magazine for international information management news focus strategy solutions business culture community directory
70906 November/ December 2008
The translation market in ten years’ time – a forecast How companies can prepare themselves for the increasing demand for translations
Intercultural management at Škoda Auto How the tradition-based car manufacturer maintained its local values while going global
Overcoming the global downturn Why the technical communication and language sectors buck the trend Time to Change!
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AZ_tcworld_KW26.indd 1 23.06.2008 14:32:48 Uhr imprint editorial publisher
TC and more GmbH in collaboration with tekom, Europe’s largest association for technical communication managing director Dr. Michael Fritz Rotebühlstraße 64 70178 Stuttgart These days the historic city of Wi- Organizations will be confronted esbaden will once again become the with an increased amount of docu- ph: +49(0)711-6 57 04-0 fax: +49(0)711-6 57 04-99 arena of an international gathering ments for translation as well as a www.tekom.de of technical communicators, lo- greater number of languages. To [email protected] calization experts and information avoid bottlenecks the author advises managers. The growing number of companies to get prepared early on advertising participants at the tekom Annual for the challenges of the future. Conference and tcworld conference As the creation and translation of TC and more GmbH reflects the health of the industries technical documents are usually not Ursula Wirtz Rotebühlstraße 64 they represent. While many sectors part of a company’s core business, 70178 Stuttgart have been affected by the down- they have become typical areas for ph: +49(0)711-6 57 04-44 turn of the global economy, three outsourcing. However, a successful fax: +49(0)711-6 57 04-99 industry sectors represented at the outsourcing experience requires www.tekom.de conferences have been spared from thorough planning and support. [email protected] any loss: the technical communica- Rob Heemels and Sabine Grosser tion, localization and translation give an overview (page 17). layout industries. Ironically, these three José Gambín and Igor Zubicaray sectors might have even been fueled elucidate the differences between Atelier Schmidt-Römhild by the recession in other industries: US Spanish, Latin American Span- Werner Knopp Mengstraße 16 The worldwide economic downturn ish and the so-called International magazine23522 Lübeck for international information management has proven to many companies how and Neutral Spanish (page 24). ph: +49(0)451-70 31-0 important professional and tailor- Lenka Bilá gives an interesting fax: +49(0)451-70 31-284 made communication really is. insight into the successful manage- www.schmidt-roemhild.de However, while thriving on the ment of Škoda Auto. The Joint Ven- [email protected] abundance of work, these sectors ture partner of German Volkswagen tcworld is published every two are facing a different challenge: The AG has maintained its Czech values months. Subscriptions can lack of skilled workers. and traditions much to the approval be ordered at the publishing Featuring new industry research, of its employees and customers house. For tekom members this issue of our magazine focuses (page 20). the price for the tcworld on the economic developments of For more information regarding the magazine is included in the membership fee. localization, translation and techni- tcworld conference, please refer to cal communication (page 10). our conference preview on page 29. editor On the translation market the We wish you an enjoyable and suc- workload will become even bigger cessful conference! TC and more GmbH over the next years, predicts Astrid Corinna Ritter magazine for international Hager in her article (page14). Corinna Ritter Rotebühlstraße 64 in70178formation Stuttgart management ph: +49(0)711-6 57 04-41 fax: +49(0)711-6 57 04-99 www.tekom.de [email protected]
magazine for international information management
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Overcoming the global downturn 6 news solutions
While many industries have suffered severe 20 Intercultural management losses in earnings and staff members, the focus at Škoda Auto localization and translation industry as well as the technical communications sector have 10 Overcoming the global marked significant growth. New research downturn business culture reveals interesting facts and figures. 11 Language and localization 24 Spanish for local and global page 10 industry shows robust growth markets Localizing for different Spanish target 13 Technical communication groups sector faces new challenges community strategy 28 International information 14 The translation market in management – a sector with a ten years’ time – a forecast promising future A preview of the tcworld conference 2008 17 Change Management – an underestimated success factor 31 tcworld calendar Enabling a smooth outsourcing project through thorough planning and support 32 directory 3 editorial 3 imprint The translation market in ten years’ time – a forecast
The expansion of the EU contributes to the rising volume of documents for translation. How can companies prepare themselves to avoid bottlenecks? page 14
Intercultural manage- ment at Škoda Auto
The merger with VW AG confronted Škoda Auto with the challenges of globalization. Today the Czech company has become a glo- bal player while maintaining its local values. page 20
December 2008 5 news
IT budgets in US more likely to be cut than those in Europe Impact of economic downturn on tech spending varies by region and sector
More than 40 percent of large busi- in the global economy, while 24 ment, and leisure industry, where President and Principal Analyst nesses have cut their IT budgets this percent of firms have put discre- only 39 percent of respondents said John C. McCarthy. “With regard to year due to the global economic tionary spending on hold. Twenty- they have had to reduce spending. the services sector, the slowdown slowdown, according to a new sur- eight percent of respondents said IT departments in North America has firms renegotiating rates, being vey by independent research firm the economy has had no impact on have been affected by the econ- more selective in choosing vendors, Forrester Research, Inc.. The For- their IT budgets. omy more than their European and examining spending plans rester Business Data Services report Asked how the economy will affect counterparts: 49 percent of North more thoroughly, but they are still “The State of Enterprise IT Services: IT services spending, 70 percent American firms have cut their IT expecting to pay more for services. 2008” surveyed nearly 950 senior of respondents said they will budgets compared with 31 percent The demand for enterprise IT serv- IT managers across North America likely negotiate lower rates with of respondents in Europe; although ices has not dropped significantly.” and Europe regarding their IT serv- suppliers, and 16 percent said they it should be noted that the Forrester The report also illustrates a number ices spending and overall services have already cut their IT services survey was fielded in Q2 2008 prior of trends regarding the state of strategies and priorities. spending. to the deteriorating economic con- spending on enterprise IT services. The economy’s effect on IT spend- IT departments in the financial ditions in Europe. “The State Of Enterprise IT Serv- ing is evident in some specific data services industry were hit hardest – “This is not an across-the-board ices: 2008” is currently available to points contained in the report: 49 percent of IT shops in the finan- spending slowdown; the impact of Forrester RoleView™ clients and can Forty-three percent of firms have cial services sector have cut their the economy on IT budgets varies be purchased directly at already cut their overall IT budgets budgets. At the other end of the widely by industry and geogra- in 2008 in reaction to the slowdown spectrum is the media, entertain- phy,” said Forrester Research Vice www.forrester.com.
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ÃBERSETZUNGSMANAGEMENT ENGLISCHINDD news
Wordfast and Automated translation Translations.com expand alliance Wordfast LLC, provider of transla- becomes key strategic enabler tion memory software, and Trans- lations.com, a provider of trans- SDL, provider of Global Information mate”, said Laurie Gerber, President of translation (62 percent), followed by lation workflow solutions, have expanded their existing alliance. Management (GIM) solutions, has the International Association for Ma- support and knowledge-based con- Under the new agreement, the two announced the results of a survey chine Translation. “Expectations and tent (49 percent). companies will cooperate with re- on trends in automated translation. demands concerning quality remain Over 70 percent of respondents gard to joint marketing programs, Completed by over 385 individuals in high, with a large number of partici- named French, Italian, German and a tighter integration of products, global businesses – of which over 71 pants requiring high-quality output Spanish (FIGS) as their main target for and collaboration with Alchemy percent were of managerial level and from automated translation. This is usage. Asian languages accounted for Software Development. above – the survey highlights a stark understandable as the majority see it just over 50 percent and Eastern Euro- increase not just in the motivation of as part of a human translation process, pean languages accrued 42 percent. businesses to use automated trans- to improve productivity and reduce The full details of the research can be lation compared to two years ago, costs without sacrificing quality.” read at Welocalize starts but also in the actual deployment of Technical documentation was the GlobalSight Open the technology. SDL conducted the main anticipated usage of automated www.sdl.com/atsurvey Source Initiative research in conjunction with the In- ternational Association for Machine Welocalize, Inc., a provider of inte- grated globalization services, and Translation (IAMT) and Association twelve industry thought leaders for Machine Translation Americas have joined together to spear- (AMTA). head the GlobalSight Open Source Most respondents were familiar with Initiative. The GlobalSight Steering the concept of automated translation, Committee is promoting collabora- with nearly 25 percent either using it tion to create a competitive enter- or planning to use it. Furthermore, 40 prise-class, open source Translation Management System (TMS). percent of companies said they were Representatives from AOL; Au- more likely to utilize it now. These two todesk Inc.; Cisco Systems; EMC; statistics alone point to a substantial NetApp; Sun Microsystems and TI- industry shift in perception, as inter- BCO are participating. est and trust in this technology and its uses increase. Over half of the respondents – 55 percent – wanted to use automated Common Sense Advi- translation for producing general for- sory research leads eign language versions of company to tool development content. Reflecting modern business In Common Sense Advisory’s recent practices, particularly where instant sizing exercise for the worldwide communication is required, the other interpreting market, the research areas of potential usage were fairly firm surveyed 17 US hospitals to evenly distributed between integra- obtain information regarding an- nual spending on both outsourced tion with chat tools, in e-mail, Micro- and in-house interpreting services. soft Word documents, on wikis and Based on this research and experi- blogs, integrated into a web page and ence with language and business- for conducting research on foreign related measurements, Common language documents. Sense Advisory has developed a “We conducted the survey on a global new tool - the language access ra- scale so that we could gain a world- tio - to enable hospitals to see how their spending compares to that of wide perspective of automated trans- their peers. lation in business, and to also identify its role within the current business cli- Photo: Enrique Sallent
December 2008 7 news
