Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Unlocking localization potential with a successful TMS migration By Jan Hoffmeister and Laszlo Varga A well implemented translation management system is the backbone of effective and efficient multilingual content management, helping businesses maintain consistency, quality and speed across various languages, content channels, and source and delivery platforms. However, evolving technologies and the growing demands of global business mean that sticking with an outdated TMS can hold a company back. When localization falls behind due to technology debt, the entire company's growth and international strategy may be jeopardized risks that keep senior managers in any business up at night.
[00:00:47] Traditionally, businesses invest in a core platform such as a TMS for a time horizon of five to eight years.
[00:00:55] With the recent rapid development of language technologies, in no small part thanks to progress in artificial intelligence, translation platforms are also evolving at a fast speed. This widens the capability gap between modern and legacy systems, triggering upgrade initiatives more frequently. Changing tmss, however, is not a plug and play activity, and the effort and costs involved in switching are important factors when selecting a new tms.
[00:01:24] Nevertheless, with the right new platform planning and partner, the potential benefits make the effort worthwhile. After all, switching to a new TMS is not just about adopting new technology, it's about fundamentally enhancing the way your business runs its language operations. As technology experts from Nimzee Insights, we have led and participated in various TMS migration initiatives over our careers.
[00:01:52] In this article, we provide practical insights into the migration process between two TMSs. Whether your business is driven by the need to scale localization efforts, improve operational efficiency, or accommodate new market demands, we aim to equip you with the core knowledge necessary to make informed decisions about migrating to a new tms.
[00:02:14] Why change to a New tms?
[00:02:18] While there can be many reasons or excuses why localization leaders may not want to change their tms, including perceived lack of time and expertise, staying on top of the language technology stack is well worth the effort. Investing in a new team is not just about keeping up with the latest technology it's a strategic move that can deliver a significant return on investment. Roy, your TMS is a vital tool when businesses aim to connect with audiences worldwide. A TMS is crucial for managing the complexities of multilingual content. From handling translations across regions to ensuring consistency in brand voice and terminology, ATMS acts as a central hub that unifies the entire localization process. Tmss help streamline the localization process, which means quicker time to market, more content engagement, and better customer experiences. A modern TMS efficiently automates and orchestrates translation workflows, integrates with content creation, customer data and publishing platforms, connects to innovative technologies such as machine translation tools and large language models, and at the end of the day, provides an efficient workbench for linguists. See Figure 1. Essentially, modern TMSs have become broad language platforms that enable companies to grow their global footprint while maintaining operational efficiency. Legacy TMSs pose challenges just as with any connected technology platform, relying on an outdated TMS presents significant challenges. For one thing, platforms that struggle to keep pace with innovation lead to integration issues with systems for content management, customer relationship management, customer service, product design, and E commerce. This lack of compatibility often results in disconnected workflows, making managing translations across various channels cost intensive and largely manual. Additionally, legacy systems frequently lack the advanced features required to handle the complexity and scale of modern localization needs. Without support for automation integrations or AI powered workflows, businesses will find it difficult to scale localization efficiently. Transitioning Offers Benefits Migrating to a new TMS allows businesses to modernize localization workflows and provides a valuable opportunity to review and improve existing processes. The act of migration forces organizations to evaluate how a TMS support thwarts or hinders their workflows, making it easier to identify inefficiencies. When leaving behind an outdated system, companies can redesign their localization workflows without technology being a limiting factor. Cost efficiency is another compelling reason to migrate.
[00:05:17] Modern TMS platforms reduce the reliance on manual processes with automation, integrate AI powered productivity tools, and improve integration capabilities with other business tools, leading to lower operational costs. Last but not least, centralization initiatives may present the need for migration.
