Heavy Lifting From the Backseat

[00:00:06] Speaker A: This is localization Today, a podcast from multilingual media covering the most relevant daily news in the language industry. [00:00:16] Speaker B: Heavy lifting from the backseat by Bridget. [00:00:19] Speaker C: Hylak, Annabelle and Akari, Monique and Adriana, Olga, Javier and Klaus, Isabela and Ursula, Chimina, Derrio and Lamis. And the list goes on and on. All rock stars, all linguists, all true industry icons. [00:00:38] Speaker B: Many of them are women. Not one is active on LinkedIn, not one looking for praise. [00:00:44] Speaker C: We all know them. [00:00:45] Speaker D: Suppose we are running a successful multilingual. [00:00:47] Speaker B: Enterprise on any level. [00:00:49] Speaker C: In that case, we all have a. [00:00:51] Speaker B: Few of them in our back pocket. [00:00:53] Speaker D: Those tireless, selfless word nerd warriors who. [00:00:56] Speaker B: Go the extra kilometer and translate without. [00:00:59] Speaker D: Charge or fuss, that pesky four word subtitle change that arrives after hours via. [00:01:04] Speaker B: Client email outside the pipeline. [00:01:07] Speaker D: The accommodating mother of four who rushes through dinner with family to elegantly rectify. [00:01:12] Speaker B: A character limit overage the night shift. [00:01:14] Speaker D: Hero who immediately detects the wrong character. [00:01:17] Speaker B: Encoding before the project breaks, averting disaster. [00:01:21] Speaker C: And delay for the third time in. [00:01:23] Speaker B: One evening, they are whizzes on just. [00:01:25] Speaker D: About every computer assisted translation cat tool. [00:01:28] Speaker B: And translation management system TMS on the market. [00:01:33] Speaker D: Many of them are quietly plugging away at uncovering the useful yet intricate applications. [00:01:38] Speaker B: Of generative AI geni in their workflow. However, you won't find them teaching courses or trying to get famous. Too bad, because some of the tips. [00:01:47] Speaker D: Tricks, secrets, and suggestions they have up. [00:01:50] Speaker B: Their sleeves are effective, humbling, and often mind boggling. Their roots are in language, yet their. [00:01:56] Speaker D: Hearts skip a beat over emerging technologies that help them do their job better. [00:02:01] Speaker B: They know how to come in through. [00:02:02] Speaker C: The front door, the side window, or. [00:02:05] Speaker B: The back porch of any project, how. [00:02:07] Speaker E: To import, align, and or prep the. [00:02:10] Speaker B: Craziest of disjointed files, how to detect and correct problems before things break down. [00:02:16] Speaker D: And how to exit elegantly through the chimney, leaving perfect presents behind like Santa Claus. All tasks involving insane levels of expertise that, to them, are second nature. [00:02:26] Speaker C: The public, you and me don't know. [00:02:29] Speaker B: Who they are, but their fingerprints are. [00:02:31] Speaker D: All over the subtitles on the foreign. [00:02:33] Speaker B: Films we watch, the brochures at our doctor's offices, and the billboards and commercials. [00:02:38] Speaker D: Advertising all those famous and fancy things we so desperately need to buy or. [00:02:42] Speaker B: Sell, the profits of which they will never properly share in. And the thing is, they don't care. Money as a reward is not their incentive. [00:02:52] Speaker C: Wait, what? [00:02:53] Speaker B: They simply love their work. [00:02:55] Speaker D: They love their community. [00:02:56] Speaker B: They do what's right. [00:02:58] Speaker D: Yep, like May Berry's quintessential citizen of the year. They impeccably do it all just because. [00:03:04] Speaker C: And they do enough of it, and. [00:03:06] Speaker B: With such proficiency that they make a great living at it. [00:03:09] Speaker D: Most of their clients would be devastated. [00:03:11] Speaker B: If something happened to them, even when they go on that rare vacation. Project managers PMS squirm nervously in their. [00:03:19] Speaker D: Chairs upon receiving the polite email requesting two or three weeks off to spend some time with the kids and slash. [00:03:25] Speaker B: Or help with a family matter somewhere beyond wifi borders. The PM struggles with saying, no problem. [00:03:32] Speaker C: You deserve it, while internally scouring their. [00:03:35] Speaker D: Brain over how and who will fill. [00:03:37] Speaker B: Their shoes in the interim. [00:03:38] Speaker C: The answer never comes easy. [00:03:40] Speaker B: Linguist XYZ, or even three or four working together, never manages to measure up if clients complain. These subs just don't care. They don't rise to the occasion and. [00:03:52] Speaker E: Supply all their references and links to. [00:03:55] Speaker B: Their research like Adriana, or take up the charge to stand behind their product like Klaus. [00:04:00] Speaker D: They don't rush to rectify the non. [00:04:02] Speaker