Semantic map of English Cognition Technologies, a company with se- mantic natural language processing tech- nologies, has released a “Semantic Map of the English language”. The electronic dictionary includes more than ten million semantic con- Report illuminates buyers’ nections that comprise semantic contexts, meaning representations, taxonomy, and word meaning distinctions. Cognition Technologies’ views of translation quality lexical resources encode semantic, morphologi- cal, and syntactic information about the words contained within documents and their relation- ships to each other. For Global 2000 companies, it’s no longer enough Key findings include: www.cognition.com to just convert information into another language ● Buyers cite six major themes in their definitions – large-scale buyers of translation services are be- of quality – and the elements buyers deem coming more ambitious with their globalization most critical often differ from what vendors be- plans and demanding a higher quality of service. lieve is important to their customers. KudoZ archive surpasses This finding is highlighted in the recent report ● Global brands that frequently translate their two million terms “Buyer-Defined Translation Quality”, published by marketing, technical data sheets, materials, ProZ.com, a community of translation profes- research firm Common Sense Advisory (CSA). The software products, and websites reveal their sionals, has announced that the “KudoZ” archive publication zeroes in on quality from the perspec- most common sources of frustration regarding of terms and their translations has now grown tive of large-scale buyers of translation services. quality. to a size of over two million terms. ProZ.com’s CSA conducted interviews with 28 companies ● The two most important elements of quality – KudoZ network provides a framework for trans- that pay to translate hundreds of millions of words technical accuracy and a vendor’s willingness lators to assist each other with translations or into an average of 30 languages. It also surveyed to implement feedback – are even more im- explanations of terms and short phrases. Ku- doZ, ProZ.com’s archive of tough terms and their 55 major buyers of translation services – 70 per- portant to buyers than linguistic quality. translations, has been built one term at a time, cent work in companies that employ 500 individu- ● Global firms follow seven key practices for de- by tens of thousands of translators, over the past als or more, and 60 percent spend in excess of one veloping and implementing translation quality nine years. million US dollars on translation services annually. metrics. www.proz.com/kudoz The report captures the results of interviews from ● Broad consensus exists across interviewees on high-profile global brands across seven industries: having in-country reviewers participate in the automotive, life sciences, high-tech, retail, travel quality evaluation process. and leisure, consumer manufacturing, and heavy Kilgray MemoQ 3.0 manufacturing. www.commonsenseadvisory.com Kilgray Translation Technologies, a developer of translation productivity tools, has announced the release of MemoQ 3.0. The upgrade includes a new termbase and provides new terminol- ogy features such as forbidden terms. It intro- duces full support for XLIFF as a bilingual format and offers the visual localization of RESX files. MemoQ 3.0 is available in English, German, Jap- anese and Hungarian. www.kilgray.com
ABBYY Lingvo x3 ABBYY, a developer of language software and document recognition and forms processing technologies, has launched ABBYY Lingvo x3, the latest version of its dictionary application. Compared to the previous version, the size of the ABBYY Lingvo x3 dictionaries has grown by about 20 percent and now stands at over 8.7 million entries. It includes 150 dictionaries. AB- BYY Lingvo x3 offers effective language learning tools and contains learner’s dictionaries, a gram- mar reference, and audio pronunciations. www.lingvo.com Photo: Avner Richard
8 December 2008 MLad0607.pdf 8/7/07 12:49:00 PM
news
Localization e-learning course
Imperial College London has an- Topics will include introduction to the nounced a new 11-week e-learning key concepts of localization; localiz- program for professional translators ing resource (software) files; localizing on software and games localization. Help files (WinHelp and WebHelp); The course will be held from January screenshooting and localizing graph- 12, 2009, through March 30, 2009. It ics; and localizing games. is geared toward those who want to further their career in the translation Do you have industry and are also considering soft- www3.imperial.ac.uk/humanities/ ware localization. languageservices something to say to the world? C
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Outsourcing 100™ CMY MultiLing Corporation has established itself as one of The International Association of Out- the top consultant, legal, and relatedK the premier full-service translation companies in the sourcing Professionals™ (IAOP™) has advisory firms globally, and will be a world. By combining the best in language technology announced the launch of The 2009 valuable reference tool for companies with incomparable customer service, MultiLing delivers Global Outsourcing 100™, its fourth needing expert advice and guidance the highest quality while saving you time and money. annual ranking of the world’s best with their outsourcing projects. You have big challenges as you compete in a global outsourcing service providers. As part The independently judged evalua- market. We have the right solution and the right of The Global Outsourcing 100, IAOP is tion process mirrors the Request for tools to make sure your message is heard correctly. also introducing a new list, the World's Proposal process employed by many There's an easier and friendlier way to translate Best Outsourcing Advisors. The Global top customers and considers four key your product into other languages. Call or visit us at Outsourcing 100 and its select sub- criteria: size and growth, customer ex- www.multiling.com. lists are references for companies perience, depth and breadth of com- seeking new and expanded relation- petencies and management capabili- ships with companies in the industry. ties. Companies are ranked on quality Translation The lists include service provider and based on the information provided Localization advisory companies from around the by each company in its application Globalization world that provide the full spectrum in combination with independent re- of outsourcing services. search and customer references. Translation Technology The World’s Best Outsourcing Advi- The 2009 Global Outsourcing 100 sors, new for 2009, is geared specifi- and select sub-lists and the World’s cally at companies that are outstand- Best Outsourcing Advisors will be ing global outsourcing advisors and published by IAOP and recognized in consultants. In addition to being part a special advertising feature in FOR- of The Global Outsourcing 100 main TUNE® magazine’s 2009 FORTUNE list and sub-lists of service provid- 500 issue. ers, the new list of advisors will rank www.outsourcingprofessionals.org MultiLing Germany GmbH Tel: +49 (8151) 65 20 90 | [email protected] | www.multiling.de December 2008 9 focus
Overcoming the global downturn
Translation, localization and technical communication – three sectors weathering the storm caused by the international economic depression
Photo: Ben Goode
10 December 2008 focus
Not surprisingly, employee growth is also very strong. More than 75 percent of GALA members who responded to the survey indi- cated employee growth; one fourth have had Language and employee growth of more than 20 percent. Among those GALA members who responded, TransPerfect/Translations.com of New York has localization industry experienced 38 percent growth and is hiring in many areas. Another major language service provider, thebigword, based in the U.K., added shows robust growth 25 new positions in China last year and is add- ing another 25 positions in New York this year.
As the 2008 tcworld conference and Trade Fair gets underway in Wiesbaden, fear Economic downturn increases the need and uncertainty cloud the global economy. But one industry heavily represented to communicate successfully at the conference is bucking the trend, showing signs of strong growth that is “The downturn in the global economy means expected to continue for years to come. that it is that much more important to commu- nicate to customers – wherever they are in the world – effectively and in their native language,” said Bob Donaldson of McElroy Translation, a GALA member that has also seen a boost By James Hollan in work volume and employee numbers. At tcworld, Donaldson will present a case study The language services and technology industry tion that encourages local communication highlighting how a major accounting firm used is seeing increases in work volume and jobs. as an indispensable component to a global software localization strategically to gain com- The positive outlook is expected to continue as strategy. In September, GALA released results petitive advantage of its software suite. more companies see the importance of com- of a survey of its 300 member companies that In all, 46 GALA members will exhibit at the municating locally in the worldwide market- showed major growth in work volume. Over tekom Trade Fair, which will accompany the place. 85 percent of the respondents have seen work tcworld conference. Additionally, GALA is Recent news of growth comes from the volume increase in the past year, and more hosting the Localization Forum at the confer- Globalization and Localization Association than half have had increases of 20 percent or ence along with a group exhibit featuring (GALA), an international non-profit associa- more. twelve member companies and a new initiative
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MadPak_Analyzer_Diagramm.indd 1 31.01.2008 09:44:01 focus
dubbed the “Localization Chill Zone” which - Seventy percent of respondents said they do the market for outsourced language services to will be a quiet inviting space outside of the Lo- not currently provide a machine translation be US $12 billion worldwide in 2007. Based on calization Forum workshop and session rooms. (MT) offering for their customers; twenty per- the trendline over the last five years, Common cent said they plan to provide an MT offering Sense Advisory’s analysts predict that the mar- in the near future. ket will reach US$24 billion by 2012, equating Technology spendings continue to - Over 60 percent of the companies that to a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of increase responded have been in business for more than 14.6 percent over the next five years. The firm Some of the members exhibiting at the Trade ten years and operate in an average of four of- also reports that in 2007, the average year-over- Fair took part in the GALA member survey, fices (including headquarters). year growth rate of the top 20 language service which asked the association’s 300 members to “GALA has made a point of getting a pulse providers was 26.68 percent. provide information on their business growth on the industry by surveying its extensive and technology use. Surveys were completed by membership regularly,” said Kim Harris, board Service providers add more languages 44 percent of GALA members. In addition to chairperson. “These latest figures are significant to their portfolio the growth statistics, the survey revealed other in that they show overall growth in the industry interesting findings: despite a worldwide downturn in the economy.” While survey respondents were not asked to - Technology budgets have increased over last In fact, GALA member growth has tracked provide reasons for the growth, results from an- year for 39 percent of the respondents (by more with growth numbers for the industry. Com- other GALA survey earlier in the year indicated than ten percent for almost a quarter of the mon Sense Advisory, a market research firm a significant boost in the number of language group). specializing in business globalization, estimated pairs being handled by language service provid- ers. In that survey, language pairs handled by respondents increased by 43 percent in two years, and 42 percent of respondents had worked on a language pair never handled by them before. Additionally, recent research indicates a grow- ing understanding that multilingual com- Global Locations munications should be a strategic factor in Since the early 1990s, we pioneered centralizing back-offi ce functions in hubs global growth. In August, the Gilbane Group in cost attractive regions, supported by completed a survey of multinational companies worldwide offi ces located close to our customers. Today we have large production from around the world in which more than 89 centers in Argentina, China and the Czech percent of respondents believe that multina- Republic, and supporting locations through- out North America, Europe and Asia. tional communications is a factor in corporate Our clients get the best of both worlds: business initiatives. optimum outsourcing locations with same time-zone support. We can take you there – wherever there is for you.
contact
James Hollan is Executive Director at the Globalization and Localization Association (GALA).
