Central and Eastern Europe in the global context ... - Celine GROS

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magazine for international information management

news challenge collaboration solutions business culture community directory 70906 March/April 2007

Central and Eastern Europe in the global context How the business potential of Central and Eastern Europe compares with that of China or India

Toward a cleaner information environment Reducing data pollution with efficient global information management

Overcoming distances How global companies move closer to their local customers

VAW-arvato ... the spirit of information

The challenge of global business needs more than just products VAW-arvato is a global technical information services company and part of Bertelsmann international media corporation. We create, manage and deliver product information to your global audience in the right language,

the right media and right on time.

VAW-arvato Pastoratshof 27-29 | D-47929 Grefrath Fon: +49 (0) 21 58-91 97-0 | Fax: +49 (0) 21 58-12 11 www.vaw-arvato.com | [email protected] Germany, United Kingdom, Spain, Czech Republic, Brazil, South Africa, China

imprint

editorial

publisher TC and more GmbH in collaboration with tekom, Europe’s largest association for technical communication managing director Michael Fritz Eberhardstraße 69-71 70173 Stuttgart ph: +49(0)711-6 57 04-0 fax: +49(0)711-6 57 04-99 www.tekom.de [email protected]

advertising TC and more GmbH Ursula Wirtz Eberhardstraße 69-71 70173 Stuttgart ph: +49(0)711-6 57 04-44 fax: +49(0)711-6 57 04-99 www.tekom.de [email protected] Layout Atelier Schmidt-Römhild Werner Knopp Mengstraße 16 23522 Lübeck

magazine for international information management ph: +49(0)451-70 31-0 fax: +49(0)451-70 31-284 www.schmidt-roemhild.de [email protected]

tcworld is published every two months. Subscriptions can be ordered at the publishing house. For tekom members the price for the tcworld magazine is included in the membership fee.

editor TC and more GmbH Corinna Ritter Eberhardstr.69-71 magazine for international 70173 Stuttgart information 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

Overcoming distances – geographical or cultural – is a constant challenge for international companies. Products and spare parts need to be transported over oceans and continents, product information needs to be translated into several languages and foreign customers need to be addressed according to their cultural background. In order to come closer to their customers and be able to operate locally, global players establish subsidiaries in the target markets and send staff to far-away places. However, to what extend a local market will open towards a foreign company, often depends on the company’s ability to understand and react to the country’s specifics. After many years in the Asian region, the Bystronic glass group has found that working with local people, from the service personnel to the management level, is the best way to serve local markets (page 10). Local personnel reporting to the headquarter is the most reliable source for information about local intricacies and prevents the company from implementing a global strategy where it is not suitable. Taking into account the different local conditions and looking at corporate branding through someone else’s eyes, is what makes the job so exciting, finds Peter Nischwitz of Bystronic in an interview with tcworld (page 13). Beside the emerging markets of China and India, another region has been gaining popularity with global companies: Central and Eastern Europe. In their article Arturo Quintero and Libor Safar show how the business potential of this area compares to that of China and India (page 23). Jurek and Andrzej Nedoma explain linguistic aspects which should be taken into account when localiz-

ing for the markets of Central and Eastern Europe and show what to consider when looking for a translation service provider (page 26). Standards can be useful guidelines for localization projects. Angelika Zerfaß discusses various standards with their intended purpose and their limitations (page 14). Finally Garry Levitt advises to keep our information environment clean. In his article he explains how this can be done and which technology can be applied (page 18). We’re looking forward to seeing you again at the next tcworld conference on November 8th and 9th in Wiesbaden, Germany. Booking of exhibition space is now open. Let us know the preferred position of your exhibition booth at [email protected]. Corinna Ritter

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Overcoming distances Quality alone is no longer sufficient as a sales pitch for companies seeking to break into new markets. Customers today demand immediate services and no longer accept long delivery times. In order to serve the global market companies need to operate locally. The Bystronic glass group shows how an international organization adapts to the global challenges. page 10

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challenge 10

Overcoming distances

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Local solutions for a global market

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26

Translations into CEE languages – prospects and risks A linguistic guide for Central and Eastern Europe

Cultural differences make international branding exciting

business culture 30

Introducing more customer friendly services

collaboration

Business culture in the Czech Republic

Exchange standards in localization

community

An introduction into TMX, SRX, TBX, XLIFF and GMX

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tcworld calendar

Why standards?

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directory

Standards: Helpful guidelines or unnecessary regulations? 18

Central and Eastern Europe in the global context How the business potential of CEE compares with that of China or India

How global companies move closer to their local customers

Interview with Peter Nischwitz, head of Corporate Communication at Bystronic glass

Central and Eastern Europe in the global context

solutions

news

3 editorial 3 imprint

Toward a cleaner information environment Reducing data pollution with efficient global information management

China and India are usually among the first ones associated with emerging markets. However, since the early nineties the countries of Central and Eastern Europe have become a major service and production base for European and US companies and lately also for Japanese, Korean, Chinese, and Indian enterprises. The comparison of Central and Eastern Europe with the markets of India and China shows the region’s potential. page 23

MARCH 2007

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news SYSTRAN 6 LAUNCHED SYSTRAN Software, Inc. introduced the SYSTRAN 6 line of desktop products. It supports the new Microsoft Windows Vista operating system and Microsoft Office System 2007. Among the new features are a built-in dictionary lookup, an intuitive translation toolbar, new linguistic options, and a new interface. SYSTRAN 6 includes five products: SYSTRAN Web Translator, SYSTRAN Home Translator, SYSTRAN Office Translator, SYSTRAN Business Translator and SYSTRAN Premium Translator.

BABYLON RELEASES TURKISHENGLISH DICTIONARY Babylon Ltd., a provider of single-click translation and dictionary software, has released a new Turkish-English dictionary. The Babylon’s Turkish-English bidirectional dictionary contains more than 170,000 words, phrases, abbreviations and acronyms. It includes terms from a wide variety of fields, such as medicine, electronics, zoology, business, computers, and religion among others. Photo: Tom Mc Nemar

AIT RELEASES ACROLEXIC Advanced International Translations (AIT), a software development company, has released AcroLexic, a searchable software dictionary of acronyms and abbreviations. The dictionary enables quick lookups for acronym definitions from different areas of knowledge for translators, linguists, technical writers and anyone dealing with text documents. The database contains more than 70,000 acronyms and over 150,000 definitions.

TAVULTESOFT RELEASES KEYMAN DESKTOP 7.0 Tavultesoft Pty Ltd. has released Keyman Desktop 7.0, a keyboard mapping solution that allows for the remapping of the end user’s keyboard to type in different languages. Version 7.0 supports the latest technology and standards, including Windows Vista and Unicode 5.0. The companion product Keyman Developer provides all the tools to create keyboard layouts, including visual editors, character maps, debugging, and a programming language specifically created for designing keyboards.

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GALA launches online career center The Globalization and Localization Association (GALA) has introduced LocalizationCareers.net, a full-service online career center for the language technology and services industry. The site is designed as a resource to connect employers in the industry with qualified professionals at all levels. LocalizationCareers.net will act as a consolidated talent bank for industry employers seeking to fill roles in localization departments and companies – from project and vendor managers to testers and engineers. The site offers all of the features of a mainstream job board, such as applicant pre-screening and statistics on job postings, with a targeted pool of applicants. “This site is being created by our industry and for our industry,” said Stephen Ryan, GALA board chair. “Unlike the bigger job sites or sites focused on translation contractors, LocalizationCareers.net is dedicated to the many job functions necessary within a healthy localization department or business. We are filling that gap so that our members

and other industry employers can find candidates at all levels – from the recently graduated to the veteran employee.” The applicant pre-screening feature enables employers to create customized questions and criteria when they post a position. LocalizationCareers.net will also track statistics related to the employer’s job postings – from number of views to current applicants and response status. The site also features an anonymous contact system and resume/CV bank, enabling job seekers to list their experience and qualifications. Employers are invited to search candidate profiles to connect with contacts who are a good fit for the job opportunity. To build a critical mass on the site, GALA has been contacting universities, professional associations and special interest groups worldwide inviting professionals to register with the site. www.localizationcareers.net MARCH 2007

news

BSI develops translation standard BS EN 15038:2006 is the first European standard to set out the requirements for the provision of quality services by translation service providers (TSPs). It charts the best practice processes involved in providing a translation service through commissioning, translation, review, project management and quality control, to delivery. The purpose of this European standard is to establish and define the requirements for the provision of quality services by translation service providers. BS EN 15038:2006 encompasses the core translation process and all other related aspects involved in providing the service, including quality assurance and traceability. This standard offers both translation service providers and their clients a description and definition of the entire service. At the same time, it is designed to provide translation service providers with a set of procedures and requirements to meet market needs. Conformity assessment and certification based on this standard are envisaged. BS EN 15038:2006 specifies the requirements for the translation service provider with regard to human and technical resources, quality and project management, the contractual framework, and service procedures.

MORAVIA AND TEKTRONIX JOIN FORCES

SDL AND TRIDION FORM STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP

Globalization solution provider Moravia

Provider of global information management

Worldwide and Tektronix, a provider of test,

(GIM) solutions SDL International entered into

measurement and monitoring instrumenta-

a strategic relationship with content manage-

tion announced the joint development and

ment provider Tridion, to enable corporations

implementation of a technical authoring, lo-

to more effectively combine web content

calization and publishing workflow based on

management (CM) with language delivery.

open standards such as XLIFF and XML. The

The combined capability will enable corpo-

combined solution meets the objective of de-

rations to author content, translate it once

livering more localized content for Tektronix

and reuse it across all web requirements in

products, shortening turnaround times, and

marketing, sales and customer support in any

reducing costs.

language.

CONVERSIS EXAMINES TURKEY

LCJ HELPS ENABLE EARLY VISTA RELEASE

Recent changes in the European landscape, including the entrance of Bulgaria and Roma-

LCJ, a provider of multilingual translation

nia into the European Union, has prompted

and turnkey localization solutions for local

Conversis, a localization and translation com-

and global projects, announced that it has

pany based in the UK and US, to examine the

played a significant role in preparing Micro-

growth of possible international investment

soft Windows Vista for its worldwide release

within the region. The full report can be

on January 30, 2007. LCJ’s contribution to Mi-

downloaded for free in the “Cultural Commen-

crosoft Windows Vista was the localization of

taries: A Closer Look” section on the Conversis

Microsoft’s new operating system into eleven

website.

languages.