B: Localized graphics that slip through the pipeline like Gabriel. And they won't and can't defend their work beyond a frustrated huff and a careless retort. I've been doing this for years. I know I'm right. [00:04:15] Speaker D: As captured by CSA researches the evolution of language services and technology in December 2022, neither Monique nor Annabella campaigning or. [00:04:25] Speaker B: Desiring to be spotlighted. However, anyone with inner sense who is. [00:04:29] Speaker D: Really observing with an eagle eye from the C suite down will recognize the invaluable service and intrinsic enterprise stabilizing value. [00:04:37] Speaker B: Of these professionals who care deeply, care about getting it right and have the experience and expertise to execute. They are key to the core. If they are not at the core properly recognizing, compensating, and retaining their expertise. [00:04:52] Speaker C: Is and will increasingly be vital to. [00:04:55] Speaker D: Any serious multilingual effort focused on true. [00:04:58] Speaker C: Connection and reduced risk profit. [00:05:00] Speaker D: There is no line item or value. [00:05:02] Speaker C: Metric for what they do, but there should be. [00:05:05] Speaker D: Making any global campaign fly without their. [00:05:08] Speaker E: Input is about as risky as attempting. [00:05:10] Speaker D: A pack transatlantic flight on New Year's. [00:05:12] Speaker B: Eve without flight attendants. Without them, who recognizes the onboard flight. [00:05:17] Speaker C: Problem, calms the unruly, slightly tipsy passenger. [00:05:21] Speaker B: Replenishes the urgently needed bath bag, or improvises with a ziploc, alerts the pilots. [00:05:26] Speaker D: Of sparks issuing out from under the. [00:05:28] Speaker B: Left wing, and ushers everyone to safety in an emergency landing at Shannon airport. [00:05:34] Speaker D: Never mind the prospect of heading to the hotel only to wake up early. [00:05:37] Speaker B: The next morning and do it all over again. The real industry influencers that would be Javier, Gemina, Marissa and others, because so. [00:05:46] Speaker D: Much of what they do and how they do it influences the industry's success. [00:05:51] Speaker B: From Italian to Tamil, Alimanic, german to. [00:05:54] Speaker C: Canadian, French, Arabic, Mam. [00:05:56] Speaker B: Mandarin and Yoruba to Hebrew, Mandarin, Slovenian and back again. [00:06:01] Speaker D: These diehard pros make sure that just in case you are that patient in the doctor's office learning how to use. [00:06:06] Speaker B: Insulin for the first time, or that. [00:06:08] Speaker D: Employee required to use potentially hazardous chemicals. [00:06:12] Speaker B: In their workplace, or that parents struggling. [00:06:14] Speaker D: To assist their child with a new. [00:06:15] Speaker B: Curriculum, nothing within their power will go wrong because of caring and experienced Ursula. No letter, number or column is out. [00:06:24] Speaker D: Of place on that meticulously localized table. [00:06:26] Speaker B: On your pharmaceutical package insert. [00:06:29] Speaker C: Why? [00:06:30] Speaker B: Because they think of you like family. [00:06:32] Speaker D: This caliber of industry professional is worth. [00:06:35] Speaker B: Their weight in platinum. [00:06:36] Speaker C: Tow them. [00:06:37] Speaker D: Connection is more than an option. [00:06:39] Speaker B: Nuance is essential to detect, decipher, teach and communicate. Health, well being, love, success, everything to. [00:06:48] Speaker C: Do with being human will never be. [00:06:50] Speaker E: Undermined or overlooked by them because they live and breathe. [00:06:54] Speaker D: They get it right. [00:06:55] Speaker B: Their ambition is not to be an influencer on a grand stage, but to influence the quality of your life and. [00:07:01] Speaker D: How well you live your day in. [00:07:03] Speaker B: An increasingly globalized world. [00:07:05] Speaker C: Week after week they do. This month after year and even decade. [00:07:10] Speaker E: After decade, they labor quietly and diligently. [00:07:13] Speaker B: In an office of one veterans and new industry blood, silently preaching messages of. [00:07:19] Speaker C: Inclusivity, quality and connection through their work, personally and professionally. [00:07:25] Speaker B: They have this down and live it eloquently. [00:07:28] Speaker D: The next generation should be watching their. [00:07:30] Speaker B: Focus, dedication and learning more than a few things. [00:07:34] Speaker C: Why? [00:07:35] Speaker D: Because these exemplary pros understand the one. [00:07:38] Speaker B: Detail that is most important of all. [00:07:40] Speaker D: The disappointment and repercussions of getting it wrong. [00:07:44] Speaker B: They know enough to recognize and admit what they don't know, stop the presses. [00:07:48] Speaker D: And course correct until due west once. [00:07:51] Speaker B: Again looms large on their