[email protected] moraviaworldwide.com AMERICAS EUROPE ASIA www.gala-global.org
12 December 2008 focus
language to correspond with partners, custom- ers or colleagues – in most cases English. This Technical communication shows how important foreign language skills are for technical editors in German companies. sector faces new The survey also revealed that intercultural competencies, such as the ability to communi- cate with people from other cultures, are very challenges important to technical editors. If cultural dif- ferences are not accounted for, entire projects With topics at the tekom Annual Conference and tcworld conference becoming more might fail due to so-called cultural incidents. Despite these increased demands within their and more diversified, the image of the technical editor is also changing. Research job as technical editors, almost all survey par- reveals that today’s technical editors not only have to know their business, they also ticipants predicted a positive future regarding need to have intercultural competencies. Those who are proficient in both are entering their job. into a prosperous field with a promising future. A growing demand for skilled workers Judging from the latest figures, technical editors have every reason to see the future of their profession in a positive light. In spring 2008 tekom marked a minimum of 84.571 employ- ees holding a position in the field of technical communication. A study conducted in 2002 only calculated around 67.000 workers spend- ing more than 75 percent of their work time on topics related to technical communication. This indicates a rise of 26 percent over the past six years. Service providers offering technical communi- cation services marked the strongest increase in their demand for skilled personnel. Forty-two percent of service providers had added at least one new team member over the past year. Thirty-three percent of the surveyed technical communication departments in enterprises had Photo: Cathy Yeulet marked an increase in employees. According to tekom, this increase is mainly due to the fact that the technical communica- By Corinna Ritter but also provide a global vision and aspects of tions sector has become a specialized corpo- international collaboration. rate division: A couple of years ago, technical For decades, tekom has promoted the occupa- documentation was left in the hands of the tional image of technical communicators and product developers. Nowadays most companies An increased need for foreign supported their education and training. With employ staff with specialized skills in technical languages ongoing research and periodically conducted communication. studies, the association captures trends and A study conducted by the University of Applied Specialists in the field of technical commu- developments shaping the occupational image Sciences in Hannover (Germany) in 2007 nication are rare. tekom found out that there and adjusts its services and topics accordingly. found that almost half of the surveyed German are currently up to 4,000 job vacancies on the The latest developments in the fields of technical editors have already worked in an German market. However, there is a dramatic technical communication and information international team. German remains the most shortage of qualified people. There are no exact management are reflected in the program of commonly used language in technical com- figures showing the demand for skilled workers the upcoming tekom Annual Conference and munication departments in Germany, however, in developing markets around the world. But tcworld conference. Speakers offer a compre- only 40 percent of German technical editors there is one thing that’s for sure: there is no hensive look not only at topics related with communicate solely in their mother language. quality communication without qualified staff. the mere production of technical documents, Around 60 percent use at least one foreign
December 2008 13 strategy
How can companies prepare themselves for the changing market? The translation market in ten years’ time – a forecast
Photo: Elena Elisseeva
14 December 2008 strategy
By Astrid Hager globally sold products are already only distrib- major projects. In the future, it will therefore be uted in English, if the legislation permits it. This is decisive for companies to work with a translation due to the fact that today recipients and consum- agency that is able to cover the broadest possible ers worldwide have an improved knowledge of language and technology spectrum. The analysts agree: the volume of documents for the English language. English will continue to translation will increase within the next ten years, assert itself as the common language in science Technological develop- even if opinions differ as to the extent to which and internal corporate communications. this will happen. The language variety created by However, a well-considered selection of texts ments the expansion of the EU, for example, not only intended for translation will by itself not be suf- Many companies may be concerned with leads to a larger translation volume within the Eu- ficient to successfully face the expected lack of regard to the increasing volume of translations ropean institutions like the translation of minutes translators. and documents for translations, but the large from meetings or legal drafts. It also increases the With languages spoken only by a relatively small amount could also be regarded as an advantage. demand for translations at commercial firms and population like e.g. Estonian, it will be rather A high number of repetitive text blocks will manufacturing companies, as the EU dictates that difficult to counter the lack of translators, as the result from the large quantities of translations. all technical documents are to be translated into number of people who call this their native lan- It will therefore become increasingly significant the national languages (RL 79/112/EWG). guage will probably not increase at an explosive to prepare documentation in such a way, that Globalization and the associated growth will rate. Supporting better and more consistent existing text elements are available not only for provide the GILT sectors (Globalization, Interna- training opportunities for translators, is one way further documentation but also for translations tionalization, Localization and Translation) with an to help bridging the gap. Translators and transla- and thus do not require repetitive translations. enormous boom. The European Union of Associa- tion agencies offering language training are An efficient Data Management System (DMS) tions of Translations Companies (EUATC) assumes strongly dependent on the support of companies and Content Management System (CMS) are the that the translation market will observe an annual with their practical orientation and concrete basic prerequisites to enable cost-saving and growth of approximately five percent during the product materials. terminologically consistent translations. This is the next few years. Also, companies buying translation services only way to fulfill the growing demand for quality Irrespective of the use of the English language as will be required to display a higher degree of in the future. lingua franca, a further development is also be- transparency towards the translators in the future. The application of CAT tools will become impera- coming apparent – the protection of cultures and This will enable translators to gain an overview tive to create terminology databases, glossaries languages. The translation market will without a of the processes and the corporate language. and the like. Although terminology management doubt profit from this tendency. In addition, the Companies should regard translation services as may initially seem an enormous time-consuming growing recognition of an ever more multilingual an investment and not merely as costs. effort, the advantages for both translators and population in the US and elsewhere will further A further option for countering the lack of companies are obvious: While translators are able increase the demand for language services. translators is outsourcing. For example, numerous to manage a higher translation volume faster and Apart from these developments, technological in- translations into English are produced in India novations and a continuously increasing product today. However – even if we are mostly satisfied portfolio require a better quality of translations as with the quality of these translations – we should well as more flexible translators and translation question if cultural specifics, for example from agencies. the American cultural area, could be accommo- dated in translations done offshore. Furthermore, Preparing for the lack of outsourcing is mainly an option for translations into English. translators In light of the rapid increase of language com- contact The rising demand for translations in the near binations required for translation and the ever- future is intensified by an existing lack of transla- shorter delivery deadlines, professional project tors for numerous specialized fields and particular and quality management will become more sig- Astrid Hager is account language combinations. International companies nificant in future. With the use of the latest tech- manager at Skrivanek making use of translation services must therefore nologies, translations will be performed directly Berlin GmbH. be ready to adjust to these developments or in the client’s CMS system. Translation agencies take adequate measures to avoid any shortages. could directly adopt a part of project manage- Within the scope of its strategic alignment for the ment tasks, which currently are performed by future, a company should first determine which the companies. This will probably decrease the texts will require translation within the next five cooperation between companies and freelancers, [email protected] to ten years and which languages are required. and increase the cooperation with translation www.skrivanek-gmbh.de Some written material like advertising texts, agencies, as only the latter can bring in the tech- presentations or even operating instructions for nological and organizational requirements for
December 2008 15 strategy
with less effort, the client gains more control over Common terminology results with more sophisticated MTs, which - of the quality of the translation into a language of course - only become printable after human which he usually has no command. pools post-editing. The CAT tool market has changed rapidly over To ensure terminological consistency and to We basically distinguish between two types of the last years. A few large providers are now simplify terminology work companies are now MTs: rule-based systems and statistical systems. dominating the market. Does this give rise to the making their translation databases accessible to The latter use predominantly word alignment assumption that companies will have to decide other companies. Skrivanek, together with 42 techniques to receive matching pairs. The basic on a CAT tool from a large manufacturer to en- other leading companies, recently founded the requirement for statistical systems is the availabil- sure that it will still be used in ten years’ time? so-called TAUS Data Association (TDA), which ity of a sufficient volume of bilingual documents. Many forecast that the few larger providers such enables its members to share translation files. All Large companies are especially predestined as SDL, software manufacturer of the leading members load their language combinations onto for statistical translation systems due to the software SDLX-Trados, will have to face competi- a server in the form of Translation Memories or enormous data volumes in different language tion from smaller companies such as Alchemy, multilingual glossaries and can in return down- pairs and the documents’ often purely technical, MultiCorpora and Lingotek in the next few years. load the language pairs of other members. This simplified style. Recent software developments provide good creates an immense volume of linguistic data. The common platform TDA can also contribute alternatives to the established programs, some of significantly to improve statistical translation sys- which exist on account of their high technologi- Machine translation tems, as it is able to deliver the enormous volume cal standards. Thanks to the spread of standards of topic related text with which the developed for projects (TTX, XLIFF), Translation Memories Another solution for managing the growing MT system is “fed”. (TMX) or dictionaries (TBX), the choice of a translation volume is the further development The rule-based systems are generally based on translation program is less significant today than of machine translations (MT). MT, developed and bilingual word lists and language transfer rules. it used to be. XML went through a similar devel- used since the late 1940s, suffers from a rather The basic components with which these systems opment several years ago. The program used to doubtful reputation: The often fragmentary trans- work are words and rules on their combinability process XML files no longer plays a crucial role. lation attempts by some freeware tools available to sentences, sections and entire texts. Every When choosing a CAT tool, companies should on the internet are all too often devoid of any document to be translated must therefore be dis- therefore place more emphasis on their specific meaning and may only bring tears of laughter to sected into words, figures and punctuation. demands regarding the functionality of the tool our eyes. However, large companies such as IBM, Many machine translation systems, however, and less on its compatibility. Sun, SAP etc. are already achieving considerable fail in rebuilding the target language structure due to the strongly varying syntax and grammar between source and target language. The so-called “controlled language” could solve these obstacles. The main characteristics of “controlled language” are simplified grammar with repetitive, recognizable structures and a vocabulary, which only contains a fraction of the words from the entire vocabulary. Language providers are already developing regulations to achieve significantly better results in MTs. Anyhow, we would advise companies, who will not work with MT in the near future, to still collect information today on how data, texts and docu- ments could be prepared in such a way as to enable rapid processing from the MT technology at some stage. Even in the future the human being will still be required as the controlling instance. With regard to MT, the task of a translator will comprise far more post-editing. Specially trained post-editors are already working with MT, their work differing fundamentally from pure translation or editing. This, however, can only be successful if it is ap- proved and recognized by all sides, not only by the translators but also by the clients.
16 December 2008 strategy
Change Management – an underestimated success factor
Although the creation and translation of technical documents are essential parts of the product lifecycle they still play a subordinate role in most international organizations. Many companies are therefore leaving these tasks to an outsourcing provider. To ensure a smooth collaboration and guarantee high quality technical documents, the out- sourcing process needs to be planned and supported thoroughly.