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SDL International reveals why international organizations risk failure in nonEnglish speaking markets due to localization errors

Spanish leaves global marketers lost in translation In an internal survey, SDL International has found that Spanish is the language most likely to result in international marketing translation blunders. Mistakes ranging from inviting passengers to ‘fly naked’ to translating the infamous ‘got milk?’ slogan to ‘are you

Photo: Céline Gros

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lactating?’ show how easy it is to turn a successful product in one country into a figure of fun due to poor localization. Recent research estimated 4.75 percent economic growth for South America in 2006 (source: IMF 2006

Regional Economic Outlook), making this the third year Latin American economies have expanded by more than four percent. According to SDL, the top five worst translation mistakes made by companies looking to expand into the Spanish-speaking world are: 1. Even if you get the word right, using the wrong gender in many European countries can totally change the meaning – as discovered by the Miami T-shirt maker who targeted the Spanish market with its shirts commemorating the Pope’s visit: ‘I saw the Pope’ (el Papa) became ‘I saw the potato’ (la papa). 2. The American milk supplier whose famous slogan ‘Got milk?’ translated to ‘Are you lactating?’ when it tried to expand the campaign to Mexico. 3. An American airline had plenty of empty seats on its flights to South America when the promotion of its new leather seats (‘fly in leather’) translated into Spanish as ‘fly naked’. 4. A British stationery company tried to launch its non-leaking fountain pen in Spain with the angle that ‘it won’t leak in your pocket and embarrass you’. It made the common mistake of assuming that ‘embarazar’ means embarrassed. It actually means ‘pregnant’.

5. One US beer company assumed that its slogan ‘turn it loose’ would translate successfully into the Spanish language, where unfortunately it reads ‘get diarrhoea’. “With more and more companies going global, translation and localization is a vital part of any business,” said Dr. Chris Boorman, CMO at SDL International. “These examples show how organizations will struggle to gain a foothold in South America if they don’t successfully master Spanish: the same will apply as international players scramble for footprint in all emerging markets. The challenge for most multinational organizations is how to develop locally tailored content efficiently. Technology driven global information management will help them launch into new territories as quickly as possible and gain that all important first mover advantage ahead of the competition, without inadvertently alienating key markets.” Boorman added: “Quality is paramount in driving international business opportunities. Basic blunders such as these can be avoided by focusing on the quality of the translation supply chain. Organizations should use certified translators to ensure their messages do not literally get lost in translation.”

MARCH 2007

MLGERMANad07.pdf

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2:01:16 PM

news

New GALA board starts its term The Globalization and Localization Association (GALA) recently announced its 2007-2008 board officers. The GALA board is composed of five volunteer members elected by GALA members for a term of two years. The board officer positions for 2007 are as follows: Stephen Ryan (Moravia Worldwide, Czech Republic), Chair; Kim Harris (text & form, Germany), Vice Chair; Christiane Bernier (Lionbridge Technologies, Canada), Treasurer; Matthias Caesar (Locatech GmbH, Germany), Secretary; Arancha Caballero, Board Member-at-Large. “Our board leadership is critical to the success of GALA, and we wouldn’t be

the organization that we are today without them. The group works together in a highly collaborative environment to build on current initiatives and to find new ways of creating value for our members and for our industry,” said Laura Brandon, the administrator for GALA. GALA is an international non-profit association that promotes translation services, language technology and language management solutions. The member companies worldwide include translation agencies, localization service providers, globalization consultants, internationalization specialists and technology developers. C

Do you have something to say to the world?

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CM

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OASIS members approve OpenDocument 1.1

We can help you say it— the way you mean it!

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CMY

OASIS, the international standards consortium, has announced that its members have approved version 1.1 of the Open Document Format for Office Applications (OpenDocument) as an OASIS standard, a status that signifies the highest level of ratification. The result of a unique collaboration between advocacy groups for the disabled and open source and commercial software vendors, this new version of the standard provides key accessibility enhancements to ensure that the OpenDocument format (ODF) addresses the needs of people with disabilities. Dave Pawson of the UK’s Royal National Institute of the Blind (RNIB) said, “OpenDocument 1.1 is a practical XML format that is readily transformable to the DAISY digital talking book standard for people with print impairments. The MARCH 2007

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clear specification of OpenDocument 1.1 will remain usable long after commercial and proprietary formats have been condemned to the dustbin.” OpenDocument 1.1 supports users who have low or no vision or who suffer from cognitive impairments. The standard provides short alternative descriptive text for document elements such as hyperlinks, drawing objects and image map hot spots and offers lengthy descriptions for the same objects should additional help be needed. The new version of OpenDocument reflects the work of the OASIS OpenDocument Accessibility Subcommittee, which is made up of accessibility experts from IBM, the Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI), RNIB, Sun Microsystems, and others.

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challenge

Overcoming distances

Photo: Bystronic glass

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MARCH 2007

challenge

Local solutions for a global market Time is money – in the East as well as in the West. Product quality alone is no longer the crucial sales argument for companies seeking to explore new markets. Geographical proximity, same time zone, and short delivery times have become more and more important for customers from around the world. The Bystronic glass group, a provider for system solutions for the manufacture of architectural and automotive glass, shows how international organizations adapt to these new challenges and successfully enter markets like Asia.

By Corinna Ritter

From user-interface to management – facing the international challenge

When Karl Lenhardt started up a small one-man-workshop for the manufacture of insulating glass in 1966, it did not take long for foreign customers to take an interest in his machinery. Only three years later he expanded his business into neighboring countries in Europe and by 1972 the first machines were shipped over the Atlantic Ocean to the United States and to Canada. Back then the product itself was enough to make the cash register jingle: Made in Germany was a symbol for high quality and sufficient as a sales pitch. Customers accepted long delivery times not only for the machines itself, but also for the spare parts, should any malfunctions occur. Today the Lenhardt Maschinenbau GmbH together with the Swiss Bystronic Maschinen AG, the German Armatec Vierhaus GmbH and the Canadian Bystronic Solution Centre forms the Bystronic glass group, a member of the Swiss Conzzeta Holding. Exports today are exceeding 80 percent of the total business thus presenting the company with various challenges, affecting product development and technical documentation as well as the management level.

To enable machine operators from foreign countries to use Bystronic products, operating displays as well as operating software need to be available in the local language of the target market. The content of user manuals – although translated and published in 21 languages – has been largely standardized. “Our user guides are complying with European and ANSI standards”, explains Thomas Willwerth, head of the Technical Documentations Department. The impacts of internationalization are strongly felt in the services department. While it used to be quite acceptable for customers to wait until the machinery or spare part was delivered from overseas, today this is no longer an option. “Today customers want whatever they want now”, Harry Auer explains. As head of the Service Department for Lenhardt GmbH he has experienced the accelerated pace of time: “Delivery times need to be reduced to the minimum, because every minute that the machine stands still, creates costs to the customer.“ In order to avoid any holdup, Bystronic is required to keep parts available close to the customers

MARCH 2007

and deliver as quickly as possible. Auer even remembers a Norwegian customer who was ready to pay for a special airplane delivery in order to get the necessary spare parts from Germany to Norway within three hours. However, the cross-border deliveries do not always work without complications and neither are the delivery costs acceptable for customers worldwide. Especially for customers in Asia money is still a much bigger issue than in Europe, knows Florian Stoffel, head of the Asia/Pacific region at Bystronic. Also, long distances are not the only issue that can thwart a fast delivery: “As long as custom duties exist, bureaucracy will also exist. This means that days can pass until parts arrive at the customer’s, which is simply not acceptable, because the customer must be able to manufacture with his machine”, Stoffel continues.

Customers want whatever they want now

Local solutions Although export distances are growing, longer delivery times are unacceptable. Customers today not only demand that spare parts be stored within short distance, but also that service staff come to their workplace

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and speak their language. At Bystronic the approach towards the customer is yet on its way. With subsidiaries in Europe, North and South America and Asia and representatives worldwide, the company is still expanding its local presence worldwide. “Markets like Asia cannot be serviced from Europe,” Florian Stoffel concludes. “Companies with activities in Asia need to be present in Asia as well.” Stoffel started his work in Singapore over ten years ago with the target of setting up sales and service structures in Asia-Pacific and increasing the sales in this market region. Establishing facilities in Asia did not only make Bystronic overcome the geographical distance to their Asian customers, but also helped to solve political obstacles: “The only country in the region largely free of bureaucracy is Singapore. That’s why we build our first warehouse there. The second warehouse was built in China for precisely the opposite reason: importation rules and regulations are taking longer time, so we must permanently carry large stock.” After establishing a subsidiary in Shanghai, setting up support facilities in the region and improving business from Australia to India, Stoffel feels that the company needs to further

intensify the training of Asian people in each market. “Asia needs to be served by Asians. As Westerners our objective should be to have local people also at management .”

Although the international service hotline is called from around the world, the requests are similar: “All over the world there are people who demand more detailed instructions and those who have a strong ambition to solve the problem by themselves”, Harry Auer says.

Training local service representatives Recruiting and training local staff worldwide has become a major task for Bystronic. However, as the battle for skilled workers continues, in particular in China, wages are increasing quickly. “Especially at the executive level, wages are already adjusting to an international level”, says Stoffel. In addition to the often difficult search for skilled employees, workers in Asia tend to change jobs more often, causing the company to start the search all over. At Bystronic, new service representatives – mainly mechanics and electricians – are instructed on local worksites and conclude their training with a course in the Swiss or German technology centers. The better the training, the more independently the service staff can work. However, if a service worker cannot fix the customer’s problem, he will report it to the nearest subsidiary or headquarter. Here customers’ requests are answered in German, English, French and Spanish.

As Westerners our objective should be to have local people at management level

The Asian challenge Differences in mentality are found, however, between the European and Asian customers. “In Asia business takes place around the clock”, Stoffel explains. “It is quite normal that people work on the weekends, harbors and airports are running day and night and that factories run three shifts.” A strong business orientation, a willingness to work hard, a desire to accomplish changes and an eagerness for further education is found in many Asian cultures. The Asian diligence provides yet another challenge to foreign companies: “In Asia people expect any services they require to be available even during the weekend. If we want to be successful here, our company needs to act just as quickly and effectively.”

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Cultural differences make international branding exciting Peter Nischwitz is head of Corporate Communication at the Bystronic glass group. tcworld spoke with him about corporate branding, cultural differences and the challenges of good communication.

Interview: Corinna Ritter

Lenhardt Maschinenbau GmbH is active all over the world. What are the main challenges of corporate communication in a global company? In 2002 the Bystronic group was split into two business units – the sheet metal division and the glass division, which Lenhardt Maschinenbau belongs to. The main challenge during this time was the launch of a new corporate identity for both business units. The result was a common brand – but in two different colors. The implementation of this new concept within the company and on the market has been the main challenge since. Today the new CI has been largely implemented, but “to live CI” means that this implementation will always be in progress. We cannot simply change our CI from one day to another but continuously have to work on it with our target audience in mind. How is the corporate identity communicated worldwide? Is branding handled centrally or is each market responsible for its own logo and marketing messages? Our branding is handled centrally from our corporate communication department. We have created a manual for our corporate identity and corporate design which is valid for all our technology centers, subsidiaries and representatives worldwide. In this manual the use of our brand, colors, fonts, key visuals, office standards, leaflets, advertisements etc. is defined. If a subsidiary wants to create special activities, this needs to be approved in advance by us. MARCH 2007

In marketing and branding, how important do you think is localization for national and regional markets? Our credo is: as much corporate identity as possible and as much localization as necessary. To achieve a strong image worldwide local and global aspects need to be taken into consideration. The corporate identity must lead the communication but can be complimented with local “specialties”. Just to give you an example: at the moment we are creating local websites within our corporate website. On these local sites our subsidiaries will be able to communicate local information, like the presentation of their staff, local events etc., but in the style of the global page. This leads to a strong, corporate design while “uncontrolled growth” can be excluded.