[00:05:38] Enterprise localization programs often experience a cyclical transition between centralized and decentralized operations in terms of both internal operations and outsourcing strategy. This fluency in organization and execution often results in a fragmented language technology stack, leading to subpar results in consistency, quality, speed, and cost across departments. Centralizing language operations or external vendors into a single platform helps mitigate these inefficiencies by harmonizing workflows and language assets. In particular, a merger or acquisition is a time when centralization comes into play. Strategies for a Seamless Migration now that we have established the benefits of modern TMSs, let's focus on how to decide on a new TMS and implement it when migrating from an existing solution. Conduct Analysis and Define workflows the first step is conducting a detailed analysis of your current business processes to understand how they align with your overall business objectives and efficiency requirements. This deep dive will help identify bottlenecks and pain points that may be complicating your organization's localization efforts using a granular approach, businesses should review each workflow, not just translation itself, and associate it with measurable costs such as time and effort. This detailed breakdown forms the foundation of a robust migration strategy, helping you estimate the time saved through process improvements and the achievable cost reductions. Challenging the status quo yields valuable insights that can drive organizations to rethink and redesign their workflows to better meet modern business demands. Next, create a new design for an ideal end to end workflow, including constraints such as connected systems that will stay the same. Knowing how and where the new TMS will support the updated workflow helps specify which features will be must haves versus nice to haves during the TMS selection process. Reengineering workflows with a forward looking mindset enables organizations to leverage advanced features that modern TMS platforms offer such as AI driven translation processes, orchestration tools, neural mt, and LLM based mt. These innovations drastically reduce human error, speed up turnaround times, and ensure consistency across projects, leading to both qualitative and quantitative improvements in translation and localization efforts. Select the Right TMS Chances are your legacy system became legacy because it failed to innovate and localization teams need to prioritize the innovation potential of TMS providers over current feature sets when choosing a new platform. From a business perspective, your new TMS should visibly contribute to strategic objectives such as shorter time to market for products and services, consistency of user experience, increased customer engagement through hyper personalized attention, faster international growth and reduced costs, all of which are important ROY considerations for C level executives. When evaluating TMS options, decision makers should focus on the five criteria shown in Figure 2. They should also check out Nimz's online resources such as RTMS Feature Explorer and Language Technology Radar, which offer a continuously updated overview of the market. At first glance, core functionality may appear similar across most mature TMS platforms as they typically include features such as translation memories, term bases, quality assurance, QA checks and workflow customization. However, significant differences can still be found. For example, 1tms may offer better support for document based translation, while another excels in string based or multimedia translation. It's crucial to evaluate which specific content types, file formats and communication channels need the support of the new tms as well as the level of automations expected from the new platform. Having done the homework in the previous business process innovation phase, the list of must have features will help shortlist the possible TMS candidates. Another critical aspect of selecting a TMS is understanding how well it integrates with existing tools and systems. TMSs are inherently transformative in nature, they need to connect with other platforms for input, such as task management triggers or source files in texts, processing linguistic assets and technologies such as MT or LLMs and output the publishing system. Some TMSs must rely on third party or custom connectors others natively build solid integration features into their platforms. Translation processing systems such as MT engines and orchestration tools can also be either third party or built in house. This impacts the migration process's complexity. The more systems you need to license, implement, align and train staff for, the more difficult the transition becomes. Modern platforms built for connectivity from the ground UP, such as Frase, are likely to offer 80 to 90% coverage of enterprise integration needs out of the box, significantly reducing custom engineering needs in contrast with legacy solutions. This is especially true if the legacy system is indeed an older version of a TMS like for example trados from 5 to 8 years ago. In addition to these integrations, evaluating the vendor's approach to applying AI is crucial. AI driven features can not only help optimize and evolve workflows, but also introduce opportunities to revolutionize and transform processes. Choosing a TMS with strong AI and integration capabilities will ensure your localization efforts are future proof and adaptable to evolving technological trends. Security and compliance are non negotiable, especially if your organization deals with sensitive or regulated content. A robust TMS should include encryption, access controls and compliance with industry regulations such as Europe's General Data Protection Regulation.
[00:12:11] This is particularly important for businesses operating in multiple regions with strict data privacy requirements. Finally, cost is another major factor to consider.
[00:12:22] Total cost of ownership is a good method to make diverse pricing mechanisms comparable. Begin by estimating the actual company wide localization demand, volume words, headcount for licenses, seats and the must have feature compare upfront costs, licensing fees, and the pricing structure of each system that matches the identified criteria. Some tmss charge based on the number of users, the volume of content processed, or specific features utilized, for example separately charged APIs. Transparency is critical here, as most localization program budgets are tightly controlled. Choose a Migration Partner Migrating a TMS is often more complex than simply switching platforms. It requires adapting the entire ecosystem of tools, systems and processes related to multilingual content management and redesigning workflows to align with the new system's capabilities. While internal teams may be prepared to handle certain elements, the migration or recreation of essential assets such as teams, glossaries, project templates, processes and automations is highly specialized and demands a level of expertise that is often beyond the capacity of in house teams, that is. In addition, though the internal team's expertise is invaluable. Most have likely never had experience with TMS migration given these platforms traditionally long lifecycle. That's why partnering with the right experts for the core migration processes including analysis, redesign, planning, data transfer and actual implementation is critical to success as they can significantly impact the outcomes of the migration. Collaborating with your TMS vendor, one that has the experience and track record as well as a clear project plan and a team of experts available to guide the process should be your first choice here. The alternative is working with an external partner like Nimzee during the various phases of the migration. For companies without dedicated localization specialists, relying on the TMS provider, localization partner or independent consultant is essential to ensure a seamless transition. These experts bring the knowledge, experience and tools necessary to avoid post migration disruptions and ensure the new system is optimized from day one. In addition, the right partner helps assemble the training resources needed for a smooth onboarding process for all stakeholders who rely on the new tools on a daily basis. Foster Stakeholder Collaboration it is impossible to understate the importance of securing stakeholder commitment for a successful TMS migration. To ensure full support and alignment with organizational goals, engaging stakeholders from all levels is vital. This starts with the executive leadership team for resources, people and budget. Strategic vision alignment, sponsorship and advocacy. Alignment with the high level business objectives, ROI estimations, and projected metric improvements are important. In those conversations, operational stakeholders such as project managers, pms, content creators, and localization experts are equally important. These key users provide insights into existing system challenges and potential improvements. Content creators and linguists can pinpoint workflow optimizations that maintain translation quality. Meanwhile, language engineers, QA specialists and information technology professionals can identify technical risks and ensure the system functions as required. As the main users of the tms, they will also participate in all phases of the migration process, from design through implementation and from training to becoming super users. Aside from content creation and localization teams, internal customers in marketing, product sales and customer service also need to be involved in identifying expectations, pain points and future directions when redesigning workflows and technology systems. Additionally, partnering with supporting departments such as for implementation support, legal for compliance, procurement for contracting, or Finance for budgeting is invaluable in setting up the migration project for success. The Migration Process Framework let's shift the focus from decision making to the migration process itself. See figure 3.