Photo: Pavel Losevsky
December 2008 17 strategy
By Rob Heemels and Sabine Grosser due to insufficient preparation and support has been coached during the transition into the during the transition process. Even more new service provider’s company. Océ Business Globalization is understood as the process diligence is required if the outsourcing proc- Services as an experienced outsourcing service of increasing international activities. Many ess involves the transfer of staff. If the service provider in the document area, has intensely medium-sized businesses have first-class tech- provider, whose core business is the techni- dealt with the question of what values are nological know-how and high-quality products, cal documentation process, takes over all the important to staff that will be transferred into which are sold in more and more markets. Al- employees involved (authors, translators and a new company culture and how to take these though the creation, translation and production production staff) under TUPE (Transfer of into consideration during the transition. of the technical documents for these products Undertakings Protection of Employment In a continuous effort to increase customer are essential, they are often not very popular Regulations), high-quality change management satisfaction as well as the satisfaction of its tasks. Every new market entry requires the sup- is becoming a necessity. In such an outsourc- own staff working at customer locations, Océ port of another language, causes faster product ing project the goal of the change management Business Services has studied the value systems development cycles and increased process process is to steer the complex integration of customers and of individual staff to answer complexity. Although the lifecycle of technical of two company cultures – the one of the questions like: documentation is closely interlinked with the customer and the one of the service provider. Why do two organizations behave so differently product development process, it is not part of However, how can we reach the agreed business in a similar situation? the core business of a manufacturing company. goals and fulfill the obligations towards the What are the requirements for success in Many organizations are therefore leaving their acquired staff? change situations? technical documentations and translations to Companies thinking of outsourcing a part of What are the values and drivers of individuals the hands of an outsoucing provider. their business aim at long-standing commer- in an organization? cial relations with their service providers. In order to reach the expected advantages and Transferring staff Plan carefully cost reductions, contract terms of five to seven However, simply giving the work to a profes- years are no rarity. An essential and often There are many sad examples of failed change sional provider will not necessarily deliver the underestimated success factor for long-term processes, mergers or outsourcing projects. desired results. Outsourcing projects often fail and satisfying business relations is how the staff Even if all conditions appear excellent for out- sourcing during the due diligence phase, reality might still prove disappointing: As soon as the integration of the acquired departments and staff starts, executives are very much occupied with themselves and the staff and the business are neglected in their new surroundings. The expected business upswing is not setting in. The meaning of a carefully planned change management process becomes clear with the transition of long-term employees from the buying company to the outsourcing service provider: They might still feel obliged to their former employer, who has now turned into their customer. The new values of the outsourc- ing provider cannot simply be prescribed to the new employees. They can only be incorporated during a well-accompanied learning process.
Protecting the interests of staff and service provider – a contradiction? A company’s prime interest when taking over staff is to reach certain business goals through cost savings while at the same time increasing service levels. The staff might be primarily interested in aspects like job security and being able to rely on their employer. Other interests include
18 December 2008 strategy
personal success and independence at the work ty place. Values, thinking and behavioral patterns tivi also vary within different work environments. For example, certain values might be lived
and also communicated more strongly in Produc cooperation different work environments. It is therefore essential to find out which values were strongly communicated at the old employer and how support the value system differs from the one at the new employer. Company culture influences how people behave: Does the old employer have a rather informal, cooperative style or does it unconsciousness acceptance practice an authoritarian management? What are the differences in the companies’ policies – which written laws and rules are lived in the consciousness understanding companies? How are the companies structured? Check collaboration models and find out how added value is achieved and how well developed their processes are. If the values do not match and this is not ac- Individual and organisational change model Time counted for during the change process, you might experience resistance from the acquired will enforce employees’ resistance and lead to employees. Clearly communicate roles and staff. anger and resignation. Emotional and cultural responsibilities to any employees, whose factors play an important role in the transi- positions are affected by the change. tion stage. Especially in international projects 3. Stabilizing the new situation: Create a train- Easing resistance where opposing cultures often collide enough ing program to help employees, managers, To enable a smooth integration of the acquired time must be planned for this stage of raising and the organization understand how to deal staff, it is important to make all parties involved consciousness. with the new situation. aware of the different value systems. Gaining Personal communication with the new staff will the acceptance of the new staff can only be clarify goals and values. Common gatherings Conclusion achieved by choosing the right kind of com- e.g. location visits will contribute to acceptance. munication. Lacking or false communication Clear workplace and job descriptions and a The key to success is to identify the values of transparent integration of the staff into the new the staff at an early stage and to accompany the organization are important to gain understand- new employees actively throughout the change ing and acceptance from the transferred staff. process. An outsourcing project is not success- ful if only the business goals of the customer are achieved. Establishing long-term relations The right change management strategy contact with the new staff and motivating them is also An effective change management program part of the success. should at least include the following compo- As result of the thorough support of projects nents: at Océ Business Services, the attrition rate of Rob Heemels and Sabine transferred staff is significantly lower than the Grosser work for New 1. Creation of a change climate: Establish a industry standard. In the course of the affilia- Business Development at clear entrepreneurial vision and set up a tion the employees recognize that they belong Océ-Deutschland Business strong team to be able to carry out an effec- to the core business of the new employer Services GmbH in Mülheim, tive staff transfer. with all advantages that come with it, like job Germany. 2. Preparing the organization for change: security, possibilities for advanced training, new Identify and address all stakeholder groups tasks and responsibilities and recognition of [email protected] in the company (internal and external) to their achievements through variable reimburse- www.oce-business-services. get broad support for the staff transition. ment components. de Create a widely accepted communication A structured and people-oriented change man- strategy for each key stakeholder group in agement strategy is advantageous to all parties: the organization including not only human the outsourcing company, the absorbing com- resources but also executives, managers, and pany and the staff in their new environment.
December 2008 19 solutions
Intercultural management at Škoda Auto
The merger of Škoda Auto and Volkswagen AG in 1991 compelled the tradition-bound Czech company for the first time to face the challenges of internationalization. Today Škoda is the largest industrial undertaking in the Czech Republic as the company sells its products in 100 countries worldwide. The Joint Venture with VW is regarded by the company as a successful marriage between the systematic, methodical and dependable approach of the Germans and the creative, improvising and proficient disposition of the Czechs.
Photo: Andres Rodriguez
20 December 2008 solutions
By Lenka Bila Foundation of ance of hierarchy motivate him only when he un- derstands their meaning and purpose, which he intercultural coalescence then internalizes. A tradition of more than In order to achieve innovations through the fusion Secondly, the Czech is relationship-oriented. He 113 years of both cultures – but without falling into the trap is not particularly open to criticism; nor does he of overstated dominance of the one or excessive throw himself candidly into solving social conflicts. In 1895, when Vaclav Laurin and Vaclav Klement assimilation of the other culture – highly motivated Work and leisure go hand in hand – in the same set up a bicycle repair workshop in the outskirts of German experts were present right from the start way as rationality and emotionality. Formal and Mlada Boleslav in Central Bohemia, people in the of the Joint Venture. Their number increased from informal structures are equally important to him, neighboring places thought it to be just another 20 in 1991 to 146 in 1994. Following the successful with the informal sometimes taking precedence. small event in their lives. A few years later the implementation of the Tandem Management and mechanics graduated to bicycle and motorcycle due to the introduction of a strong endorsement Tandem management construction and, by 1905, they presented their program for a younger generation management first automobile, the Voiturette. In 1925 a merger as well as talent management the number of the and talent management of sorts took place with Škoda Pilsen and between German experts was cut down gradually to 52 in Tandem management is a practical instrument 1946 and 1949 the main works in Mlada Boleslav 2007. based on intercultural sensitivity that is used was extended to the ancillary units in Vrchlabí and Since 1991 these experts included a team of hu- for the integration of foreign experts and local Kvasiny. man resources specialists who had a track record partners. It was employed at Škoda Auto in order After the fall of the Berlin Wall and the dissolu- of international experience, modern know-how in to prepare the local managers for accepting the tion of the Soviet Union the Czech government the field of human resources, a visionary outlook help from the German experts aimed at enabling looked for a strategic partner so as to secure for and a distinct performance and target orientation. them to better cope with their new technical Škoda a short and medium-term expansion of its Thanks to a methodical approach and an exem- and managerial tasks. In Tandem everyone is ex- automobile market in Central and Eastern Europe. plary and humane dimension of all members of pected to manage jointly a domain or a depart- The decision to establish a Joint Venture with Volk- the team, the team had a favorable effect on the ment for a period of one to three years. Initially swagen in 1991 is regarded by insiders as a very Czechs. Thus, it was able to impart enthusiasm, vi- the German experts played a dominant role. In successful match between the two parties. sion and knowledge to the Czech workers. a phased manner of transferring the know-how The 100 percent ownership of Škoda Auto by VW A valuable initiative came also from the involve- they gradually allowed the Czech managers to AG since 2000 notwithstanding, the company’s ment of Czech emigrants living in Germany. Dur- take on the reins. The Tandem was regarded as a management continues to uphold its tradition of ing the first few years of the Joint Venture it was bicycle for two that requires mutual acceptance, more than 100 years, which in fact has a positive these people in particular who helped to develop willingness to learn and intercultural awareness. influence both on the Czech customers and on suitable and feasible concepts and to build a well- Today talent management is employed in the in- the Czech workers’ motivation. balanced bridge between the German experts ternational facilities of Škoda Auto. This time the Since 1991 Škoda Auto has transformed itself and the Czech managers and workers. Czech unit assumes the role of an expert. The suc- from a “brand with tradition without future“ into The team had the necessary instruments which cess of its local partner depends on its aptness a ”brand of the future with tradition”. often proved to be truly ground-breaking and and, consequently, also on Škoda Auto abroad. their beneficial effects are still deeply felt today. Facts & figures Today Škoda Auto is the largest industrial under- Cultural differences contact taking in the Czech Republic and on 31.12.2007 between Czechs and it recorded 23,559 regular and 4,194 contract workers. Germans The annual vehicle production has increased A Czech-German partnership can profit from two Lenka Bila has worked steadily from 172,000 p.a. in 1991 to 630,000 p.a. in important pieces of information: for Škoda Auto since 2007. In 2007 the products were sold in 100 mar- First of all, the Czech likes improvisation: he is 1992. After holding kets – as opposed to a mere 30 in 1991. In 2007 mostly averse to universal rules, formalized proce- an expert position at the export share of Škoda Auto accounted for 7.5 dures and standards; he wants to have free space Volkswagen Slovakia percent of the national total. for creativity to let out his inventive abilities. And from 2000 to 2006, she is now back in the parent The company is not only a prestigious forerun- yet, or just for that very reason, he is capable of ad- company in the Czech Republic where she has ner of the Czech industry but it is regarded as the justing to circumstances, willing to learn, is broad- headed the education department since 2006. role model in the socio-cultural arena as well. The minded and considerate – which may sometimes international product portfolio is fittingly comple- make him appear phlegmatic or disorganized. [email protected] mented by the company’s policy of Corporate So- Maximum risk prevention and organization, sys- www.skoda-auto.com cial Responsibility & Corporate Governance. tematic approach, detailed thinking and accept-