project compass. [00:07:54] Speaker C: For many of them, pay rates have. [00:07:56] Speaker D: Decreased in recent years while the quality and speed of delivery have increased. [00:08:01] Speaker B: And yet they haven't suffered as much as others. Nor are they unduly alarmed as the. [00:08:06] Speaker D: Exciting potential of geni breathes down the. [00:08:08] Speaker B: Industry'S neck and even makes its way. [00:08:11] Speaker C: Down our pant leg. [00:08:13] Speaker B: These pros see it as anything but a threat. They've been through this before. They've adapted as their clients have requested, and they've risen to the occasion hundreds of times and raised their personal bar. [00:08:25] Speaker D: They've also been ridiculously careful in the process, such that their skills have only built upon themselves. [00:08:31] Speaker C: And like fine wine, their mettle has. [00:08:34] Speaker B: Been proven with time and the adapting never ends, which is something they intrinsically recognize the inherent dynamism of language itself. [00:08:43] Speaker D: Not to mention the technology that currently. [00:08:45] Speaker B: Drives and supports it, requires adaptability not. [00:08:49] Speaker D: Only to linguistic shifts and emerging jargon. [00:08:52] Speaker B: But also to client relations and solutions. Customization, indeed, personalization and human interaction by highly skilled human linguist technicians, which can be accomplished only by, well, highly skilled human linguist technicians or those they consult. [00:09:09] Speaker C: For, are key in client relationship management. [00:09:12] Speaker B: And who adapts, juggles or improvises better. [00:09:16] Speaker C: Than a working mom? [00:09:18] Speaker B: The sheer volume of work they do. [00:09:20] Speaker D: Combined with a minimalist lifestyle and an. [00:09:22] Speaker B: Impressive list of savvy, happy clients, is their security. [00:09:26] Speaker C: For now. While they may not be panicking, it's. [00:09:29] Speaker B: Not in their nature. [00:09:30] Speaker D: Neither have they benefited as much as they should, simply because they don't see well. [00:09:35] Speaker B: They just won't look at their own. [00:09:37] Speaker D: Worth long enough to get that part. [00:09:38] Speaker B: Of the equation right, too. Here's your permission, Moira, llamas, Jimina and. [00:09:43] Speaker C: Dario to do just that. Look in the mirror, see what we already know, claim your stake, tow the. [00:09:52] Speaker D: Community and industry that surround you. [00:09:54] Speaker C: A humble request this year. [00:09:57] Speaker B: Let's vote all of them up. [00:09:59] Speaker D: Let's vote for the real industry influencers who will never have their name on. [00:10:03] Speaker C: A book, video game or in movie. [00:10:05] Speaker B: Credits, though they've been key to many. [00:10:08] Speaker D: Who will never get rewarded for nailing that oh so perfect rendition of Mumbo. [00:10:12] Speaker B: Jumbo or heebie GBs who have researched. [00:10:15] Speaker D: Single concepts for hours to get them just right. [00:10:18] Speaker B: Research that is now globally available with no royalties attached as part of a public large language model, LLM, machine translation. [00:10:27] Speaker C: MT engine, or termbase. [00:10:30] Speaker B: Their subtitles, commercials, voiceovers and press releases. [00:10:34] Speaker C: Have made us laugh, cry and connect. [00:10:37] Speaker D: All in the name and credit of an agency that generally pays them a. [00:10:41] Speaker B: Fraction of what they deserve and what big corporate earns. This year, let's stop robotically relying on their impeccable efforts without an occasional pat on the back. Whether it's an actual nomination or something they'd prefer, like a raise, a promotion. [00:10:56] Speaker C: A bonus, a lunch date or a. [00:10:58] Speaker B: Thank you note, let's ensure they know we appreciate them. [00:11:01] Speaker D: Your gratitude will shock and humble Madeleine. [00:11:04] Speaker C: Fernande and their peers as they plow. [00:11:07] Speaker B: Along, plant and sow, rise, shine and retire. [00:11:11] Speaker D: They're so used to being unsung heroes that your accolades may internally throw them. [00:11:16] Speaker C: Into full five part harmony, while the. [00:11:20] Speaker B: Existential chicken or the egg question what came first? Male or female linguists may never be answered. [00:11:27] Speaker E: We might all give that one to. [00:11:28] Speaker B: The men simply due to industry mascot St. Jerome, translator of the Latin Vulgate Bible. [00:11:34] Speaker D: But just because good old Jerome ass waged his temptations of the flesh by turning to the arduous study of Hebrew and passionately executed his monastic duties to. [00:11:43] Speaker B: Become one of the earliest bona fide documented linguists on the planet doesn't mean he wasn't instructed and supported by a. [00:11:51] Speaker C: Lot of Annas, Esthers, and