Studies have indicated that salespersons with a standard accent or dialect are often perceived more favorably by customers than foreign-accented salespersons.  The US media promotes the acceptance of "general American standard dialect," and the seeming lack of accent among public broadcasters is often the result of extensive retraining in vocal delivery.  Corporations often also desire to enhance universal acceptance by cultivating "standard English" among their management.

Not everyone, however, feels that accents are detrimental.  A countering opinion is that an accent may at times serve as an asset to the speaker.  It reflects personhood and adds dimension and interest to the individual.  Furthermore, the "best English" is often dictated by audience expectation and the circumstances in which a speaker functions. 

Regardless of the charm value of an accent, your audience must be able to understand 

• Speak more slowly and distinctly than usual during the opening minutes of your presentations, to allow the audience to adjust to your speech patterns and style.
• Don't apologize for your accent. The audience will likely not find it offensive once they can understand your speech patterns.
• To avoid emphasizing the wrong syllables, ask someone fluent in the dialect of the audience to pronounce unfamiliar words, names, etc. Devise a kind of shorthand for marking the pronunciation and accented syllables in your notes.Try not to let your concern over dialect interfere with your interaction with the audience.  Be enthusiastic and let your personality show through.

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Stolen shamelessly from p. 512, Business Communication 13 ed., by Carol M. Lehman and Debbie D. Dufrene (Cincinnati: South-Western, 2002).