December 2008 21 solutions
Conditions for Today’s challenges success Internationalization in foreign Three important aspects are consid- plants ered absolutely essential for success: Today Škoda Auto is an example of 1. The expert must possess the ability the successful transformation and and willingness to gradually recede consolidation of a brand from a local into the background and let his local manufacturer to an international play- colleagues have the precedence. er, which, in the course of its growth, 2. The local manager must have the expanded its vehicle assemblies to necessary potential and ability to wid- international facilities in China, India, en his know-how, be willing to learn, Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Bos- cooperate and gradually assume re- nia & Herzegovina. sponsibilities. For this reason, competent, flexible, 3. Common goals, solutions, imple- mobile and cosmopolitan-condi- mentation and reflection on what tioned Czech managers are selected was accomplished every day. and prepared for short, medium or The following typical errors may long-term overseas appointments. hinder a successful process: At present there are about 80 experts – Faulty selection of personnel or working at Škoda Auto facilities in faulty assessment of potential other countries. – Non-cooperation by one of the The local managerial and technical tandem partners personnel are hired, motivated and – Unclear roles trained at Škoda Auto for short and – The expert wants to be in the lime- medium-term tenures. Currently 30 light. managers assigned to plants in India – The local partner is reluctant to as- and Russia receive training at Škoda sume responsibility. Auto. – Vertical division of functions – No systematic human resources Internationalization in local development plants – No objective agreement on tan- Whereas the demographic curve was dem development not truly reassuring, the rapid increase – No counseling or coaching in the number of investors and the – Impatience opening of Czech borders made it Photo: The Czech project team WE are Škoda is implementing Volkswagen’s – “Old boys“ network: conservative difficult to find adequately qualified indicator of the work atmosphere (Stimmungsbarometer) in the Czech Skoda structures refuse to be changed. domestic workers. locations. Photos: Škoda
22 December 2008 solutions
Škoda Auto is, therefore, happy when- medium or long-term basis – the in- – through innovative future-orient- Concluding ever foreign workers show interest in tercultural sensitivity of all workers ed projects like WE are Škoda, the working in Czech industries. plays an important role. However, if promotion of corporate culture, remark At present, there are 28 nationalities tradition is to be maintained the com- respect for foreign cultures, represented at Škoda Auto, on aver- pany must retain its integrity. – and through language training: The complexity of intercultural aware- age amounting to nearly 20 per cent This happens thanks to the awareness one-to-one or in groups, within ness is steadily increasing. It is not only of the total workforce. creating efforts by the superiors the country, abroad or by e- about awareness of other nationalities For Škoda Auto itself, internationaliza- – through target-group-specific in- Learning; in 2007, 55.1 percent of but also of genders, religions, indus- tion has enormous influence on the tercultural Training & Coaching: the management, 66.2 percent of trial segments, departments, teams sentiment and lifestyle of people in with general orientation, specifi- the high potentials and 12.4 per- and finally of the individual. At Škoda the small town of Mlada Boleslav, as cally GERMAN-CZECH, and tailor- cent of other regular employees Auto the steady internationalization almost half of its population is work- made for a particular country, participated in language courses. process is endorsed with a simple ing for Škoda Auto and the foreign – through promoting international More than half of the workforce formula: “Any ignorance about the workers too are expected to be inte- rotations, is learning German, about 40 per- foreign mentality can be counterbal- grated into the society there. – through instruments of internal cent English and the rest Russian, anced with acceptance, respect and communication like work news- Spanish, Czech, French or other responsiveness while continuing to Sensitization of Czech workers letter, work committee newsletter, languages. learn something new“. In the process of integrating new weekly newsletter, info center , the foreign workers – whether on short, behavioral code of Škoda Auto,
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Spanish for local and global markets
In the translation and localization business we often come across the terms US Spanish and Latin American Spanish. Are there any dif- ferences between them? In what way do they differ from International Spanish and Neutral Spanish? Despite the slight variations that may occur in US Spanish, Latin American (LA) Spanish, International Spanish and Neutral Spanish, they all have one thing in common: none of them actually exist.
By José Gambín & Igor Zubicaray ever, even within the same country, the Spanish a very heterogeneous group made up on the spoken in Central and South America is a medley, one hand of Spanish speakers born in the United Many will argue that Spanish is essentially the showing as many differences among them as can States, who use different Spanish varieties accord- same all over the Spanish-speaking world and be found between Castilian Spanish and any of ing to the variant of the Spanish language spoken that the main differences can be found in casual these American variants. in the country of origin of their parents or other speech and not in written formal speech. It is true According to Professor John Lipski in an invited ancestors and whose Spanish is influenced by that as the register becomes more formal, Span- lecture at the University of Chicago (2007), three English to a greater or lesser extent. On the other ish tends to become more uniform. Everyday main factors explain this diversification: the varie- hand, there is always ongoing immigration of words, however, which are the most prone to ties spoken by Spanish settlers; contact with other people from different countries and backgrounds, experience variations due to the constant use languages, namely indigenous languages, African who also use different Spanish varieties and are we make of them, can also be widely found in languages spoken by slaves and languages not aware of new words created by American- written texts. spoken by immigrants of the latest centuries; and born Hispanics. It must certainly be hard for many Translations should sound natural, as though the catalytic effect that emerging cities in Spanish of these newcomers to understand Voy a vacunar there were no source text. Setting aside certain America exerted on regional varieties of Spanish. la carpeta as the Spanglishized “I am going to types of translations (literary, sworn and under vacuum the carpet.” That sentence will just have certain circumstances, legal translations), the ideal It never rains but it the ludicrous old-country meaning “I am going to translation should sound as if it were indeed an vaccinate the folder.” original text, written by the audience to which it is pours In the middle of this confusion one question still addressed, and thus containing no “alien” terms. Is it The misconception underlying the idea of LA remains: How can one tackle a translation into US then possible to produce good-quality translations Spanish has spread beyond the Mexican border, Spanish or LA Spanish? when translating into US, LA, International or Neutral propagating from Maine to Washington. Spanish? In the end, isn’t translation about choosing With a population of 44 million, which accounts Solutions for translations the right word? for almost 14.8% of the total US population (data from the American Community Survey 2006 of into US and LA Spanish the US Census Bureau), and a growing purchasing The first thing that should be considered before LA Spanish: too good to power, US Hispanics — and sometimes by exten- beginning a translation is its purpose (skopos) and be true sion larger Hispanic markets — have become a the target audience, which depends, among other target for an increasing number of companies things, on the type of text and target market. Anyone asked to translate a text into LA Spanish that now see them as potential buyers. As a result, For instance, when translating a user manual, it is would be happy as a pig in mud if there were these companies ask for translations of their ad- important to take into account whether the product such a thing as a standard LA Spanish. Unfortu- vertising material and their product documenta- will be used by specialized technicians (as in the nately, nothing could be further from the truth. tion. But these translations are usually demanded case of a milling machine) or by ordinary people (as The idea of LA Spanish comes from the popular in US Spanish. in the case of the user manual of an inkjet printer). misconception of Spanish as a unity in every Like LA Spanish, US Spanish is not a reality; it is As a rule, specialized technical terminology is more Spanish-speaking country in the Americas, as only the reflection of businesses’ needs to reduce unlikely to deviate from a standard version of Span- opposed to European (Castilian) Spanish. How- costs. Hispanics in the United States represent ish. It may be accompanied in the same text, how-
24 December 2008 business culture
ever, by common words that can vary substantially translator had information relating to the market almost 14.8% of the total US population. Of these, depending on the country (see sidebar on page to which the product or text is addressed. That 34 million declared speaking Spanish at home, of 36). The main purpose of these texts is to provide way, if a company is, for example, planning to which 16 million declared speaking English less a description and clear instructions about the market a product for the upper class in Argentina, than “very well.” product, so it is extremely important to choose the Paraguay and Peru, the ideal solution, providing Data from the American Community Survey 2006 right terminology and keep it consistent throughout that the budget is limited and cannot cover the also revealed that the main country of origin of the whole translation. As companies try to minimize expenses of three different translations, would not Hispanics in the United States is Mexico (28 million), expenses and maximize income, we won’t tell you consist in requesting a translation into LA Spanish, followed by Puerto Rico (nearly 4 million) and Cuba that to avoid any risk of misunderstanding you but rather in taking into account the purchase (1.5 million). The remaining 10 million come from should use an editor for any or all Spanish variations. expectations of that product in each country and, different origins. The map in Figure 1 is a simplified Instead, make sure that your language provider uses accordingly, hiring a translator from the country version of this data. a translator/editor native to your most important where the purchase expectations are higher. This When facing a translation into US Spanish, this market (that is to say, if you sell more machines in translator should avoid the use of localism, and variety of backgrounds certainly poses a problem Mexico, use a Mexican native speaker) and that the the translation will sound as unnatural to the in terms of choice of the most appropriate vocabu- editor uses the most neutral expressions whenever other two countries as LA Spanish does, but at lary. In other words, imagine you sell car trunks possible. least it will satisfy the main purchasers of the prod- to the Hispanic market in the United States: Is it a The same rule applies for marketing material: uct. This solution could also be applied to the US better choice to use