Peter Nischwitz is head of Corporate Communication at the Bystronic glass group. He has been working in marketing and communication for twelve years.

Have you experienced cultural difficulties or differences regarding the communication with employees or customers from different countries? Yes, indeed. Just a few months ago we made this experience with a new key visual for a new slogan that we had created specifically for an important European exhibition. The key visual showed a thumb pointing up, which in Europe has a very positive connotation. However, we were aware that the sign can be perceived differently in other parts of the world, like in Arabic countries where it is a very offensive gesture. This example shows that not every symbol that has a positive connotation for us Europeans is also perceived positively in other regions. But this makes our daily business so exciting! It is challenging to position a brand worldwide while taking into account all these cultural aspects.

From your point of view, how can communication help to increase the value added of a global company? Communication is a beautiful instrument for carrying the values of a company into the market and it is very important for creating a strong image. But it is just one tessera for achieving our main objective and that is, developing long-term relationships with our customers. Our sector is still very technically oriented and quality is highly rated. During an important exhibition a couple of years ago we tried to reduce the machinery that we exhibit and to show more multimedia instead. It was not perceived well. People in our sector prefer to be able to check the quality of our new developments, which we are presenting under production conditions during important exhibitions, with their own eyes and to get their own picture.

How do you ensure consistent quality in your products and services throughout all regions? All internal production processes are controlled and monitored via a state-of-the-art central data network. Prior to delivery, the performance and function of all machines and plants are thoroughly tested. This is one key component for achieving our objective of total customer satisfaction. Furthermore we pay great attention to comprehensive after-sales services. We have an education center here in Germany, where we train our customers’ staff as well as our internal staff.

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collaboration

TMX – SRX – TBX – XLIFF – GMX

Exchange standards in localization

Photo: Nagy-Bagoly Arpad

Since 1997, OSCAR (Open Standards for Container/content Allowing Re-use), a special interest group of LISA (Localization Industry Standards Association), has been working on standards for the localization industry. In the following article the standards that apply to the technologies being used, like translation memory systems or terminology management systems are discussed with their intended purpose and their limitations. 14

MARCH 2007

collaboration

By Angelika Zerfaß

TMX The first standard was TMX – Translation Memory eXchange Format – for transporting content from one translation memory system to another without significant loss of data. Until that time the exchange of data depended on the willingness of the tool providers to support proprietary formats of other tools, mostly for import, seldom for export. Now TMX has been widely adopted and every translation tool out there can import and export TMX files. The differences – as usual – are in the details. Yes, TMX is a standard exchange format, but no, the exchanged data will not yield exactly the same results in every tool it is imported into. 1. There are two levels of the TMX format. Level 1 transports text only, level 2 also provides a means to transport formatting information. A tool that only supports level 1 will be able to read a level 2 TMX file, just not the formatting information therein. 2. Formatting information itself can be represented in different ways in the TMX file. One way is to place a placeholder tag, where formatting starts and ends. The other way is to encode the formatting information itself into the TMX file. Again, a tool exporting placeholders does not give another tool the information what formatting is being transported, therefore it will not appear in the receiving tool. 3. Tag information from the translation of for example FrameMaker files can be handled differently. One tool writes this information into

the TMX file, another tool might interpret this information as pure text, as it handles tags in a different way. Match rates will be lower after TMX exchange. 4. Segmentation rules, the rules that govern what is considered as a segment, are different. One tool defines a colon as segment end and creates two segments out of a sentence with a colon, another tool will see the colon not as a segment end and therefore this tool would see just one segment. Match rates with segments like these will be lower after TMX exchange. In order to get rid of TMX’s difficulties with different segmentation rules, SRX – the Segmentation

to create the rules used in the first translation memory tool.

TBX Together with the idea to exchange translation memory data came another idea to also exchange terminological data. OSCAR took over the results of SALT (Standards-based Access service to multilingual Lexicons and Terminologies) consortium as a basis for the TermBase eXchange format TBX. The adoption of the TBX format has been a lot slower than with TMX, mainly because of the following factors:

Image 2: Bilingual terminological entry in TBX format

Image 1: Multilingual translation unit in TMX format MARCH 2007

Rules eXchange Format – was created. It is an addition to TMX, as it can store the segmentation rules that where used at the time of TMX export. When importing the TMX file into another tool, the information in the SRX file can be used to recreate the segmentation rules, so that the imported data can be handled correctly. The issues here are: 1. SRX can only provide information on the segmentation rules at the time of TMX export. If the rules have been changed during the creation of the translation memory, these changes are not recorded in SRX. 2. The exchange of segmentation rules will only yield good results, if the receiving tool is able

1. TBX is much more complex than TMX. Most terminology management systems allow the user to create own fields and structures to represent data, not as with TMX where the content is mostly limited to source and target language segments. For TBX to work, the structure of both the exporting and the importing tool need to be properly analyzed and understood. 2. Terminology work has just about started to come into focus for the companies in the localization industry. There are few resources yet that could be exchanged. And the resources that exist are often not as structured as they need to be.

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collaboration

3. So far, the export functionalities of terminology management systems into Excel or tab-delimited file formats have been used instead.

XLIFF With the wider usage of XML based file formats, another idea for a standard came into being. Why not represent all localizable data, whatever source file format it comes from, in an XML format? From the specification of XLIFF (XML Localization Interchange File Format): ”The purpose of this vocabulary is to store localizable data and carry it from one step of the localization process to the other, while allowing interoperability between tools.”

in word count can easily amount to 10-15 percent, in some cases, depending on the source file format, even as much as 30 percent. From the GMX/V specification: “GILT Metrics Volume addresses the issue of quantifying the workload for a given localization or translation task. This is often commonly referred to as word counts. Word counts, however, do not convey the true range of possible metrics that can be used to assess the cost of localizing a document such as the number of screen shots for a software localization project, or page counts for a document layout task. GILT Metrics Volume is a more precise definition of the metrics required for billing and sizing purposes.” GMX/V has not yet been adopted as a standard

take time before they are defined and agreed on by the standards organizations and their members. Any of the standards mentioned are still being discussed and developed. With new technologies emerging all the time, the relevant standards will always be “under development” – but TMX and XLIFF have been in use for years and are now an essential part of many localization projects. Adopting the standards (or even helping to develop them) will help the localization industry to mature.

INFORMATION ON THE INTERNET ON THE STANDARDS MENTIONED THERE:

GILT Metrics eXchange www.lisa.org/oscar/gmx Segmentation Rules eXchange (SRX) www.lisa.org/oscar/seg TermBase eXchange (TBX) www.lisa.org/tbx Translation Memory eXchange (TMX) www.lisa.org/tmx

Image 3: Segment for translation in XLIFF with one 100% TM match and one Fuzzy Match

XML Localization Interchange File Format (XLIFF)

1. Translators only have to deal with one file format. 2. Formatting information can be inserted as format tags or placeholders, so that all tools can deal with XLIFF files without problems. 3. Any XLIFF-capable tool can be used for translation. XLIFF can even carry matches from a translation memory system with it, as well as information on creation tool and author for example.

GMX The latest discussions on standardization have to do with the different metrics that are used to calculate a translation job. GMX – the GILT Metrics eXchange focuses at the moment on GMX/V, the volumetric calculation. Other parts of this standard will be GMX/C – the metrics about the complexity of a translation task and GMX/Q for the quality requirements of a translation task. When calculating the volume of a translation task, the number of words is often used as the basis. But different tools count differently and the differences

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and is still in the process of being refined, as most other standards as well.

Conclusion In my view, one of the most useful standard formats is TMX. Not only can it be used for data transfer between translation memory tools, but it is also very useful as a basis for terminology extraction or TM maintenance. SRX addresses the problems that were encountered with TMX, but will not solve all issues. As not many tools support it at the moment, its usefulness will have to be evaluated over the next few years. And with the strong movement towards XML in the documentation and authoring departments I feel that XLIFF could be a very good format for the translation process. It does have some things in common with TMX, so maybe we will see those two standards merging over time. Standards apply to what is known and in (widespread) use at any given time. But standards also

www.oasis-open.org/committees/workgroup. php?wg_abbrev=xliff

contact

Angelika Zerfaß holds a diploma in translation (Chinese, Japanese, Computerlinguistics) and is currently working as a trainer and consultant for translation software and translation-related processes. [email protected] www.zaac.de

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Introducing the new ETSI guideline DEG 202 417

contact Veronika Rädler works as a technical writer at cognitas,

Why standards?

a German service provider for technical documentation. She is focused on user documentation for mobile devices. [email protected]

By Veronika Rädler Standards often seem to be time-consuming and unnecessary additional regulations. Many times, the ones applying them only have a vague idea of why the standard was issued and which argumentations preceded the final regulation. The standards and guidelines strongly depend on the board which issues them. This board usually consists of international experts who come together to share their experiences, aiming for a result, which will not only increase efficiency, but also help to provide constant and better quality. That’s what I had in mind when I received the draft of a new ETSI guideline and, on behalf of tekom, became involved in its development. The European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) is a good example for a global forum for experts. As one of the three officially recognized European standards organizations under the European Directive 98/34/EC, ETSI is involved in the policy discussions on the role of standardization in Europe with the European Commission (EC) and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). Besides technical standards such as GSM and UMTS, ETSI is also concerned with the improvement of user guides and user experience. ETSI’s human factors department, for example, is a global forum of experts dealing with user friendly telecommunications. This consortium is working on guidelines which ensure that everyone can use new technology, including the elderly and those with disabilities. The experts are working in specialist task forces funded under the European Commission’s eEurope initiative, which has targeted a number of areas for increased effort, including ‘eAccessibility’. The new ETSI guideline DEG 202 417 – User Education for Mobile Terminals and E-services, reflects the goals of the department. The guideline defines minimum standards concerning contents and quality of user education for mobile devices and services. Including well known advices of best practice, the guideline pulls together the advanMARCH 2007

tages of different media for different contents and user groups. The choice of the right media for different information during the usage of a mobile device or service (before purchase until resale or disposal) is a main aspect of the guideline. The specific aspects of the media such as paper based, online or audio guides are in the focus of the guideline which also includes the specific needs of separate user groups such as elderly or people with disabilities. What does the guideline mean for technical writers? Unnecessary additional regulation or a

www.cognitas.de

chance to profit from the experiences of those international experts who issued it? I think this depends on themselves. My suggestion is to take the ideas and aspects found in guidelines and keep them in mind when working on concepts or writing user guides. Take the chance and learn from this pool of experience! www.etsi.org

Good Growth Takes Care

www.moraviaworldwide.com AMERICAS

EUROPE

IRELAND

CHINA

JAPAN

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Toward a cleaner information environment According to the independent market intelligence providers, IDC, the worldwide translation/globalization tools market is set to grow from US$187 million in 2005 to US$263 million in 2009. A fast-growing segment of this market is that of enterprise-class global information management (GIM) solutions. This market growth is fueled by an increasing realization among C-level executives that a holistic approach to how they manage information on a global basis will drive consistency of brand and reduce time-to-market.

