alguien desea proponer algo?
Would anyone like to make a suggestion?
¿Estamos listos para tomar una decisión?
Are we ready to make a decision?
Assigning Tasks and Setting Action Points
¿Puede usted hacerse cargo de este proyecto?
Can you be in charge of this project?
Necesitamos que usted le dé seguimiento a este tema.
We need you to follow up on this topic.
Pedro, tú estarás a cargo de brindarnos más detalles.
Pedro, you’ll be in charge of providing more details.
Luisa, por favor toma nota de este asunto.
Luisa, please take notes on this matter.
Ustedes trabajarán en equipo en este proyecto.
You’re working as a team on this project.
Juan, agrega este tema a la minuta por favor.
Juan, add this topic to the minutes please.
Por favor revisen su correo para la minuta de esta reunión.
Please check your email for today’s meeting memo.
See also: How to Write a Strong Business Email in Spanish
4. Meeting Closure (Cierre de la reunión)
Closing a meeting requires you to revisit the agenda to make sure every item was addressed. It’s the moment where you define what further action is required.
It’s also when la minuta (minutes or memo) is created. Meeting minutes cover the important topics, decisions, and follow-up actions required after the meeting.
Hemos cubierto todos los puntos de la agenda.
We’ve covered all the items in the agenda.
¿Alguien quiere agregar algo antes de finalizar?
Does anybody have anything to add before finishing?
Eso es todo por hoy, continuamos con la agenda mañana.
That’s it for today; we’ll continue with the agenda tomorrow.
La próxima reunión será a la misma hora el día de mañana.
The next meeting will be at the same time tomorrow.
Fijemos hora y día para nuestra próxima reunión.
Let’s set a time and date for our next meeting.
Gracias a todos por venir, nos vemos a la próxima.
Thank you all for coming; see you next time.
Finishing with a summary of the meeting enables those who attended to leave with the same mindset. What’s more, the meeting memo allows those who couldn’t attend to catch up.
A business meeting in Spanish can also be a job interview. To captivate your future employer, check out Top 10 Bilingual Interview Questions to Land Your Dream Job.
Speak Spanish and Boost Your Career!
By studying this list of phrases and vocabulary, you’ll have the confidence to conduct a successful business meeting in Spanish without major disruption. Take this lesson for a spin during your next meeting in Spanish!
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