Puerto Rican baúl for the car words have to be chosen carefully because Hispanic market. trunk or Mexican cajuela? Given the overwhelming they contain cultural references, puns and other majority of Hispanics of Mexican origin, it seems wordplays. logical that Mexican Spanish should be used as All in all, the chosen terminology and vocabulary A demographic the default variant for translations into US Spanish. are essential to all sorts of translations if we want approach to US Spanish However, two things should also be taken into them to sound natural and not lead to misinter- account: the operating area of the company that pretation. How could a lemon juice commercial The Hispanic population has grown dramatically orders the translation and the target audience of be translated into a single LA Spanish when in the United States over the last 20 years. Accord- the translation. lemon is limón in Argentina but lima in Mexico ing to the US Census 1990 and 2000, the number The first approach lies in the locale where the or Peru? Not a huge difference, but when one of Hispanic population rose from 22 million in company plans to offer its products. If we take a knows that lima is Argentinean Spanish for lime 1990 to 35 million in 2000, an increase of 57.9%. look at the map (Figure 1), the population of Mexi- and the Mexican and Peruvian word for this citrus The data gathered in the American Community can origin is clearly predominant in some states. is limón, the situation becomes a bit more confus- Survey 2006 showed that the Hispanic or Latino For instance, in Arizona it represents up to 88.8% ing. Thus, it would be highly advisable that the population had reached 44 million, representing of the total Hispanic population. Accordingly, one could think that hiring a Mexican translator would be the preferable decision if the company desired to market its products in the Western region. On the other hand, a Puerto Rican would best suit the needs of a company operating in the Northeastern region. It goes without saying that the translator should try to avoid words that are too local, mainly in those cases when there is no highly-predominant minority in the region. Although this approach could be enough in many cases, especially when translating texts not related to specific companies, a second, more restrictive, approach should also be considered. Taking the potential buyers of a given product into account represents a more specific approach to solving the problem of this sort of translations into US Spanish. Sometimes, the origin of the potential buyers does not match the origin of the main minority, as can happen, for example, with luxury items such as an expensive sports car. In such cases, the most advisable solution would Figure 1: Map of US Hispanic population distribution. Source: US Census Bureau American Community consist of hiring a translator with the same origin Survey 2006 as the targeted community, regardless of what
December 2008 25 business culture
the largest minority is in that particular region. standable everywhere and is not offensive to any As Microsoft products are marketed worldwide, This way, he or she will definitely know if the Spanish speaker. This includes choosing a term it is cheaper to produce only one version of the word to use is cajuela, baúl or something else. or expression not used anywhere but under- product in Spanish. standable in every country (equipo for computer), Software localization: choosing the most widespread expression or What to consider when term (mouse instead of ratón, this last term being ‘neutralizing’ Spanish Microsoft approach used exclusively in Spain) or prohibiting the use Most software is originally developed in English, of certain words or expressions (such as coger, a One of the main problems and source of mis- so over the years different Spanish-speaking tabooed word in many Latin American countries, understandings when translating into any kind countries have provided different translations for where it has a sexual connotation, although per- of Neutral Spanish comes from the local use of new terms. Microsoft’s approach to this situation fectly normal and used every day in Spain, where polysemic words, that is, words with different has been quite the opposite. Through its Spanish it innocently means to take). meanings. For example, when Mexicans cook Style Guide and terminology database (TRES), the However, Microsoft reckons in its Spanish Style la comida, they cook lunch, whereas Peruvians company has aimed to provide a single transla- Guide that this approach often entails rejection or Colombians will be cooking dinner instead. tion for each new term that arises as well as to from users for whom the terminology is foreign, A Mexican can take a camión (“bus” in Mexican unify already existing terminology across the simply because it does not sound natural to any Spanish) to go home for his comida, but a Colom- Spanish-speaking world. It has also tried to follow Spanish speaker. The idea behind this neutral bian will never expect a camión (truck) to take him a Neutral Spanish — a Spanish that can be under- Spanish is again commercial and not linguistic. anywhere. If he decides to take the bus, he will coger el autobús. Here we come across the classic misunderstanding of the verb coger, harmless and used constantly in some countries to mean take, while tabooed in others, like Argentina or Stay current in a chanHinH Uruguay, where it is a rude word for having sexual intercourse. So, while a Spaniard coge el autobús world with or a Cuban coge la guagua (be careful with this expression in Chile, where guagua means baby), Your source for answers an Argentinian toma el colectivo and a Mexican and information on: toma/agarra el camión. • Internationalization When a word becomes taboo, usually due to sexual connotations, its use in its original meaning or • Globalization meanings tries to be avoided and it is consigned to • Localization the sphere of the forbidden. For example, the word • Language technology pico (peak or beak) represents one of the ways to • Translation designate the male sex organ in Chile. Therefore, • Web globalization • Writing for translation contact tekom members may enjoy a free half-year digital José Gambín, managing director at AbroadLink, subscription (new subscribers only). Subscribe online has worked as a freelance at www.multilingual.com/promo and use promotional translator, in-house transla- code D74TEK. tor, desktop publisher and Not familiar with MultiLingual magazine? project manager. Go to www.multilingual.com/digital to see a sample Igor Zubicaray is Spanish Looking for industry news? senior translator at Abroad- Sign up for our free electronic newsletter at Link with a degree in law www.multilingual.com/news and a degree in translation and interpreting.
26 December 2008 business culture
contrary to what happens in many Latin American countries, a Chilean will never say hora pico to refer to the peak hour, but hora punta or even hora When commonly used words in peak. The film Danteís Peak, whose dubbed version was titled El Pico de Dante in many Latin American technical texts become a problem countries, was, for obvious reasons, marketed in Although specialized technical terminology terms llanta de refacción (spare wheel) and Chile under the name La Furia de la Montaña (The does not usually show important variations cajuela (trunk) would be difficult to understand Anger of the Mountain). Continuing with misinterpre- among the different variants of Spanish, it goes in Argentina or Spain, as well as the Puerto tations, the word polla has different meanings in the without saying that some words usually found in Rican terms guía (spare wheel) and tapabocinas Spanish-speaking world besides female chicken: bet technical texts are commonly used in everyday (hubcap). Hypothetically, these sorts of terms in general, lottery in Chile, crib in Ecuador or gob (of speech. As a result of this use in oral speech, could be avoided in a translation targeted at a spit) in El Salvador, to name a few; but it has become the differences become greater. Let’s focus, for wide Spanish-speaking public, but the terms increasingly tabooed in Spain where it again refers instance, on the automotive industry. chosen would almost certainly sound unnatural to the male sex organ (so yes, we only have male Being products used across the world, not only to the affected countries. chickens in our farms now). In Argentina, the word do cars receive different names depending on Finally, some terms specific to certain countries concha (shell) is a tabooed word used to refer to the the region (auto, carro, coche), but their main would probably be understandable in others, female genitals. Therefore, it is not very advisable to parts are also subject to significant variations, although they could sometimes represent an say that you are going to the beach to coger conchas which may hinder communication and even obstacle to communication or sound odd, to a (gather shells) unless you want to provoke outright lead to misunderstandings. greater or lesser extent. hilarity or be taken for a sex maniac. In other One of these sources of misunderstandings can Table 1 is only an example of the variations countries, though, it is even used as a nickname for be found in Table 1, which includes examples of that may be found among the different vari- Concepción. A last piece of advice: when asking for some variations with their respective transla- ants of Spanish in the same field of knowledge. plastic bags in Ecuador or the Dominican Republic, tions in English. The table only aims to illustrate The automotive industry is not, however, do not ask a man if he tiene bolsas or you will be the most commonly used terms in each of the only field in which these differences are questioning his manliness. You’d better ask for the countries chosen, but differences may be evident. For instance, another field in which fundas. found among different regions within the same differences are marked is the nutrition industry. As we can see, words or expressions that are country. If we look at the terms tire and rim, we As shown with the lima/limón example in completely normal in some countries can lead to will see that the Spanish llanta designates the the main Gambín/Zubicaray article, fruits and confusion or hilarity, or even be offensive in oth- rim in Argentina and Spain, but Colombians, vegetables receive different names in different ers depending on the context in which they are Mexicans or Peruvians will rather use this term countries. What for a Mexican is a chícharo being used. This is one of the drawbacks of any to refer to the tire. In other words, the same term (green pea), for an Argentinean is an arveja artificial sort of Spanish such as LA or US Spanish: refers to different realities depending on the and for a Spaniard a guisante. On the other as these words need to be replaced by others, the country, representing a major problem when hand, in Spain chícharo is a term unknown in result is a clumsy speech that can be understood trying to produce a translation into LA Spanish, some regions, whereas in some others it refers by anyone but which nobody feels is theirs. Coger US Spanish or any other one-size-fits-all version to a chickpea. Other differences include cha- el autobús may sound odd or funny to Argentin- of Spanish. bacano (Mex) vs. damasco (Arg, Chi, Peru) and ians, but it is the most common way to take the Another source of problems is terms that would albaricoque (Spain); toronja (Mex) vs. pomelo bus in Colombia. be hardly understandable in some countries (Arg), aguacate (Mex) vs. palta (Arg); or fresa although not misleading. For example, Mexican (Mex) vs. frutilla (Arg), to name a few.
Final word Argentina Colombia Mexico Peru Puerto Rico Spain Venezuela English Although Neutral Spanish, LA Spanish and US volante timón volante timón, volante guía volante volante steering wheel cloche, Spanish are sometimes unavoidable, in those embrague clutch clutch embrague clocher embrague clutch embrague cases where the company has a limited budget neumático, llanta llanta llanta goma neumático caucho tire, tyre and is targeting a widespread market, companies goma should consider clearly defining their markets in llanta rin rin aro aro llanta rin rim order to request the translation that best fits their baúl baúl cajuela maletera baúl maletero maleta trunk, boot parachoques, needs rather than automatically going for a trans- paragolpes defensa parachoques bumper parachoques parachoques bumper bómper lation into any of these artificial Spanish variants bocina bocina claxon claxon bocina claxon corneta horn at the high expense of quality. auxilio, rueda llanta de llanta de llanta de goma de rueda de caucho de spare wheel de auxilio repuesto refacción repuesto repuesto repuesto repuesto Reprinted with permission of MultiLingual taza copa copa vaso tapabocinas tapacubos tapa, copa hubcap Magazine, Copyright September 2008 Table 1: Automotive terms in Spanish-speaking countries www.multilingual.com
December 2008 27 community
tekom Annual Conference and tcworld conference 2008 International information management – a sector with a promising future
With 2700 participants in 2007 and similar numbers expected this year, the tekom conference and tcworld conference 2008 promise to once again become a great success. The world’s biggest event in the field of technical communication and informa- tion management will take place from November 5th to 7th on the familiar premises of the Rhein-Main-Hallen in Wiesbaden, Germany.