By Garry Levitt

As with our physical environment that we seek to clean up by reducing pollution and by applying cleaner technology, companies must manage their content — or “global information” — across all stages of the content life cycle. This affects not only the people and processes but also the technology that can be applied. This article outlines best practices on how to manage global information. It will show how to bring together disparate multilingual assets, including translation memories (TMs) and terminology databases, and clean the overall global content environment.

Forces at work within the environment

Photo: Johnny Lye

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The process of managing global information is often fragmented at the corporate headquarters, regional and local levels, as shown in Figure 1. Across the resulting network, a mix of content formats is used. Content and multilingual assets are not shared or leveraged efficiently, as each environment typically relies on the use of different vendors and a complex mix of applicaMARCH 2007

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tions, technologies and processes. A close-up view of the localization supply chain for each of these environments can be seen in Figure 2. Regional content owners will distribute localizable content (perhaps along with TMs) to various vendors (perhaps, in turn, using multiple freelancers), who will localize this content using different TM tool sets. These vendors will then return the localized content and the different TMs to the content owner, who then may or may not consolidate the content into a single TM while selecting and filtering out unwanted translations. In any large corporation, this process is repeated many times at the different departmental and divisional levels. Manual intervention is often the norm throughout this fragmented process. The lack of any tool and process enforcement or centralization of multilingual assets means that TM content becomes polluted over time, thus resulting in a lack of consistency and loss of leverage. The deployment of a solution incorporating workflow technology and optimal control and reuse of centralized multilingual assets streamlines and unifies all stages of the content life cycle. Everyone from

the authoring team to the regional review teams can leverage these assets to support his or her work. Intelligent strategies and processes are necessary to fully leverage the potential of legacy translation assets available in a myriad of different formats. Optimum reuse of existing assets often depends on the ability of a technology or service supplier to develop effective strategies to tackle translation asset consolidation and cleanup. Furthermore, architectures and solutions must be designed that are flexible enough to manage and maintain these assets efficiently moving forward.

Measuring pollution Many global corporations understand the need to regularly carry out maintenance of their multilingual assets. Others are often surprised if not dismayed at the general state that their valuable multilingual assets are in when they submit them to the scrutiny of a team of experts for consolidation, cleanup and migration for centralized use within a GIM solution. It is very common to see the previously fragmented approach reflected in the quality of the multilingual assets. A general “pollution check-up” often shows

Figure 1: To reach world markets, global information goes through a complex, fragmented supply chain. MARCH 2007

unacceptable levels of content pollution. The main contributors are inconsistent localization processes, lack of tool standardization, and the whole range of manual and user errors, which inevitably occur when handling different file types and manipulating TM data. This pollution manifests itself in a range of symptoms, including the failure to fully export TM data from the source application to an exchange format such as Translation Memory eXchange (TMX); the inadvertent existence of multiple locales within TMs that are meant to contain just one source and target combination (Nynorsk and Bokm°al for Norwegian, or Traditional and Simplified Chinese); identical source and target segments or empty target segments where there is clearly no linguistic or other reason for them; corrupt or invalid characters within the source TM (bidirectional languages, such as Hebrew and languages using extended characters, and doublebyte languages, such as Chinese, are often affected); and so on. Other issues are caused by the fragmented use and incompatibility of legacy TM tools and builds with support for different TMX versions (1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.4a, 1.4b) or other export formats across the supply chain. Different TM tools or versions of those tools often handle content in different ways. In particular, the inconsistent handling of formatting information — such as change of font, links and so on — across TM applications and content types can cause incompatibility and loss of leverage through the introduction of extraneous tags, line breaks and soft/hard returns within the TMs. In some cases, the code for certain characters may be contained within the TM rather than the actual character that the code represents (such as ¿ instead of ¿), which will further reduce leverage.

Another frequent cause of loss of leverage is the inconsistent application of segmentation rules. Each TM tool on the market has its own standard settings for segmentation. While these settings can often be tweaked, any consistent application of settings relies on the correct settings being applied for each project by all the users across the cascaded supply chain. Therefore, the process is dependent on the manual intervention of suppliers and in-house staff with a range of ability and expertise. Finally, more and more companies are moving away from legacy publication formats such as FrameMaker, Interleaf and Word, favoring migration to a company-wide XML publishing environment. As a result, there is an increasing requirement to clean legacy TMs for optimized leverage when translating XML content. These are just some of the phenomena that can affect the quality of a company’s valuable multilingual assets and the reuse that can be achieved using them. Anywhere from 10 to 50 language combinations and any number of TMs ranging from a few hundred to over a thousand, containing a few million to tens of millions of words, are quite common today. This increases the complexity of the task. Furthermore, corporations often have distinct and elaborate business rules for prioritizing the TMs according to a known vendor or quality hierarchy, by product range or content type, which may vary by language combination. An intelligent automated consolidation and cleanup process is essential in order to contend with the many intricacies, while maximizing the potential reuse of multilingual assets and ensuring their sustainable growth within a GIM environment. Only a wellconsidered, best-practice approach will allow for content to be recycled

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efficiently and effectively and leverage to be optimized within a centralized, workflow environment.

Cleaning up the environment In terms of approaches to tackle complex multilingual asset consolidation projects, three different incremental “levels” of cleanup can be identified. Level 1 essentially involves the migration of the TMs to a common format. Level 2 comprises an advanced round of TM cleanup and optimi-

The individual process steps of each level of cleanup are shown in Figure 5. Level 1. The most fundamental step that needs to be carried out in order to fully leverage existing TM assets in a GIM environment is the migration of legacy TM content to a common format. This approach consists of a number of different process steps. Step 1: A full evaluation of all legacy TM materials is carried out, which provides a comprehensive overview of all the TM files available for consolidation, including key data

Figure 2: TMs and terminology assets are distributed, used and maintained in a non-centralized way. zation based on in-depth leverage testing. Level 3 entails a partial or full linguistic cleanup and standardization of the TM content. Flexibility is key throughout the consolidation and cleanup process, and certain TM or content subsets can be identified for a higher level cleanup than others if necessary. The aim at all levels is to increase the consistency and potential leverage of all assets and to accelerate the time-to-market through the centralization of these assets. A detailed return on investment analysis based on a modeling of the typical reuse that a company is achieving and the expected future volumes will determine which degree of linguistic cleanup and which level of overall consolidation is most suitable.

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for each file. This analysis process is automated and produces a detailed bill of materials (BOM) showing each file name, file size, all CAT tools (and build versions) used to create the TM files, an overview of the different TMX versions supplied and a detailed word count per TM, as well as the source and target languages contained in each TM. The BOM also acts as a point of reference to the engineering team throughout the cleanup process, as well as to client-side stakeholders, providing everyone with a clear picture and scope of the task at hand. In addition, empty TMs are flagged, and the language flavors in each TM are logged along with any discrepancies that may need to be fixed programmatically. The BOM is an essential starting point,

especially when consolidating as many as a thousand individual TMs. At this stage, the file size and word count information can be used to assess the time required to complete the export and import of the content, as well as to model the cost for a linguistic cleanup (Level 3) if necessary. Step 2: A full technical assessment of the TM files includes the testing of file integrity, exportability to an exchange format such as TMX 1.4b and importability into the common format that has been decided on. Existing or new attributes (or metadata) can be applied when the TM content is migrated to the common format. At this stage, technical experts and engineers use their extensive working experience of a range of legacy TM tools and knowledge of the TMX standard to identify potential issues. The focus is on identifying problems that may hinder the import into the new common format or negatively impact leverage. Step 3: Scripts and routines are customized to automate the technical cleanup of any issues that have been identified. These are then run in order to apply fixes and clean up extraneous proprietary tagging introduced through the use of different legacy translation tools with varying degrees of support for TMX. These fixes are then regressed by a team of engineers. As part of this process, the TMs can be programmatically prioritized in accordance with the corporation’s business rules and ordered correctly for an automated import cycle. Step 4: The TM files are then automatically imported into a common format ready for use within the GIM environment. Level 2. Completion of the Level 1 approach foresees a complete migration of diverse legacy TM content to a common platform providing access to a centralized repository of multilingual TM assets. The

next level of TM cleanup — Level 2 — allows for reuse to be further optimized through an advanced cleanup cycle based on the results of a range of leverage tests. Step 1: The consolidated and cleaned Level 1 TMs are taken and are used to analyze sample projects against, thereby determining the actual leverage. This leverage testing stage involves various different content and format types from actual client localization projects — both old and new. Step 2: The resulting leverage is then compared to the leverage that was achieved on the previous project and the leverage that might be expected under ideal circumstances. Any analysis showing a lower leverage than expected is then investigated by a team of engineers with the support of linguistic analysts and mother-tongue translators if necessary. Step 3: Once this team has determined and verified the cause(s) of any low leverage, scripts and routines are written to programmatically remove the causes of lower-than-expected leverage across the full range of TMs. Step 4: These fixes are then regressed and verified visually within the actual TMs and through renewed leverage testing by a team of engineers and linguists. Level 3. The Level 1 and Level 2 approaches focus primarily on the technical aspects of consolidation, tagging and file integrity. Level 3 involves a partial or full linguistic review by a team of mother-tongue translators with the appropriate subject-matter expertise. The aim is to review the content from a linguistic point of view and identify core deficiencies or areas of inconsistency using corporate style guides and terminology databases. Automated quality assurance (QA) tools can then be used to extract sub-standard content from the TMs and correct it while standardMARCH 2007

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Figure 3: A once complex, fragmented process is turned into a unified GIM solution.

Figure 4: Centralizing TM and terminology assets in an automated workflow environment results in clean multilingual assets. izing style and terminology where inconsistencies or errors have crept into the legacy TM content. Certain aspects of the Level 3 linguistic review can be automated using appropriate linguistic tools. This level is the most time and cost intensive, but it’s crucial nonetheless if the legacy content is of poor quality. The task of consolidating a global corporation’s myriad of TMs, term bases and other multilingual assets within a GIM environment is often monolithic. In some scenarios, the solution needs to allow companies to work with multiple vendors and to structure cleansed and optimized content in the most intelligent and appropriate way for leveraging. This MARCH 2007

process can’t be carried out successfully without a viable automated approach. Global corporations need to bear in mind these key considerations, as well as the negative impact that content pollution will have on the entire environment when evolving.