Ursulas. [00:11:53] Speaker B: After all, isn't fostering harmony and connection the very essence of interconnectedness one of. [00:12:00] Speaker D: The fundamental tasks of women in almost any household? [00:12:04] Speaker B: Need sober ethical insights as processes adapt with unprecedented speed. [00:12:09] Speaker C: They have those too. [00:12:11] Speaker B: They took their odes seriously as junior pros and still abide by the ironclad code of ethics drafted in 1998, making them the trustworthy, client focused professionals they are. [00:12:23] Speaker E: Every language company, system or platform dealing. [00:12:26] Speaker B: With direct clients brags about their professional. [00:12:29] Speaker D: Native linguists or fully automated localization processes. [00:12:33] Speaker C: Their teams have it all down, they say. Do they now? [00:12:37] Speaker B: Without Adriana or Javier, they are like. [00:12:40] Speaker D: Aliens riding blindfolded in the backseat of an earth made autonomous vehicle on its. [00:12:44] Speaker B: Maiden voyage to Tatooine, hoping to arrive somewhere safely and fingers crossed they might get there. But without proper implementation and testing, without the right expert, and without teaching that. [00:12:57] Speaker D: AV, the difference between a tuscan raider. [00:12:59] Speaker B: And a womp rat, a land speeder and a waymo, isn't the risk a little high? [00:13:04] Speaker C: So skit the hope and get some. [00:13:07] Speaker B: Insurance directors and executives. You can mitigate a lot of risks. [00:13:11] Speaker D: And solve many problems simply by hiring. [00:13:13] Speaker C: A monique, a kafferina, a hansel or a gretel. [00:13:17] Speaker B: They are your real magic bullet. [00:13:19] Speaker D: A technical linguist who masters both sides of the language technology equation is a. [00:13:24] Speaker B: Rare and valuable find. [00:13:26] Speaker C: Do not look past her or him. [00:13:29] Speaker B: And don't let them slip away. They will lead you to the global promised land. There has to be a seat for. [00:13:35] Speaker E: These brilliant ethical language connoisses at the. [00:13:38] Speaker B: Industry'S next birthday party, particularly as processes. [00:13:41] Speaker D: Veer into increasingly automated, headless and lights out scenarios. [00:13:45] Speaker B: Cutting costs by extremely wide margins is. [00:13:48] Speaker D: Possible with significantly less risk as long. [00:13:51] Speaker B: As they remain in the mix. [00:13:53] Speaker D: If directors go one step further and surround them with a few competent and. [00:13:57] Speaker B: Marginally motivated colleagues, they will mentor them like true champs. They were born to make your language. [00:14:04] Speaker E: Challenges disappear and love the art and science of words. [00:14:08] Speaker B: But in the current industry climate, if. [00:14:10] Speaker D: They must transition up the chain from. [00:14:12] Speaker B: Word nerd extraordinaire to other roles, then so be it. So long as they don't fade away. [00:14:18] Speaker D: They won't be comfortable giving orders at. [00:14:20] Speaker B: First, but soon they'll understand how to. [00:14:23] Speaker C: Add value, and indeed, how. Without them, the ODs of success are low. [00:14:28] Speaker D: They already know more than most industry. [00:14:30] Speaker B: PMs and language directors and are already. [00:14:33] Speaker D: In the business of averting disasters before they strike. They just aren't recognized for the effort. [00:14:39] Speaker B: Nor do they currently charge for it. Once they grasp their worth, they will adapt and thrive. [00:14:45] Speaker C: They always have. [00:14:46] Speaker D: They will quickly see that no one. [00:14:48] Speaker B: Can do the job quite like them. Somewhere in the pipeline between approval, initial review, and delivery, if these proven industry experts eyes and hearts are not somewhere on the deliverable language and localization providers will risk missing the mark entirely. [00:15:05] Speaker D: Talk about dire consequences. Even some of the least damaging scenarios. [00:15:09] Speaker B: Could turn C suite dreams into nightmares. [00:15:12] Speaker C: We salute you all, you silent and. [00:15:15] Speaker B: Heavy lifters from the backseat. In the name of authentic influence and. [00:15:19] Speaker D: In harmony with the technologies you continuously. [00:15:22] Speaker B: Seek to master, you are the industry's next best investment. This article was written by Bridget Hylak. [00:15:31] Speaker D: She uses her experience as a nationally certified linguist and multilingual communications director to help clients find the tools that balance. [00:15:39] Speaker B: Efficiency and cost with a human touch. Originally published in multilingual magazine, issue 225, March 7, 2024. [00:15:51] Speaker A: Thank you for listening to localization today. To subscribe to multilingual magazine, go to multilingual.com Slash Subscribe.