[00:17:07] Planning a smooth Transition Effective planning ensures that each stage is clearly defined and well coordinated. The migration process, when planned carefully and executed with precision and flexibility, becomes a stepping stone toward enhanced scalability, improved efficiency, and long term operational success. A dedicated and well structured migration team is needed to drive the process forward. Roles working with the TMS, PMs, engineers, language talent or relying on its outputs. Internal customers who are dependent on the translated files, glossaries, analyses or metadata must be involved in the migration process. And don't forget to include the technology partners, representatives and remember, the localization team may be the primary driver, but other departments such as content creation and human Resources should work closely with the team to ensure alignment. Risk mitigation is a standard project management activity that is critical in a large project even program such as a TMS migration. Business continuity is likely paramount as halting the translation work could disrupt the entire company's operations and contingency planning is much needed. Tactically, it is important to back up all relevant data including tems glossaries, projects, templates and localized files prior to migration. Similarly, running proofs of concept or using a testing environment for pilot project all help to minimize the risk of disruptions. On the people side, drafting training programs will help faster adoption and minimize post migration dips in productivity. Finally, a detailed migration plan keeps the process on track. The roadmap should include governance methods, a communication plan, dependencies, contingencies, and of course, a timeline with clear milestones that inform internal and external project members and stakeholders. Finally, it is common practice to scope in a buffer period for troubleshooting and adjustments after the go live.
[00:19:20] Transferring Data and Processes the data and process migration phase is the most technically demanding part of the entire TMS transition. If the scope of your localization efforts is substantial, automating data migration tasks is advised to reduce human error and ensure speed, accuracy and consistency. Partnering with your technology provider or outsourcing to experts is highly recommended. Some TMS providers are well equipped to support migration projects into their systems. In other cases, contracting an external provider is advised. Migration must include delivering recycling analysis, detailed reports on tms and tbs, and samples of processed files for review to ensure that the migration has been executed with precision and that quality standards have been met. Data Export and Integrity the first step in this process is identifying and exporting all relevant data types from the current tms.
[00:20:20] This includes key assets such as tms, bilingual data, parallel corpus, and so on, TBS projects, files and any other critical data required for daily operations. It is vital to ensure data integrity while conducting data quality checks and a thorough data consistency review will enable timely corrections. Data Transformation and Conversion the next step is to transform the data into the required formats for the new tms. Most TMS platforms support industry standard formats and the like, but Custom metadata such as timestamps, user identifications, IDs and roles must also be preserved during the transformation. Metadata is a critical component in maintaining the integrity of the data and ensuring that workflows function smoothly. Post Migration Data Import and Validation Next, it's time to upload the transformed files into the new tms. Tms are particularly sensitive assets during migration as recycling rates. Key performance indicators KPIs in localization operations rely heavily on accurate data import. Confusing match types could severely impact translation recycling and lead to significant financial losses. Testing at this stage is not optional. Conduct comprehensive testing to validate that all data has been correctly imported and the new TMS is functioning as expected.
[00:21:54] Process Migration and Automation Logic the last step is to consider the automation services, custom workflows and process logic that you need in your new platform. The approach to this phase will depend heavily on the decision made earlier whether to migrate these processes as they are or to take advantage of the new features offered by the TMS you are moving to and design your system against those. Either way, this is never a one on one replication.