Clean technology is the key Many sources of TM pollution can be remedied by applying a bestpractice approach to the consolidation and cleanup of existing TM assets. Global corporations can, however, take a number of measures to prevent pollution rather than having to cure it.

In the same way that many products pre- and post-production and engitoday bear symbols that show that neering, in-country review support they are environmentally friendly, and many other steps. The need for compliance with open standards manual intervention is eliminated is just such an indicator for TM wherever possible, and the technical tools. The use of a tool set with full integrity (correct tagging, segmensupport for open industry standards tation, attributes, locale informais the first step towards a cleaner intion, code pages and so on) and formation environment. One of the linguistic accuracy of all content is most important standards to look safeguarded and enforced. out for is TMX, which allows for the The automation of workflows can transfer of TM content with little or be fully tailored to a corporation’s no loss of critical data depending on business rules and ensures the accuthe version used. TMX is defined by racy and quality of all multilingual the Localization Industry Standards publications and multilingual assets. Association’s (LISA) special interest These assets are updated automatigroup, Open Standards for Concally after the translated content has tainer/Content Allowing Re-use passed through all the necessary QA (OSCAR) and is currently at version stages, as applicable to each type of 1.4b. While many localization content or publication. All assets vendors and technology providers are accessible in real time and are claim that their tools and processes tagged with a certain amount of are TMX compliant, only the tools metadata to define the context of a listed on the LISA site (www.lisa. translation (content type, style, doorg) have officially been certified main, customer, project and so on) and can claim to fully support the and provide the highest degree of latest version of TMX. Standardgranularity. This allows the assets to izing all localization activities on a be leveraged in the most meaningful single, TMX-certified solution is the way and provide maximum value. first step towards ensuring optimum To summarize, a once complex, re-use and integrity of multilingual fragmented process (see Figure assets. 1) can be turned into a unified, The next step is the centralization industry-leading GIM solution (see of all multilingual assets within a Figure 3). This solution is not only full-fledged GIM solution. Realmore efficient and scalable, but also time access to these assets for all the far cleaner and simpler to maintain necessary stakeholders and users through the support for workflow across the corporation from authoring through localization to publication or content delivery is essential. Such a solution should allow for full workflow automation, meaning that most of the manual production steps can be fully automated. These steps include the submission and retrieval of content, the application and updating of Figure 5: Consolidating and cleaning up multilinTMs and term bases, gual assets in three levels.

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automation, intelligent business rules and open industry standards. The principle of multilingual asset centralization, as shown in Figure 4, allows for maximum leverage across the organization, while ensuring sustainable, clean growth of those assets. There are many areas in which technology and service suppliers can demonstrate the value that they can add with regards to “green” tools and processes. In fact, some technology suppliers already offer certification programs that are specifically aimed at helping global corporations to overcome the hurdles of fragmented and inconsistent localization approaches.

The world is turning green As global corporations increasingly look to streamline the entire content life cycle through the implementation of a comprehensive GIM solution, the significance of open standards continues to grow. An example is the recent efforts to define standards for Segmentation Rules eXchange (SRX) and Global Information Management Metrics eXchange (GMX, a family of proposed standards concerning translationrelated metrics). Support for these standards and their development will allow corporations to further enhance the value of their multilingual solutions (rather than the assets alone). The deployment of greener, industry-leading technology and processes will also ensure the longevity of their investments. Suppliers, in turn, will increasingly need to demonstrate the necessary bandwidth of technical solutions and consultancy expertise, their understanding of and support for open standards, and in-depth XML expertise. The latter lies at the heart of many of the standards such as TMX, TBX, SRX or Darwin Informa-

contact

Garry Levitt is opera-

tion Typing Architecture (DITA), which have become essential for architecting industry-leading GIM solutions. Not unlike gas, oil and other fossil fuels used to drive our economies today, a global corporation’s multilingual assets are critical resources that fuel a company’s ability to drive the cost out of localization while reducing time-to-market and improving the accuracy, consistency and quality of communications. A “green,” sustainable approach to the use of these assets will reduce the level of pollution throughout the environment and allow for content to be re-used more efficiently. The entire content environment will become a better and cleaner place for future generations of global products and consumers worldwide.

Further reading LISA Best Practice Guide: “Managing Global Content – Global Content Management and Global Translation Management Systems” IDC Executive Brief: “Getting from Yes to Ja – How Companies Can Succeed by Managing Global Information” “The Importance of TMX” (The LISA Newsletter, Volume XI, no. 3.6) OSCAR: www.lisa.org/sigs/oscar

Reprinted with permission of MultiLingual magazine, Copyright January 2007, www.multilingual.com

The magazine for multilingual communicators. Special offer for tekom members – a FREE half-year digital subscription for new subscribers! To take advantage of this special offer, please register online at www.multilingual.com/dtcw706

tions manager of the Alliance division of SDL International. [email protected] www.sdl.com

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Central and Eastern Europe in the global context How the business potential of CEE compares with that of China or India By Libor Safar and Arturo Quintero Today, more than 17 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the region of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) is thriving. The CEE region has become a major services and production base for Western European and US companies, and increasingly also for businesses from Japan, Korea, China and India. While the emerging markets of India and China are very visible, and are the hot topics for media and analysts alike, the CEE region as a whole enjoys somewhat less media space. This article provides some basic comparisons of the CEE region with China and India – where they differ markedly and where they share similarities, primarily from the business perspective.

Regionalization One aspect these regions have in common is the opening up of their economies and their inclusion in international trade and globalization trends in general over the past few decades. During this period, they have attached themselves to the existing “triad” of the major regional trading blocs of Europe (the European Union), Asia (Japan, APEC and ASEAN), and the Americas (NAFTA), and have established themselves as up-and-coming economic partners. The CEE region has benefited from the proximity to – and for many countries, membership in – the EU. The region has become a major manufacturing base for sophisticated industries such as the automotive sector, and enjoys fast-growing popularity as an outsourcing center for high-tech and R&D industries. Effectively, it has become a “nearsourcing” location for the whole of Europe, offering the advantages of a talented and educated workforce, lower costs of living and labor as well as cultural proximity. China and India are close to the Asian trading blocs. China is a member of APEC (the Asia-Pacific MARCH 2007

Photo: Sanja Gjenero

Economic Cooperation) forum, a loose grouping of the countries bordering the Pacific Ocean. Recently China has also started to sign bilateral free trade deals with a number of individual APEC member countries. The impact of the regional trading blocs has now also prompted the members of the 10-strong Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to accelerate plans to create a single economic community. Countries such as Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam and others hope that this will enable ASEAN to compete more efficiently against the fastgrowing larger economies of China and India. ASEAN members now hope to establish a single trading market, similar to the European Union, as early as 2015. To complement the triad, NAFTA (the North American Free Trade Agreement, encompassing

the USA, Canada and Mexico) countries benefit in a similar way from the proximity of the Central and South American countries such as those clustered in the Central American Free Trade Area (CAFTA) encompassing Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic, and also from the relative proximity of the Mercosur countries (Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Venezuela, and Paraguay). The CAFTA countries in particular are well positioned to profile themselves as the near-sourcing center for the Americas, providing offshoring operations to the US, making use of the same time zones and proximity to North American markets. While NAFTA has gained ground since its implementation in 1994, plans to create a Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) that would include the rest of Latin America are currently on hold.

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The effects of globalization The globalization trend, which may have started over the last 25 years or so, and from which the CEE countries as well as India and China have largely benefited, is by no means a given. We often like to think that we live in unique times, and perhaps to some extent we do, but globalization is not a new concept. In terms of finance for instance, according to some measures, capital flowed more freely across frontiers in the late 19th century than today. The net outflow from the then imperial powerhouse Britain rose to as high as nine percent of GNP in that period. By contrast, even at their peak in the 1980s, net capital outflows from Japan and Germany never exceeded five percent of their national outputs. The difference today is that the flow of capital is becoming increasingly bidirectional. In the late 19th century, there were also major movements of people between countries, regions and even continents. This is not a major feature of today’s globalization. Then, the momentum was lost, and it may equally be that the current trend towards globalization will cool down. If that happens, however, it is quite likely that China, India and the CEE will find themselves in a much stronger position vis-à-vis the other global economies.

Unity and diversity When evaluating the market potential, the CEE is a region encompassing a population of some 90 million, comprised of a number of countries, which share some common cultural and historical perspectives, but are independent nationstates, each with their own language and identity. Products sold on these markets will require localization or translation into these individual languages, and today, the languages spoken in the CEE region are an established target for most companies localizing products for the European marketplace. In contrast, China and India are single countries and by far the most populous in the world, with China’s population exceeding 1.3 billion people, and India’s greater than 1.1 billion. While the economies of scale when launching localized products in these countries are obvious, the countries are far from homogeneous. In the case of China, for instance, producers need to consider the differences that exist in the Chinese language,

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with its seven to ten main classified dialect groups, some of which are mutually incomprehensible. These spoken dialects do not differ largely in their standard written form, which depending on the country uses the Simplified Chinese character set (PRC, Singapore) or the Traditional Chinese character set (Taiwan and the rest of the Chinesespeaking world). Microsoft’s Windows operating systems provide an example of a good support in this respect. The latest Windows Vista™ operating system is available in Simplified and Traditional Chinese, as well as a special Traditional Chinese for Hong Kong. In contrast, India provides for a much more complex market regarding localization and translation. India has 23 official languages (including Hindi and English), and of the 1,652 (according to the 1961 census of India) mother tongues in India, 24 languages are spoken by a million or more people. The business potential in India has been recognized by Microsoft, who has extended further the number of Indian languages in which their operating system is available with Windows Vista™. During 2007, Windows Vista™ is set to become available in some 15 Indian languages, including minority languages spoken in parts of India that were not previously supported by Windows XP, such as Pashto and Assamese. This allows many more people access to software in their own language, and also sets a precedent and encourages other software producers to bring their products to the market in these local languages.

Labor considerations Talent has become a global resource, and attraction and retention of talent is one of the keys to success for companies. In this respect, the CEE region, China and India are places which are providing a large supply of talented and qualified resources. Certainly labor costs, which are lower in the CEE region than in the west, and lower still in India or China, have been one of the main drivers. But it is also the sheer number of graduates who become available every year, along with their qualifications and motivation to succeed, which are equally important to consider. India produces an estimated 400,000 new graduates in engineering and science every year – more than any other country in the world. But the big three Indian software companies alone – Infosys, Wipro and TCS – are planning to hire 100,000 new

graduates in 2007. Future growth will require even higher numbers of qualified graduates, and in India, as in China, there are fears of an upcoming shortage of qualified resources. There are clear signs of the labor market becoming over-heated. This results in wage inflation, especially in local centers with a high concentration of local and foreign operations, and deteriorating staff retention. These trends exist in the CEE countries too, but are less acute, and certainly the labor costs are not set to rise as dramatically in specific industries. Also, although the CEE region produces a lower number of university graduates than India or China, they are on average found to be more suitable to work for multinational companies according to the McKinsey report Sizing the Emerging Global Labor Market.