28 December 2008 community
By Corinna Ritter Experience the charms Hardly any product can go without a compre- hensive manual – self-explanatory appliances and user-interfaces still remain dreams of the of Wiesbaden future. In order to break into international mar- kets, companies need to translate these manu- Did you just have an exciting and successful day at the conference? Then it is time for a bit of relaxation. als and other documents into a multitude of Check out some of Wiesbaden’s many sites and attractions. For example, the Kaiser-Friedrich-Baths, a languages as well as to localize according to modern city spa on the site of an antique bath house. This hot spring with its curative water was dis- the legal and cultural requirements of the tar- covered by the Romans some 2000 years ago but still remains a hot tip today. One among 26 hot water get market. The tcworld conference, held from springs, it is an oasis of relaxation. Another place of retreat is the thermal spa at Aukammtal, which has November 5th to 7th in the Rhein-Main-Hallen re-established itself as a modern health spa, following intensive modernization. in Wiesbaden, draws the attention to the wide tekom has also organized a number of tours and events for conference attendees. For more information, spectrum of international information manage- please visit the conference office in the Rhein-Main-Hallen. ment. The Market Church – sightseeing and organ recital A unique pool of knowledge Come and visit the city‘s tallest building, which was built in Whoever wants to compete in this rapidly the Neo-Gothic style. After the guided sightseeing tour enjoy growing market requires state-of-the-art and musical delights of organ composition. comprehensive information. This includes keeping up-to-date with regards to strategic, The springs of Wiesbaden – a guided walk methodical and technological aspects. The tc- The Romans were the first to recognize Wiesbaden´s special world conference and tekom annual confer- qualities and knew very well how to use the thermal water for ence offer a platform for experienced special- treatments and ists as well as for young professionals to gain a their well-being. broader perspective and draw from a unique Already in 120 AD pool of knowledge. In more than 100 presenta- the first Roman tions, workshops, tutorials and tool presenta- settlements were tions of exhibiting companies all relevant fields established under of knowledge are discussed. the name “Aquae Mattiacorum”. Learn everything about Guest of honor: Japan the history, the origin and the use of the mineral springs dur- The significance of cultural differences should ing this guided tour. not be underestimated, also with regard to tech- nical communication. That is why tekom is plac- Visit of the Marmalade and Mustard Factory ing more and more emphasize on international Everybody is familiar with them, and most love them, but information management and intercultural hardly anyone knows how marmalade and mustard are made. communication. This year, the “guest of honor” The “Wiesbadener Marmeladen- und Senfmanufaktur”, also Japan will take center stage during the confer- called „the princess revolution“, offers groups a look behind ence. Representatives of tekom’s sister organi- the scene. After a home-made fruity vinegar aperitif you will zation JTCA (Japan Technical Communicators be introduced to the art of marmalade and mustard cook- Association) give answers to your questions in ing and preserving. You will learn how to recognize suitable two main podium discussions: “Localization for fruits and how treats are created from standard fruit varieties Japan” and “Legal aspects of exporting products by adding fresh herbs, spices or alcohol. The manufacture of to Japan”. Furthermore, a member of JTCA’s ex- mustard, vinegar, oil and even liquor is also demonstrated. ecutive board will introduce the winner of the A social gathering rounds off the visit during which unusual “Japan Manual Award”. One highly interesting preserves, mustards, aperitif-digestive vinegars, special oils aspect here is the different use of visual com- and liquors can be sampled. Try them out and discover which munication: Comics are commonly used in sorts of fruity preserves or mustard go best with meat, sau- Japanese manuals, while they remain a rarity in sage or cheese. Europe.
December 2008 29 community
Forums at tcworld writing techniques and text comprehensibility XML Applications, Automation are among the topics. This forum provides a meeting point for all those Localization Forum who use XML in daily business or are planning Next to Japan, tekom also enters uncharted wa- User Assistance to use it. You will learn about the application ters during the Localization Forum in coopera- Here you will find information about the trends of this technology, basic principles of technical tion with the Globalization and Localization As- and techniques of online help tools and stand- communication with XML as well as standards sociation (GALA): Experts give advice on how ards, including the latest test and evaluation like DITA, S100 D, Office Open XML, DocBook to find business partners in Asia and give an procedures for user-friendly interfaces. User- and OASIS Open Document. overview of the Latin American market. Further centered engineering, rules for the design of topics of this forum include strategic aspects of user-friendly interfaces and analysis of user be- tekom-Trade Fair localization management and quality assurance, havior will be discussed among other topics. proofreading and editing, E-Learning, project The tcworld conference is accompanied by the management, automation and process optimiza- Terminology and Language Technology tekom-Trade Fair, the biggest industry exhibi- tion as well as basic skills like writing coherent Using consistent terminology is very important tion within the field of technical communication and translatable English source documents. for the efficient creation of technical informa- and information development. All the important tion. Renowned experts show how a compa- technology suppliers and service providers are Technical Authoring ny-wide terminology base can be created and present at this international fair. More than 150 This track imparts key knowledge for the daily managed, what software can be used and which companies present software and services that business in technical authoring. Research and organizational measures should be implement- help you cope with the production and manage- interview techniques, didactics of instructions, ed. Among the topics are terminology extraction ment of documentation and information. ID_RZ_englisch 13.12.2007 16:40 Uhr Seiteand 1 research as well as language technology and methods for technical communication.
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calendar
when what where
October International Conference on Portland, USA 24-25 Translation Studies, Cross- cultural Communication and
Chinese Pedagogy Many viewers have more and more choice in what, when and where they watch, http://ci.oia.pdx.edu/ use and interact with audiovisual media. Others, however, are excluded for a October CeBIT Asia 2008 Shanghai, China variety of reasons, including language. 27-30 www.cebit.de/ Cost, volume and quality can seem to be a contradiction in terms. Although pro- grams are available globally, their accessibility is often restricted. October Languages & The Media Berlin, Germany What language reversioning is required to reach specific audiences? Is technol- 29-31 www.languages-media.com ogy the only answer to reducing costs? What quality standards are adequate November 3 The Global Customer Barcelona, Spain and acceptable for global, national and regional media distribution in order to Experience Colloquium reach diversified local audiences? http://www.commonsenseadvi- The media world is changing rapidly. The 7th International Conference and Exhi- sory.com/training/training.php bition on Languages and the Media is a chance for you to voice your opinion and join the discussion. November tcworld conference Wiesbaden, Germany 5-7 www.tekom.de/conference
November 17 Canadian Language Industry Gatineau, Canada Showcase 2008 http://ailia.4poyntzdezign.com/ content.php?sec=4
November International EUATC Paris, France The Online Information Conference runs in the Olympia Conference Centre 20-21 Conference 2008 alongside the Information Management Solutions 2008 exhibition covering all www.euatc.org aspects of the information industry including: December Gilbane Boston 2008 Boston, USA • Understanding enterprise 2.0 2-4 http://gilbaneboston.com/ • Impact of web 2.0 in organizations • Improved service delivery in the digital age December Information Management London, Great Britain • Information dynamics and information logistics 2-4 Solutions 2008 and Online • eDiscovery the new search Information Conference • Information structuring for improved sharing, management and access www.ims-show.co.uk/
December LISA Forum Europe Dublin, Ireland 8-11 www.lisa.org The LISA Forum Europe will be concentrating on the business impact in the globalization industry of operating without standards. Multiple tracks, case stud- December World Congress on Special- Havana, Cuba ies and end-user presentations will focus attention on the executive issues, skill 8-13 ized Translation: Languages sets and business challenges associated with implementing standards to meet and Intercultural Dialogue in worldwide customer requirements. a Globalizing World Key topics include http://dtil.unilat.org/cmte2008 • Concrete steps for incorporating standards into enterprise Content Manage- December 9 I International Conference on S. Mamede Infesta, ment Systems Intercultural Studies Portugal • Benchmarking your globalization engineering and workflow processes www.iscap.ipp.pt/~cei/con- • Translation Automation standards: what is feasible today and what will it take gresso.htm to implement? • How can standard methods (best practice) enable more companies to use MT December 2nd International Symposium Osaka, Japan more efficiently? 15-16 on Universal Communication • Content creation standards: current practices for product globalization www.is-uc.org/2008
December 2008 31 directory
Associations
Technical Communication ComponentOne Doc-To-Help is in Europe Centrum Lokalizacji C&M, one of the premier authoring and publish- GALA is an international non- With the foundation of TCeurope the leading translation companies ing tool in the market. It enables profit association that promotes nine European associations of tech- in Poland with more than 10 years technical communicators, policy translation services, language tech- nical writers promote the quality experience, provides linguistic writers, and other content creators nology and language management of technical communication across services to customers from around to author in Doc-To-Help’s XML- solutions. The 200+ member com- borders, popularize the occupa- the world. C&M’s portfolio in- based editor, Microsoft Word or panies worldwide include transla- tional image, advance educational cludes: software localization includ- HTML, and publish to the Web, tion agencies, localization service opportunities and support the ing translation of documentation, Help systems, or printed manuals providers, globalization consultants interests of their members all across website localization, translation with a single click. ComponentOne and technology developers. GALA Europe. of technical, IT, medical, life sci- is the only vendor that gives you companies share a commitment to To enhance these goals TCeurope ences, legal, financial and marketing everything you need to create your quality, service and innovation in organizes an annual colloquium on texts into all CE languages. C&M documentation deliverables in one helping clients reach global markets. user friendly product information, provides terminology database application. You are encouraged to www.gala-global.org in which cross-border topics are management as well as automated visit them during the show in Hall [email protected] discussed and viewed from a politi- glossary generation and proofread- 10 Booth No. 171, and find out all cal, strategic, economic and techni- ing. Our team consists of verified that’s new in Doc-To-Help 2009. cal point of view. employees and freelance translators, www.doctohelp.com www.tceurope.org but also of various partner compa- sales@componentone.com [email protected] nies in other countries. We think