Translation/localization is no longer that simple of a process where you find a translator, tell them what to translate and they return the results you’re looking for. The translation/localization jobs involve in more than that. There’s now a complete and well-established general process when it comes to translation/localization. Just like any other businesses, there’s now an administrative side of translation/localization, and that’s where L10n Project Manager comes into work. We’re like the agency to either the translators or the LSPs, and we aim to help create a more efficient and friendly working environment for both ends.
*One of our class notes that displays the process of L10n Project Management
Unlike the usual translation/localization studies we do, we learn more about the frameworks and theories of the industry. We learn about how to create a transparent, straight-forward and well-organized workflow to increase the productivity of our clients. We drop down what we’re supposed to do at each stage clearly so that if there’s a query, we’ll be able to clarify it in detail. The tool we’re using to create the workflow is Trello. It is a tool that helps you manage and organize your project. Plus, the visualized features of Trello can on some occasions convey ideas faster than chunks of words.
*The Trello board we created
My team agrees to choose Monterey Bay Aquarium as our imagined client this time and split the whole process into three stages as we learned in class-Pre-Production, Production and Post-Productions stages using DokuWiki.
DokuWiki is an open source wiki software. With some coding knowledge, you can utilize the potential of this tool by ordering the templates in a systematic order. In that way, we can slowly build up a professional database that can make us stand out in the industry.
*Our group’s Dokuwiki Pages for the project
Pre-Production
Pre-production stage involves a series of preparation tasks. For instance, quoting and clarification of specific style guide happened during this stage. We use DokuWiki to create templates for each of these processes and host them there for possible future purposes. In addition to that, we also have a look at the documents our “client” provides us. We need to have a look over it and make sure that we reach mutual consents over numbers of factors including the expecting outcomes, stylings, file formats, etc. However, we understand that we as an LSP should create a unique database for each of the clients due to NDA(Non-Disclosure Agreement). This agreement constrains us from exposing our work without the consent of the client, so we also create an individual database/folder for each of the clients to prevent that.
Then we dive into the process of screening talents on the actual recruitment website like Proz and ATA for this project. As we’re screening through resumè, we learned about how to improve our own resumè as well. For example, we want to keep our resumè concise and straight as much as possible because you’re not the only resumè the HRs are reading through. They don’t have all days to go through each tiny details, so try to keep your resumè within one page is probably the better option to have in most cases.
*Proz
*ATA(American Translator Association)
Production
After the Pre-production stage, PMs(Project Manager) can finally have a small window of a breather. The Production stage involves more tasks for translators, editors, and QAs. The responsibilities for PMs at this stage is to assign each job accordingly, make sure they finish their job in time and answer any questions if there’s any. Compared to the two other stages, the Production stage is less complicated for the PMs.
Post-Production
Finally, we’ll reach the Post-Productions stage, where we review the works submitted by the translation crew. We focus on format, styling, terminology consistency, etc. We can’t forget about the structure, either. Even if you don’t read either of the source or target language, you as a PM still have to do the review task. Try not to focus on the text itself. Instead, you check for all the crucial information and see if they are formatted correctly as the client specified. After the review stage, remember to check for file formats and remove the properties of the files as well. Then integrate all the deliverables as requested by the client and we’re closing the deals. How wonderful!
*An overview of our completed Project
End?
Of course, by closing the deal I mean finishing this project as a group. In my opinion, this course is quite a journey. We as a team also realize that there’re plenty of things we can improve upon during the post-mortem review. First thing is that we exceed the amount of time we listed in the quote by a lot, and we suppose that results from the fact that this is our first time using all these facing tools and creating this templates by ourselves. As we master the skills needed for the job slowly but surely, we firmly believe we can shorten the time we need to get the job done.
Overall, I would say that I’ve learned a lot in this course after getting through the whole process with the group, and it can be super helpful for me to have an overview of the framework of translation/localization even if I choose to take on the career of a translator instead of PM.