Cost of doing business While labor costs in India or China are lower than the CEE average, they are only part of the total cost of doing business. Because the business and overall technical infrastructure in China and India is still developing, other associated costs are often considerably higher than in the CEE region. This applies to support services such as accounting or legal services, where working with knowledgeable partners familiar with the international environment and well equipped with foreign language skills will necessarily bear higher costs than where these skills are not such a limited resource. Equally, the costs of IT infrastructure are not markedly lower in China and India, and some, such as fast and reliable internet connectivity, are often higher than in Europe. This is certainly one of the factors contributing to the pressing need to achieve economies of scale in China. Since nonlabor costs can be high, it takes a large scale and a high degree of utilization to be successful, and this has been at the top of the agenda of many a Chinese enterprise. The close proximity of the CEE countries to the rest of Europe as well as to North America in terms of culture, ethics and business and management practices, is a major competitive advantage of the region. In addition, the fact that – today – much of the region is already part of the European Union, and hence shares the same legislature and legal frameworks, simplifies doing business in the region dramatically, and reduces costs and risks. Ultimately risk reduction leads to the reduction of overall costs, which compensates further for the lower hourly rates for labor in China or India. MARCH 2007

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The most attractive global areas 2006 (total superior to 100% - 3 possible choices) 68%

52%

Ranking 2005 1. Western Europe (63%) 2. Central & Eastern Europe (55%) 3. China (52%) 4. USA/Canada (45%)

48% 41%

18%

Western Europe

Central & Eastern Europe

USA/ Canada

China

India

©2006

Other region in Asia

12%

Latin America

8%

8%

Japan

Middle East

5% Africa

1% Oceania

Ernst & Young, European Attractiveness Survey "Team Europe Defends its Goals," www.ey.com

Overall attractiveness In the 2006 edition of the annual Ernst & Young European Attractiveness Survey, titled Team Europe Defends its Goals, one of the conclusions given is that Europe, as a region on the global scene, “reinforces its position as the location of choice, thriving on Western Europe’s maturity and Central Europe’s dynamism.” Based on the survey, which was conducted among 1,019 international business executives from Europe, North America and Asia, Western and Eastern Europe remain the top two business locations of choice, followed by the USA and China. Overall, the attractiveness of China (as measured by the E&Y survey) has fallen considerably compared with 2005, from 52 percent to 41 percent, while India remains the fifth most popular global region with 18 percent, unchanged from 2005. What is a remarkable change compared with 2005 is that now primarily small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) find investing in China attractive, whereas previously this was mostly the large multinational companies.

Key factors Companies evaluating the CEE region against China or India come from different industries and work in different environments. Nevertheless the following are some of the major universal factors that make for the attractiveness of the CEE region:  Same time zone – The fact that the CEE is located in the same time zone as much of MARCH 2007

15%

Europe allows exploring the critical advantages of unlimited communication. Even though much of the IT-related services are today less vulnerable to the issues resulting from communicating across long distances, this continues to be an important convenience and comfort factor.  Geography – All the CEE countries are easily accessible, thanks in part to the immense increase in intra-European air links between most major cities and even minor ones. For product shipment this translates into speed and low costs of transportation.  Legislation – The fact that most of the CEE countries are now EU members means they share the identical or harmonized legislature covering anything from trade, labor, and regulatory affairs to consumer regulations. Among other things, this also dramatically reduces the costs and requirements for administration.  Cultural proximity – The shared cultural background and heritage, and the largelyshared set of assumptions and human experience, can streamline communication considerably. In terms of the business environment, this results in an overall compatibility with prevailing business culture and ethics. In addition, the CEE

region offers a wider diversity and access to knowledge of foreign languages other than English.  Skill pool and costs of labor – The CEE region provides a large pool of educated, well-trained and motivated resources with up-to-date skills. The hourly costs of labor are higher than in China or India, but still lower than in Western Europe. The European countries in particular are well-positioned to make use of this advantage, before it becomes less significant as the wage levels in Western and Eastern Europe equalize.  Market potential – Even though as a whole the CEE region is a smaller market in terms of population than China or India, it is still significant, has higher-than-average purchasing power, and is marked by fast growing national GDPs and an overall affluence of the population.  Pan-European benefit – Given the high degree of integration between the individual EU member countries, in most cases what benefits one region has – sooner or later – a beneficial effect on the whole. The EU is becoming a larger market and the CEE region increases the overall attractiveness of Europe as a market as well as the place for foreign investment. The individual CEE countries alone may find it hard to compete with the emerging giants of China and India. But as a region encompassing a diverse yet coherent set of countries with cultural, business and geographical proximity to Western Europe, it provides for a growing market as well as smart outsourcing location. Overall, it is well-positioned for European companies to explore this potential, as it is for those who want to make the CEE region a springboard for their expansion into the whole of Europe.

contact Libor Safar is Marketing Manager at Moravia Worldwide, the localization and testing services company with global headquarters in Brno, Czech Republic.

Arturo Quintero is the Chief Corporate Strategist at Moravia Worldwide [email protected] [email protected] www.moraviaworldwide.com

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Translations into CEE languages – prospects and risks Expeditious economic growth, high population, numerous prospective markets for all types of products and services – the countries of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) offer attractive business opportunities. However, preparing products and services for these new markets might prove harder than expected, especially when it comes to translation. The following tips and observations will give you an idea of the region’s potential and what to consider when choosing a translation service provider.

By Jurek Nedoma MSc Eng. and Andrzej Nedoma MSc Eng.

I. Analysis of the prospects of the CEE market The term “Central and Eastern Europe” is not altogether precise. Habitually it is used as the opposite of “Western Europe” (WE), that is the territory of the 15 “old” EU-member countries (EU-15), along with Norway, Iceland, and Switzerland as well as the micro-countries Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, San Marino, and the Vatican. Following the recent stages of EU enlargement, several varied groups of countries can be distinguished in the CEE region (Fig. 1):

(1) EU-10 members (countries which joined the EU on May 1, 2004): Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia (2) EU-2 members (countries which joined the EU on January 1, 2007): Bulgaria and Romania (3) The next prospective EU applicants: Croatia and Turkey as well as other countries that are not currently applying for EU membership (other Balkan countries, Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, and Moldova1). The intuitive boundary between WE and CEE countries is shown in Fig. 2. According to common opinion rapid growth in the CEE countries is expected. Comparison

Fig. 3 – GDP per inhabitant (in PPS) as a percentage of the EU average Source: © European Communities, 1995-2007

Fig. 1 – EU enlargement in 2004 and 2007

26

Fig. 2 – The intuitive boundary between WE and CEE countries

of the two illustrations that are available on the Eurostat website supports this opinion: Fig. 3 shows the gross domestic product (GDP) per inhabitant in 268 regions2 of the 27 EU member states as a function of the EU average. It is clearly visible that in all of the CEE countries (former German Democratic Republic included) the GDP is significantly lower than the EU average (red and orange color). In the WE countries a similar low GDP level is reported only in Portugal, southern MARCH 2007

solutions

Spain, southern Italy, and in a certain part of Greece. The change of GDP per inhabitant presented as a percentage of the EU average (Fig. 4) shows

taken into consideration that the population of the non-EU countries in Europe (mainly the Russian Federation, Ukraine, and Turkey) constitutes nearly 300 million, almost 65 percent of the present EU-27. Forecasts predict an increase of nearly 30 percent with regard to Turkish-speakers – increasing from 67 to 87 million between 2001 and 2050. Although the total population of Russian- and Ukrainian-speakers will drop around 20 percent, the speakers of CEE languages will constitute the majority in Europe by the middle of this century (see Table I). This reallocation of population results in a boom in the translations conducted into the languages of the CEE region. Europe increasingly needs translations into these languages. The trend of quick rises in the GDP in this region will play a rather important role. Endclients and translation agencies are taking up

Fig. 4 – Change of GDP per inhabitant as a percentage of the EU average Source: © European Communities, 1995-2007 distinctly that the highest rate of growth (dark green and light green color) predominates in the CEE countries. In the WE countries a similar situation – quick increase of GDP per inhabitant from a very low level – is observed only in Andalusia and Extremadura (Spain) and in a certain part of Greece. In order to estimate the importance of CEE languages let’s have a look at some figures. According to recent figures the total population of the EU-27 is approximately 520 million, compared with approximately 400 million in the EU-15. This marks an almost 30 percent increase in population due to the 2004 enlargement. Furthermore, it should be

Issue 1: Slavonic languages have grammar rules and structures that are entirely different than those found in German, English, or French. The different forms of plural are only one example. Thorough proofreading is imperative in order to ensure the correctness of the grammatical form. Example:

POL

RUS

1 segment 2 segments 3 segments 4 segments 5 segments 21 segments 22 segments 25 segments 31 segments

1 segment 2 segmenty 3 segmenty 4 segmenty 5 segmentów 21 segmentów 22 segmenty 25 segmentów 31 segmentów

1 сегмент 2 сегмента 3 сегмента 4 сегмента 5 сегментов 21 сегмент 22 сегмента 25 сегментов 31 сегмент

this new challenge. They should, however, keep in mind the risks resulting from the existing technical, cultural, and economic situation at hand. Familiarity with these circumstances is crucial for success in the CEE market, which is really very attractive: expeditious economic growth, relatively high numbers of inhabitants, many

Year 2001 (%)

Year 2050 (millions)

Year 2050 (%)

EU-15

378.2

48.3%

349.7

48.8%

EU-10 + ROM+BUL

108.7

13.9%

90.2

12.6%

RUS UKR

204.6

26.1%

165.0

23.0%

TUR

66.9

8.5%

86.9

12.1%

Other Balkan

24.5

3.1%

24.7

3.4%

781.9

100.0%

716.4

100.0%

Table I – Population in Europe – current state and forecast (Source: http://www.internetworldstats. com/europa.htm) MARCH 2007

II. Ten important tips for WE decisionmakers

EN

Year 2001 (millions)

TOTAL

prospective markets for all types of products and services as well as the large variety of official languages. Therefore, the following observations, conclusions, and tips might prove helpful for the decision-makers in WE customers’ organizations.

As a rule, the regular plural form of a noun in English simply requires the suffix “s”. In Polish, there are two different regular plural forms – the first (with the suffix “y”) is reserved for 2, 3 and 4 (respectively 22, 23, 24, etc.), while the second (with the suffix “ów”) is correct for 5-21, 25-31, 35-41, etc. In Russian it gets even more complicated with three coexisting plural forms: the first (with the suffix “a”), is reserved for 2, 3, and 4 (and respectively 22, 23, 24 etc.), the second (with the suffix “îâ”) relates to 5-20, 25-30, 35-40, etc., and the third (without any suffix) is reserved for 21, 31, … 1001, etc. This means that e.g. for 21 or 1231 the singular form of the noun is used in Russian. It is clear from these examples that the “full repetition” in English (a segment, in tables often a single word, that has occurred in identical form in the source document earlier) does not mean full repetition in Polish or Russian.