tekom Gesellschaft für technische globally, but act locally. Kommunikation e.V. is the largest www.cmlocalization.eu/ association in Europe representing Service Providers [email protected] technical communicators, illustra- DOCUFY tors and translators. tekom is a time for information neutral platform for the exchange Push your documentation qual- of information, knowledge and ity and save time and money with expertise and promotes profes- Across Systems is the manufacturer cognitas – these are more than DOCUFY editorial solutions. sional education and training in the of the No. 1 independent technology 80 experienced employees like COSIMA: The powerful and flex- field of technical communication. for the linguistic supply chain. The technical writers, designers, trans- ible XML editorial system that fits Founded in 1978, tekom currently Across Language Server provides a lators, online-specialists and tool perfectly into your it-infrastructure. represents around 6000 members in central software platform for all cor- developers. cognitas is one of the COSIMA go!: The cost efficient all industrial branches. tekom coop- porate language resources and for largest certified service providers XML editorial system that is ready erates with associations of related controlling translation processes and of technical documentation in many for use without much project over- professions, educational institu- workflows. It includes a translation different sectors like information head. tions, industry organizations and memory, a terminology system, and and communication technology, Almost all of your special require- standards bodies worldwide. powerful project management and the aerospace industry, defense and ments can be supported by custom- www.tekom.de translation workflow control tools. automotive engineering. Our range izing and extending our COSIMA [email protected] Product managers, translators, and of services is based on a system of standard solution. Benefit from our proofreaders all work in one system. modules, we accompany you from more the 10 years experiences in Across Systems provides several the first concept phase through optimizing editorial processes. partner programs e.g. for LSPs and rollout and on to implementa- www.docufy.de consultants as well as a Software tion. The company is situated in [email protected] Development Kit for system integra- Munich, and has subsidiary of- tors and technology partners. Across fices in Paderborn and Stuttgart. clients access the server via LAN, [email protected] WAN or Web. The software is avail- www.cognitas.de able as a Hosted Service, too. [email protected] www.across.net
32 December 2008 directory
Locatech has helped multinational Founded in 1990, Moravia World- JustSystems is a leading global Kothes! is your competent partner companies develop, adapt and wide is a leading globalization software provider with three dec- for legally compliant and CE con- launch their products into interna- solution provider, enabling compa- ades of successful innovation in forming technical documentation. tional markets since 1993. Technical nies in the information technology, office productivity, information Kothes! meets the needs of compa- writers, software developers, locali- life sciences, manufacturing and management, and consumer and nies of any size providing services zation engineers, expert linguists financial industries to enter global enterprise software. With over 2,500 such as technical writing, transla- and project managers provide local markets with high quality multilin- customers worldwide and annual tions, risk assessments, conformity and off-shore services for every gual products. Moravia’s solutions revenues over $110M, the company assessments, consultancy, training step in the multilingual content life – delivered into over 90 languages is continuing a global expansion and software solutions. Further- cycle: from documentation creation and locales – include localization strategy that includes the launch of more we offer in-house seminars and software development through and product testing services, inter- its new enterprise software offering and workshops as well as the op- translation and localization to deliv- nationalization, multilingual pub- called xfy (pronounced ‘x-fye’), and tion of having your documentation ery of final, market-ready materials. lishing and technical translation. XMetaL content lifecycle solutions. evaluated. Locatech co-founded LCJ EEIG in With global headquarters in Brno, A Gartner “Cool Vendor” selec- Consequently, Kothes! is not fo- 1999, is a Microsoft Premier Locali- Czech Republic, Moravia has local tion in 2008, he company currently cused on any one particular field. In zation Vendor, and provides high- offices in Ireland, Central Europe, employs over 1,000 people. fact, we manage all kinds of docu- quality, cost-efficient IT outsourc- the United States, Japan, China and www.justsystems.com. mentation projects from “small” ing solutions through Locatech Argentina. consumer products to “large” plants. Trisoft Services Pvt. Ltd. India. www.moraviaworldwide.com Based in Kempen, Berlin, Bremen [email protected] europe@moraviaworldwide. and Zurich, Kothes! covers the www.locatech.com com German-speaking market and For 40 years, KERN Global Lan- beyond. guage Services has assisted com- www.kothes.de panies in translating, tailoring and [email protected] adapting their documentation and Logrus provides multilingual trans- Plunet BusinessManager is the products for international markets. lation, software engineering and complete management solution for Take advantage of our linguistic and testing services into large number the translation and documentation technical expertise in terminology of languages, including complex industry. On a web-based platform, and translation memory manage- scripts and rare tongues. the system – INCLUDES business ment (data migration, term extrac- Established in 1989, Lloyd Inter- We specialize on Russian, Ukrain- management as well as process tion, compilation and maintenance national Translations specialises in ian, Kazakh, Azeri and other CIS and document management – IN- of firm-specific terminology) and assisting and supporting companies languages. TEGRATES translation software, optimize your workflow with our to achieve their global success Focus areas of expertise are: operat- financial accounting systems and fully-integrated customer solutions. by providing first-class transla- ing systems, Enterprise Resource existing software environments KERN Global Language Services is tion and localization services. Planning, business software, and – FOR LSPs, translation and docu- your partner for technical transla- Offering a full range of language general-purpose software localiza- mentation departments, organiza- tions and multilingual DTP. translation services, from transla- tion into Russian, Ukrainian and tions and government agencies. We look forward to seeing you at tion, website and software locali- other languages of the former Plunet BusinessManager impresses our booth 931 in hall 9. zation, glossary and terminology USSR. with its significant time and money www.e-kern.com management and development, We render marketing content savings, high adaptability to indi- [email protected] to translation memory manage- and business printing services for vidual workflows, optimal quality ment and full multilingual content companies willing to break into the control and effective CRM. Func- management, Lloyd International market of Russia and Ukraine. tions include quotation costing, is committed to ensuring that all We record sound in 25+ languages, order/job/workflow management, translations are tailored to meet and and render and master video. We schedule and document manage- exceed the needs of our customers. create web banners and presenta- ment, invoicing, financial reports www.lloyd.co.uk tions with video and animation in and much more. [email protected] Adobe Flash, Microsoft Silverlight. www.plunet.de [email protected] [email protected] www.logrus.ru
December 2008 33 directory
t c w the content wrangler As one of the world’s leading PTC provides leading product TheContentWrangler.com is a language services providers the- Looking to get in touch with Scan- lifecycle management (PLM), con- popular online resource for techni- bigword delivers efficient, global dinavia? Then look no further than tent management and dynamic cal and business writers with an solutions to clients across the world. Translator Scandinavia. Based in publishing solutions to more than interest in content management. We constantly provide high quality Stockholm, Sweden, we’ve been 40,000 companies worldwide. PTC Become a member of TheContent- and cost effective translation, locali- successfully marketing the world’s customers include the world’s Wrangler.com community. It’s free! sation and interpreting solutions products and services in the Nordic most innovative companies in Members receive: through experienced teams and region for more than 15 years. 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TOIN offers global reach and information. technical translation company, exceptional strength in Asia, with ACP TRADUCTERA is based in From information sourcing to specialising in providing accu- headquarters in Tokyo and ad- the Czech and Slovak Republic. global delivery, we help make work- rate and consistent translations ditional operations in the United Our local experience and strong flows more efficient and use latest of the following items across States, Europe and China. The focus on appropriate language technology to achieve optimum a wide range of languages: company has more than 40 years’ use makes us reliable partner for cost savings, shortened production • User guides experience helping Global 1000 providing high-quality translations times and consistent quality. • Technical manuals companies in industries such as au- into Central and Eastern European Our core industries are automotive, • Help systems tomotive, information technology, languages. engineering, energy and medical. • Websites life sciences, engineering, electron- We offer document translations, Over 200 experts in 9 locations on 4 • Software programs ics, training, publishing, software review, revision, legal certification, continents produce Founded in 1986, SalfTrans of- development, manufacturing, semi- website and software localization, • Owners literature fers you the benefit of over 20 conductors and consumer products. Desktop publishing, etc. • Service and repair manuals years' experience in the technical Languages: Japanese, Simplified ISO 9001:2000 certificate by TÜV • Training literature translation sector. We specialise in Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Ko- NORD. Our translation process is • Diagnostic procedures translating your technical literature rean, Vietnamese, Thai, Malay, and in compliance with DIN EN 15038. • Spare parts catalogues to publication standard, including some European languages. THE EUROPEAN REGIONAL DE- and translate these documents a full multilingual DTP service. www.to-in.com VELOPMENT FUND AND THE in more than 30 languages. Our We have in-depth expertise of Europe: MINISTRY OF INDUSTRY AND own Content Management System software localisation. We offer you [email protected] TRADE OF THE CZECH REPUB- allows intelligent integration into a consistent quality solution, deliv- North America: LIC SUPPORT INVESTMENT IN your software environment. ered on time and within budget. [email protected] YOUR FUTURE. www.vaw-online.com www.salftrans.co.uk Asia: www.traductera.com [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
34 December 2008
www.tekom.de/conference Book now: Your exhibition space at the tekom- Trade Fair*, the biggest event in Technical Communication worldwide
Meet more than 2,700 professionals from “The organizers at tekom were * extremely helpul. The big gathering the fields of Technical Communication and of exhibitors gave me many oppor- Information Management tunities to interact extensively.“ Shirley Yeng, Beijing E-C Translation
“For us the tekom Annual Conference is the leading trade fair in the area of Technical Communication. It presents the entire spectrum of new trends and technologies. We are de nitely going to participate again this year.“ Martina Tomaschowski, empolis GmbH conference 2008 CONFERENCE FOR INTERNATIONAL INFORMATION MANAGEMENT
November 5-7, 2008; Rhein-Main-Hallen Wiesbaden, Germany Further information: www.tekom.de/conference