Forward-Thinking in the Global Localization Industry

Based in London, John Harris works as a Business Development Director at Welocalize. John has worked in the localization industry for more than 20 years and is a specialist in the development of language solutions for global organizations in the financial services industry. In a recent interview with Louise Law, Welocalize Communications Manager, John provides a glimpse into his typical working day and his thoughts on today’s global languages industry.

You recently joined Welocalize as a Business Development Director. What drew you to the company?

Welocalize really is doing things differently and is a key player in enabling organizations to reach global audiences. I have worked for two decades in the language services industry and I have not seen any other company provide such formidable, innovative and scalable solutions as Welocalize. It’s an exciting time to join such a forward-thinking organization and be part of the team.

Can you give us some insights into a typical working day?

My day usually starts early. When you work for a global company, you work with organizations and team all over the world and that involves juggling many different time zones. I try to clear emails first and check in with my team then spend the bulk of my time talking to organizations about their localization challenges and objectives. Localization touches every part of an organization — from finance and legal through to product marketing and corporate communications. Any content that is destined for multiple language markets has to truly reflect a brand in all markets and also meet local regulations to ensure it is legally accepted. Localization directly impacts revenue and brand equity, so it needs focus and expertise to get it right.

What do you think are some of the changes we’ll see in the industry over the coming years?

Further consolidation by scale, technology and integration. Those LSPs that succeed at innovation to implement successful, scalable solutions for global companies will accelerate, providing ‘intelligent’ solutions that the others will strive to match. Some of the technologies we’re developing on predictive analytics and use of big data will help companies to manage the high volumes of content they produce every day and convert multilingual content into an important asset.

The wider application of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies by clients and service providers’ looks set to drive ever-faster developments in customer service, process and automation. This will generate even more content that must be tailored in whatever form it is required to reach local audiences.

What are the growth areas?

Digital content. The Internet has provided one of the world’s biggest trading areas and digital content enables organization to reach multiple markets. The language we speak when promoting, selling and distributing products and services online has to be accurate, legally accepted and compelling to the target audience. We also need to understand product feedback from our customers who are in more than one language market. This involves our listening to our customers and using user generated content to better understand customers and further tailor products and services for international growth.