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solutions

TIP: Never cut off the “full repetitions” out of the project. Pay your provider to additionally check for these instances. Issue 2: Many special characters from the Latin and Cyrillic alphabet are used in CEE languages. The variety of diacritical symbols that in turn make different characters in the Latin alphabet is really amazing, e.g. derivatives of “a”, “e”, “i”, “o” or “u”:

à,á,â,ã,ä,å,ă,ą,ǎ ĝ,ğ,ġ,ģ ñ,ń,ņ,ň ţ,ť

Of course this set of two segments cannot be aligned in this way for the creation of the Translation Memory. In other parts of the .ttx file we should have the alignment: (EN) Conference → (PL) Konferencja TIP: Be very careful with the acceptance of short segments for Translation Memories. It is better to exclude such exceptional segments from the TM in order to avoid serious mistakes.

ç,ć,ĉ,ċ,č ì,í,î,ï,ī,ĭ,į,ı,ǐ ò,ó,ô,õ,ö,ǒ,ō,ŏ,ő ũ,ū,ŭ,ů,ű,ų,ǔ,ù,ú,û,ü

Depending on the required operating system and DTP software version, these special characters often become corrupted when handling the files. TIP: Carefully check the shape of all the special “national” characters and perform preliminary tests to see if the necessary special characters work properly with your software. Issue 3: The application of CAT (Computer Aided Translation) tools for handling short phrases, segmented automatically by these tools might be doubtful because of the grammar differences between the source and target languages. Example: Let us assume that the proceedings of the tekom conference should be translated into Polish language using a CAT tool. As the chosen font size for the title page is large, the title “tekom Conference” will appear in two lines – consequently, the CAT tool will divide this expression into two segments: (1) tekom, (2) Conference. In Polish (and in nearly all Slavonic languages), the order of the words in this expression is different: (PL) “Konferencja tekom”. As a result, in a CAT tool we obtain:

ď,đ ķ ŕ,ŗ,ř ŷ,ý,ÿ

è,é,ê,ë,ē,ĕ,ė,ę,ě ĺ,ļ,ľ,ł ś,ŝ,ş,š ź,ż,ž

Issue 4: The hyphenation rules in CEE languages are different from English (and other WE languages) even if the spelling of the words is similar or identical. Examples:

ENG ENG ENG ENG ENG ENG

choc-o-late he-gem-on-y park-ing plu-toc-ra-cy res-ur-rec-tion sen-a-tor

POL POL POL POL POL POL

cze-ko-la-da he-ge-mo-nia par-king plu-to-kra-cja re-zu-rek-cja se-na-tor

TIP: Remember that the automatic hyphenation system in your Windows system may cause significant mistakes in the hyphenation of texts that are written in CEE languages. Switch off the automatic hyphenation, and always schedule a final revision of a PDF file by a native speaker of the target language of the text. Issue 5: During the communism period (and after 1989) there were several waves of immigration from CEE countries into Western Europe. Many immigrants now offer translation services. But – as a rule – immigrants’ fluency in their native language degrades, in which they no longer have a grip on the contemporary language of their mother tongue.

Segment No.

Source language (English)

Target language (Polish)

1

tekom

Konferencja

2

Conference

tekom

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TIP: Be very careful with assigning projects to translators who have been away from their native country for several years. Issue 6: In CEE countries the expected quality level for translation work is generally lower than that in developed countries. Good CEE translators demand higher rates than are offered to end clients by many agencies. Example: The quality of the Polish translation of the Constitution for Europe (published in the Official Journal of the European Union EU C 310 dated December 16, 2004) was originally rather poor, and the mistakes were really significant. E.g. in Art. 271 the word “illicit” was missing in the Polish equivalent of the sentence “These areas of crime are the following: terrorism, trafficking in human beings and sexual exploitation of women and children, illicit drug trafficking, illicit arms trafficking, money laundering, corruption, counterfeiting of means of payment, computer crime and organised crime”. This resulted in the literal Polish meaning that all factories working for the Polish Ministry of Defense and trafficking arms – would be banned as a crime, which is an obvious nonsense. The problem was so significant that a special amendment has been published in the Official Journal of the EU (C 112/9 dated May 12, 2005) in order to eliminate these errors. It contains a revision of the 42 most important mistakes. (Source: http://www.konstytucjaue.gov.pl/konstue.nsf/dziennik_c_112.pdf) If the translation of such a unique document of international significance did not meet the quality expectations, it is conjecturable that the translations of less important texts do not meet these expectations either. TIP: When working with CEE agencies place yourself as a high-profile client and avoid cheap services. Issue 7: Due to cultural differences, contact with freelance translators may sometimes be difficult. The importance of time, deadlines, and responsiveness requirements are not always perceived in the same way. MARCH 2007

solutions

TIP: Be prepared to face this situation or choose to only work with translation agencies. Issue 8: In many CEE countries the population is relatively small. This results in fewer good translators in certain language pairs. Moreover, many good translators are now engaged full-time in European Union institutions and have disappeared from the pool of available translators. It is worth knowing that the population of Estonia is roughly 1.5 million, Slovenia – approximately 2.0 million, Latvia –approximately 2.3 million, and Lithuania – approximately 3.4 million. This means that the total number of native speakers in these four EU countries together is nearly equal to the number of native speakers of Catalan, which does not reach the status of an official EU language. TIP: Try to schedule translations in advance in order to ensure that you have a team that is available for your projects. Issue 9: The value of the majority of CEE currencies versus WE currencies is significantly on the

rise. The strongest fluctuations were observed in the period August 2004 – August 2006. Therefore, this period was chosen for the graphs shown in Figure 5. The maximum and minimum values of these currency rates for 30 months are shown in Table II.

others. It seems that this risk will continue to occur until the respective CEE country adopts the Euro. Since January 1, 2007 only Slovenia has officially joined the Euro zone. TIP: Accept this situation as it stands from the onset,

Date

PLN/EUR

PLN/GBP

PLN/USD

PLN/EEK

Maximum (August 2004) Minimum (Feb. 2005) Minimum (March 2005) August 2006 January 2007

4.4780 3.7565

6.6647 5.4839

3.6948

0.2862 0.2401

3.9178 3.8630

5.7572 5.8449

2.9066 3.0373 2.9630

0.2504 0.2640

Table II – Maximum and minimum values of currency rates for 30 months It is easily noticeable that within around six month (August 2004 – February/March 2005), the currency rate of main currencies (EUR, USD, GBP) dropped by 22-24 percent in relation to the Polish Zloty. At the same time, the living costs in Poland increased because of an inflation. As a result, the rates in WE currencies agreed to by CEE providers in August 2004 were insufficient to cover the local costs after six months (February/March 2005). A very similar situation is observed for other currencies, like the Czech Crown, Hungarian Forint, Slovak Crown, among

and be prepared to pay higher rates for CEE languages in the near future. Issue 10: Many customers do not have sufficient knowledge about CEE languages or the individual countries in CEE. TIP: Be prepared to provide consultancy services in this field or establish cooperation with a language services provider in a CEE country that will be your one-stop-shop for CEE languages, as well as a reliable consultant for all requests regarding these languages.

1

In certain sources (e.g. Wikipedia), south-Caucasus countries (Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia) as well as Kazakhstan are mentioned as prospective EU members.

2

These regions are defined by level 2 of the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS 2003)

contact Jurek Nedoma is CEO of Lido-Lang Technical Translations, an agency based in Cracow, which is specialized in performing technical translations into all European languages Andrzej Nedoma is Development Manager at Lido-Lang. [email protected]

Fig. 5 – Trends of the changes in currency rates for the period Aug 2004 – Aug 2006 Graphs for: PLN/EUR, PLN/USD, PLN/GBP, and PLN/EEK, respectively. (Source: http://waluty.wp.pl/ kursywalut.html) MARCH 2007

[email protected] www.lidolang.com

29

business culture

Business practices in the Czech Republic

Introducing more customer friendly services If you have been living in a Western European or North American country and successfully carrying on business there, you might think that there should be nothing difficult about doing the same in the Czech Republic. However, before venturing into one of the former communist countries to try your hand at business there, you need to be aware that due to historical and cultural differences, it is quite another undertaking.

By Nathan Brown

The major difference is trust In Western countries, trust is often taken for granted. However, Czechs are not yet used to being taken at their word or taking someone else at his word. Neither do they understand the concept of repeat business yet. They rather focus on the deal at hand, assuming that it is the last deal you will make together. As I’m sure you can imagine, this can make doing business in the Czech Republic not only frustrating, but also a lot more time consuming than it needs to be. Unfortunately, you not only have to regard anyone with whom you may potentially do business as dishonest, but you have to be aware that you are going to be viewed as dishonest as well. This takes some getting used to! Keep in mind, however, that you are not in your own country and Czechs view it as equally offensive that you are expecting to be trusted just because you say so. The good news is that once you trudge through all the required formalities of making sure everyone feels trusted and that you can be trusted, everyone relaxes a bit and can then focus on what needs to be done in order to accomplish the business at hand.

Don’t expect western service standards Photo: Ryan Fox

30

Never expect, though, that you will receive the kind of fast, friendly service you are accusMARCH 2007

business culture

tomed to in the West. It was never necessary under the socialist system for anything to get done quickly or with any pleasantries. So this is a very new concept to Czechs and is only slowly starting to gain any ground here. Some things to be aware of when doing business in the Czech Republic: • As soon as you are discovered to be a foreigner, you are likely to be charged a higher than usual rate for services and products. • Often, once you’re sure that all fees and costs have been paid, contracts will come back to you with a list of extra fees and costs to be paid (and most likely conditions to be met). • After you have made your down payment for services to commence on a project, the service provider fails to perform the work contracted. • When your partner says “I need a few days to think”, he is actively searching for someone else to counter your deal, and if successful you will not be notified. • The “real” negotiation begins after the deal is settled and the contracts have been signed, and often the one person left out of these “real” negotiations is you. All this being said there are, of course, many Czechs who do appreciate the value of good quality service and they strive to provide their customers with it. When you meet with someone or some firm that exhibits this kind of philosophy, it’s always in your best interests to establish a good relationship with them.

Also, these types of companies are really starting to build a following, meaning that other companies which don’t offer this quality of service, will be forced to sit up and take a lesson.