[00:22:23] Partnering with experts with in depth knowledge of the new system's functionalities is the right practice here. Piloting and Testing in this phase, the project's team needs to evaluate the system's performance, usability and overall compatibility with the existing workflows before committing to a full rollout. It's common practice to select pilot projects that reflect typical localization tasks and workflows with the goal of simulating real world conditions. Running these projects through the new TMS allows the testing of its functionality and integration with other systems, as well as its ability to handle everyday tasks. Throughout this process, feedback should be collected from all relevant stakeholders to make decisions about adjustments involving key users such as PMs, translators and QA teams in the testing phase ensures that they are familiar with the new system and comfortable using it. Their feedback is invaluable for identifying potential issues or areas of improvement. Address any concerns raised during this phase to enhance user satisfaction and confidence in the system. Verifying that all end to end localization processes are functioning correctly includes both direct processes such as translation and linguistic QE and indirect processes such as invoicing and reporting. On top of testing, automation integrations and workflows. System performance, including load tests must also be evaluated. Ultimately, users of all roles and locations must be able to use the new platform without disruptions and the TMS must be capable of handling the daily workload, rollout and production Launch the last step is moving the new TMS into live production this phase requires careful planning and execution to ensure a smooth transition, minimize disruptions, and address any challenges that arise post launch. Before Going Live, double check that configurations are correct and workflows function correctly. By now, users must have completed their training and be ready to start work in the new system. The keyword for Go live is methodical A phased approach Smaller projects first can provide an opportunity to assess the system's performance under limited live conditions. Real time performance should be closely monitored and quick response teams must promptly address any unexpected issues. Clear communication of the Go Live timeline is crucial to ensure that all teams involved are fully informed and prepared for the transition. Once the system is live, dedicated user support kicks in to address immediate issues that arise, and ongoing troubleshooting and technical assistance should be offered. Additionally, scheduling regular check ins with key stakeholders helps track progress and resolve any lingering concerns. Evaluation of Success after an initial period of live operations in the new tms, it's important to evaluate the results. Assuming the rollout was successful, attention can turn to the benefits realized because the key expected outcomes should have already been identified even before the planning phase. It is now time to tick off the key pain points that were resolved, measure improvements in speed efficiency, gauge user satisfaction, and plan for further improvements with the team. Key Takeaways Migrating from one TMS to another is a complex but but highly rewarding process. When equipped with a deep understanding of its intricacies, it doesn't need to be complicated. While technical challenges and risks abound, proper planning, stakeholder collaboration, expert partnerships, and the right platform choice make the migration project significantly less difficult. A new innovative language platform can not only modernize the entire localization process, but also when the migration is executed, strategically realign localization with the broader business goals and open new potentials for long term growth. Modern TMS platforms decrease the time and resources required for each localization projects. Companies that transition to advanced TMS solutions often experience cost savings in vendor management, faster projects, turnaround times, and improved reuse of linguistic assets called leveraging. Additionally, AI power tools offered in modern language platforms help businesses achieve higher translation quality with less human intervention, reducing rework and boosting overall productivity. These efficiency gains translate into measurable financial benefits, making the case for a new TMS a clear value add for the organization.
[00:27:19] Success Factors Several factors are pivotal to the success of a TMS migration. A thorough analysis of current workflows and operational needs, followed by a new system design sets the foundation for an optimized future ready platform. Success also depends on selecting a TMS that fits your business needs, integrates well with existing tools and automates workflows to reduce manual effort. The right TMS provider is one that continuously invests in its platform, regularly introduces innovations, and actively helps address your specific localization challenges. Equally important is utilizing the full capabilities of the new tms, including advanced features such as automation, AI powered translation and enhanced integration tools. A critical element in this process is partnering with the right experts.
[00:28:14] Knowledgeable partners ensure that technical aspects like data migration, workflow reengineering and process optimization are handled smoothly. These experts have the necessary experience from various language, technology, implementation and migration projects to mitigate risks, prevent disruptions and guide the entire process from planning to post migration support. This expertise ideally comes from the provider of the new platform.
[00:28:42] Their involvement helps businesses avoid the pitfalls of sticking another tool in and missing out on low hanging fruit and long term benefits. As technology and localization needs evolve, businesses should remain adaptable and open to future improvements. PMS platforms continue to advance with innovations regularly introduced by providers. Keeping an eye on these developments is crucial as they can offer significant advantages. Ultimately, migrating to a more modern future ready platform presents a significant opportunity for businesses to enhance their operational efficiency and fundamentally transform their approach to global content management. This article was written by Jan Hofmeister is a consultant and solution architect at Nimzi Insights. His expertise spans localization, data frameworks, engineering processes and technology, as well as automation and AI applications. And Laszlo K. Varga is Nimzi Insights lead researcher with more than 10 years of language industry experience. His expertise ranges from technology and service delivery through supply chain and process management. He has a degree in Economics from Corvinus University of Budapest. Originally published in multilingual magazine issue 233October 2024.
