Home >
Blog
Speaking of Language
Our team has a lot to say on the subject of language, along with the people, processes and technologies that surround it. Our thoughts are collected here, with frequent additions to keep the conversation fresh. Check back often for new posts, and Contact Us with any questions or topic ideas. Posts are displayed by date with the most recent first. To narrow down by topic, please use the categories to the right.
In Part 1 of this Blog Series, Translation Quality Assessment: The Why, What and How, we discussed the importance of assessing translation quality. In Part 2, Translation Quality Assessment: Measuring Defects, we began our deep dive into the “how” of translation quality assessment with discussion of how to measure errors or “defects.” In this Part 3, we’ll continue our detailed analysis of the “how” by looking at error categories and severity. Not all errors are created
In Part 1 of this Blog Series, Translation Quality Assessment: The Why What and How, we examined the importance of evaluating the quality of translation work. In this Part 2, we’ll start our dive deeper into the “how” of translation quality assessment by looking at the evaluation of defects within a translated work. Measuring Defects Many quality standards and practices consider evaluating the quality of products and services by measuring actual or probable defects. Translation
A Whole New World
Category: Compliance
A Whole New World Most of us know the story of the Wizard of Oz, whether from Frank Baum’s classic book or the iconic 1939 movie starring Judy Garland as Dorothy, the young girl that was magically transported to the Land of Oz in a tornado. And have you ever considered just how lucky Dorothy was? She arrived in a whole new world … and everyone just happened to speak her language! Real World The
How Much is One-Word Worth?
Category: Compliance
Millions of dollars? Your reputation? Your business? A life? In the world of multilingual and multicultural communication, a single word can make the difference between success and failure, profit and loss, and life or death. Hard to believe? Consider Nike brand. 1.2 Million sneakers included a logo with the word “Air” written in a stylized font that resembled the Arabic script for “Allah.” Many Muslims found this offensive. A boycott threatened by the world’s 1
Humans create content to express, describe, or deliver meaning or messages. In this way, content is a purely personal product that represents personal thoughts and ideas. Content is a reflection of the author’s cognitive thinking, education, job, profession, environment and even mood. Language developed to facilitate communication. Grammar, syntax and other linguistic rules helped people create structured content that can be understood by others. Languages evolve and change over time to accommodate human needs and
Delighting Your End Users
Category: Compliance
We’ve all attended some sort of business conference, trade show, or convention. The typical focus of these events is the current state of and/or future of an industry. This year, the Globalization and Localization Association’s (“GALA”) 2018 conference, GALA has broken the mold. Instead of focusing inward on the language services industry and its pitfalls, trends, and future, GALA is focused more on delighting end users. What does this mean? With Whom are We
In my previous blog, “Are you Stoic or Expressive?” we explored one of the biggest cultural differences that impacts how patients communicate with healthcare providers, particularly regarding pain, drawing on the research and case studies presented by Geri Ann Galanti in her book, Caring for Patients from Different Cultures. Although Ms. Galanti focuses on healthcare, the cultural concepts presented often apply much more broadly. One cultural dichotomy often at the root of conflict is time
In September of 2016, I embarked on the Camino de Santiago – a pilgrimage through the hills and cities of Spain. I only had two weeks’ vacation, so I started in Ponferrada with plans to end in Fisterra. (I absolutely recommend this journey for individuals seeking adventure.) The experience was absolutely surreal! I was a foreigner sojourning along a path with fellow travelers, sharing stories, making friends, playing music, and solidifying priceless memories which
The Opposite of English-Only Rules
Category: Compliance
It’s been more than a decade since “English-Only” workplace rules had their 15-minutes of infamy in the media. In the end, the bottom line was that U.S. employers must tread very, very carefully when implementing any type of English-Only Rule or face a national origin discrimination claim under the Civil Rights Act of 1964. (Check out this Fact Sheet from the Department of Labor for the official regulations on English-Only Rules). Litigation today rarely arises
7 Ways to Improve Global Marketing Strategy The buzz in the marketing world tells us it is vital for companies to think globally about their marketing strategy. Widespread international access to the internet and media means that it’s no longer enough to sell only in your own backyard. But it turns out that marketing around the globe isn’t as simple going someplace new and rolling out the same marketing campaign you ran at home. Instead,
CLAS Standards of Healthcare – Provide Easy-to-Understand Materials and Signage
Category: Compliance
In Part 1 of this blog series, we discussed National CLAS Standard 5: Offer Communication and Language Assistance and learned that, at its heart, this standard requires offering interpreters and translated documents to Limited English Proficient and sensory impaired patients and caregivers. In Part 2, we examined Standard 6: Inform Individuals of the Availability of Language Assistance and learned the importance of both verbal and written notification in many languages. In Part 3, we looked
In Part 1 of this blog series, we discussed the role of a Client-Side Reviewer in the translation process, and the unintended negative consequences for companies that do not do so. In Part 2, we’ll dive a little deeper into the linguistic parameters that Client-Side Reviewers set at the beginning of a translation project to ensure that the client’s message is heard and understood by the target audience exactly as the client intended. Regionalisms Ahhh,