Developing customer service A good example is the company Student Agency. The company was founded by Radim Janèura in 1996. Although active in different areas of business, one of the most notable is its venture into local and longer distance bus transit. Once trips such as those between Brno and Prague were dominated by communist-type bus companies including the state-run one. You could expect a grumpy driver on the journey, uncomfortable and old buses. Then Student Agency moved in offering slightly lower prices with bright yellow new buses featuring a movie on-board, your choice of hot beverage and a very friendly (above average, but not the best) staff. What was the result? With the Student Agency ticket booth beside the competition company in Brno, there was often a ten minute wait to buy a ticket with Student Agency and not a single person at the competition. Within a year, Student Agency had both booths and the competition did not even sell tickets at the depot. Now it is not uncommon to go by and see three to seven yellow Student Agency buses heading off to different directions.

Why the success? Cheaper prices for sure, but more importantly, the customer service and a breath of something new attracts and keeps the Czechs coming. The good news is that this is rapidly improving as Western culture continues to spread its influence in the Czech Republic and there continues to be a great influx of more foreign-owned businesses and foreign workers and investors. Czech businesses are feeling the pressure of competition, and many are trying hard to learn and integrate effective customer service policies.

contact

Nathan Brown is owner of Czech Point 101, a consultancy which helps individuals and companies looking to invest, buy property and/or relocate in the Czech Republic. [email protected] www.czechpoint101.com

�� MARCH 2007 � ��

31

��

community directory

calendar

7th European colloquium for user-friendly product information The times when technical communicators were “only” technical writers who sat alone at their desks writing plain manuals are long gone. Nowadays they are rather managers at the intersection of a large number of areas and tasks

when

what

where

March 12-15

LISA Forum Asia www.lisa.org/events/2007beijing/

Beijing, China

ranging from product development to sales and marketing, public relations and after-sales services. Information architecture and design, content management, product data management, terminology, indexing and localization are only some of the numerous related areas that technical communicators are involved with or have to interact with. Knowledge about what characterizes these areas and the specific workflow

7th European colloquium for user-friendly product information www.tceurope.org/colloquium/ aboutthecolloquium.htm

Brussels, Belgium

Localization World Conference www.localizationworld.com

Shanghai, China

March 25-28

Fifteenth Annual WritersUA Conference www.writersua.com/

Long Beach, USA

March 29-30

Globalisation Management Strategies Conference www.globalisation.org/

Monterey, USA

March 19

at the intersections is thus indispensable. The insight in and interaction with related professions also helps not only technical communicators but all professions concerned to shape and position their own profession more clearly. TCeurope invites usability experts, IT, content management, marketing and public relations professionals, translators and localizers, product developers and designers, process managers, quality managers, information architects, terminologists and indexers to present their specialized fields and to have

March 20-22

a closer look at the intersections and the role of technical communication within the process.

Globalisation Management Strategies Conference Increased global competition has forced many US companies to take a hard look at international markets. But international expansion often becomes an uphill battle as companies enter unfamiliar territory. Ted Levitt’s influential

April 16-19

AIIM Conference & Expo www.aiimexpo.com

Boston, USA

1983 message of standardized strategies and universal brand recognition has led some companies to aspire to a global ideal. But while many firms have tasted global economies of scale, the globalization of markets has developed

April 16-20

Hannover Messe www.hannovermesse.de

Hannover, Germany

Localization Certification Program http://rce.csuchico.edu/localize/

Marseille, France

Outsource World London www.outsourceworld.org/

London, UK

in ways not foreseen in 1983. The commonalities among markets are still counterbalanced by significant differences; activists call for the re-localization of the global economy, and the claim may be made that regionalization is increasing in the world, not decreasing. The political climate makes it increas-

April 25-27

ingly crucial for businesses to be sensitive to local needs and preferences. The conference will address key questions, such as: How can companies engineer strategies that are inherently “glocal”, reaping the benefits of global scale and local customization?

May 1-2

• What are the major organizational challenges of globalization as a business process? • What are the best ways to culturally customize to emerging markets while

May 14-16

Customer Centric Selling® Workshop for LSPs www.commonsenseadvisory.com/ consulting/customer_centric.php

Boston, USA

May 19-23

2007 IRMA International Conference www.irma-international.org/conferences/2007/index.asp

Vancouver, Canada

32

not losing the benefits of global branding? • What resources are available to help companies manage globalization?

MARCH 2007

directory

Associations

Service Providers

tcw the content wrangler

Technical Communication in Europe GALA is an international non-profit association that promotes translation services, language technology and language management solutions. The 200+ member companies worldwide include translation agencies, localization service providers, globalization consultants and technology developers. GALA companies share a commitment to quality, service and innovation in helping clients reach global markets. www.gala-global.org [email protected]

OASIS (Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards) is a not-for-profit, international consortium that drives the development, convergence, and adoption of e-business standards. The consortium produces more Web services standards than any other organization along with standards for security, e-business, and standardization efforts in the public sector and for application-specific markets. Founded in 1993, OASIS has more than 5,000 participants representing over 600 organizations and individual members in 100 countries. www.oasis-open.org [email protected]

MARCH 2007

With the foundation of TCeurope nine European associations of technical writers promote the quality of technical communication across borders, popularize the occupational image, advance educational opportunities and support the interests of their members all across Europe. To enhance these goals TCeurope organizes an annual colloquium on user friendly product information, in which cross-border topics are discussed and viewed from a political, strategic, economic and technical point of view. www.tceurope.org [email protected]

tekom Gesellschaft für technische Kommunikation e.V. is the largest association in Europe representing technical communicators, illustrators and translators. tekom is a neutral platform for the exchange of information, knowledge and expertise and promotes professional education and training in the field of technical communication. Founded in 1978, tekom currently represents around 6000 members in all industrial branches. tekom cooperates with associations of related professions, educational institutions, industry organizations and standards bodies worldwide. www.tekom.de [email protected]

across Systems is the manufacturer of the across Corporate Translation Management (CTM) software solution. across includes a translation memory and terminology system as well as powerful tools to support the project and workflow management of translations. Product manager, translator and proofreader all work together within one system, either in-house or smoothly integrated with translation service providers. There are several partner concepts and the Software Development Kit (SDK) for system integrators and technology partners in order to include both preliminary and subsequent process steps. www.across.net [email protected]

cognitas – these are more than 80 experienced employees like technical writers, designers, translators, online-specialists and tool developers. cognitas is one of the largest certified service providers of technical documentation in many different sectors like information and communication technology, the aerospace industry, defense and automotive engineering. Our range of services is based on a system of modules, we accompany you from the first concept phase through rollout and on to implementation. The company is situated in Munich, and has subsidiary offices in Paderborn, Stuttgart and Salzburg (Austria). www.cognitas.de [email protected]

TheContentWrangler.com is a popular online resource for technical and business writers with an interest in content management. Become a member of TheContentWrangler.com community. It’s free! Members receive:  Our monthly email newsletter  Discounts on training, conferences, books, and more  Access to an influential network of content professionals  Invitations to participate in industry surveys  Access to survey results  Content placement consideration on TheContentWrangler. com www.TheContentWrangler.com [email protected]

empolis – The Information Logistics Company – offers enterprise content and knowledge management solutions for company-wide information logistics and for improving business processes. Our portfolio includes a wide range of solutions for technical documentation and communication, e.g. • the empolis:Content Lifecycle Suite – the intelligent publication tool for creation and reuse of media-independent content, version and variant management, integrated translation management and 3D animation • the empolis:Industry Catalog Solution – the solution for managing, editing and publishing complex product information. empolis is part of arvato, the international media service company within the Bertelsmann group. www.empolis.com [email protected]

33

directory

the medical information company

Eskenazy Translations Eskenazy Translations specializes in state-of-the art technical translation, software localization and website localization. The company uses the following CAT and localization tools: Trados, across, Transit and Passolo. Translation into 45 languages is offered in Word, Framemaker, QuickSilver, Pagemaker, InDesign, QuarkXpress, Illustrator, Freehand, CorelDraw, Photoshop, HTML, SGML an XML. Catalogues and brochures are delivered print-ready for Windows and Macintosh. The current customer base includes 500 industrial companies worldwide. References: Liebherr, Siemens, Panasonic, maxit Group. www.eskenazy-translations.de [email protected]

Idiom® Technologies optimizes the globalization supply chain by aligning global enterprises, language service providers and translators. WorldServer™ software solutions expand market reach and accelerate multilingual communication by automating translation and localization processes. Idiom works with global organizations including Adobe, eBay, and Mattel to cost-effectively translate global websites, streamline software localization, and speed time-tomarket for international product documentation. Idiom also partners with consulting firms, systems integrators, and technology vendors to help customers maximize existing enterprise infrastructure. www.idiominc.com [email protected]

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medical language service is a professional translation company which specialises exclusively in medicine, medical equipment and pharmacy. We work exclusively with qualified translators from these specialist areas. This means your documents are accurate and easy to understand even after translation and/or localisation. By using state-of-the-art technology we ensure the translation process is efficient at every stage. medical language service covers the entire translation process – from the preparation of information and data, translation and layout in the foreign language through to the finished publication. www.medical-ls.com [email protected]

Founded in 1990, Moravia Worldwide is a leading globalization solution provider, enabling companies in the information technology, life sciences, manufacturing and financial industries to enter global markets with high quality multilingual products. Moravia’s solutions – delivered into over 90 languages and locales – include localization and product testing services, internationalization, multilingual publishing and technical translation. With global headquarters in Brno, Czech Republic, Moravia has local offices in Ireland, Central Europe, the United States, Japan, China and Argentina. www.moraviaworldwide.com europe@moraviaworldwide. com

the medical information company

mt-g medical translation is the leading provider of translations and global information services dedicated to medical science. We specialize primarily in medical technology and diagnostics, regulatory affairs, dental medicine and other specialist medical fields. We offer a range of professional services covering translation, information production, global information management and XML documentation applications. More than 450 medical and pharmaceutical experts in over 100 countries are engaged in translating, producing, managing and documenting medical information. www.mt-g.com [email protected]

VAW-arvato is a global service provider for the creation, management and delivery of technical information. From information sourcing to global delivery, we help make workflows more efficient and use latest technology to achieve optimum cost savings, shortened production times and consistent quality. Our core industries are automotive, engineering, energy and medical. Over 200 experts in 9 locations on 4 continents produce • Owners literature • Service and repair manuals • Training literature • Diagnostic procedures • Spare parts catalogues and translate these documents in more than 30 languages. Our own Content Management System allows intelligent integration into your software environment. www.vaw-online.com [email protected]

MARCH 2007

directory

More Languages. More Markets. More Business. Achieve more with the solution of choice for today’s market leaders. Globalization Software Solutions for Your Enterprise More market leaders choose Idiom® WorldServer™ to globalize content for websites, software, products and marketing materials than any other software solution. See how Adobe, Continental, eBay, Oracle, Staples, and Travelocity use WorldServer today to achieve more in the global economy. Learn more by visiting the Idiom Resource Center — your one-stop portal for information and interaction, www.idiominc.com/resources.

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Central and Eastern Europe in the global context ... - Celine GROS

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