Risk management in
localization processes
Anthony Pym
LRC Internationalisation and Localisation Summer School
12 - 15 June 2006
University of Limerick, Ireland
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43005 Tarragona
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Preliminary example
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In translating/localizing a birth
certificate, where can you make a
mistake?
 Name of person born?
 Date of birth?
 Name of midwife?
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Distribution of resources:
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Only work hard where there is high risk.
Don’t work hard where there is low risk.
(Don’t work too hard!)
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What is risk?
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The probability of not fulfilling the
project’s purpose.
How can we assess this probability?
How can we define the purpose?
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Measuring risk:
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High risk is not high frequency
(probability of occurrence)
High risk is high impact (effect of
occurrence for the purpose of the
project)
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Types of risk (from Stoeller)
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Kittens (low frequency, low impact)
Puppies (high frequency, low impact)
Alligators (low frequency, high impact)
Tigers (high probability, high impact)
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Classify the risks of these
product errors
“1 files left to download”
“spesifications”
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Classify the risks of these
product errors
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A classical product error:
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A new product error?
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But also human error:
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Your client changes their mind every
two days.
You miss deadlines by months.
Your translators / project managers
change jobs frequently
You start using new technology without
adequate testing/training.
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Reducing risk 1:
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Product errors:
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more revision
better qualified staff
liability insurance
(All of this requires added effort.)
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Reducing risk 2:
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Human errors:
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More meetings
More specifications
Hiring and firing
Portfolios / risk transfer
Higher rates of pay
Donkeywork for dummies
Or long-term motivation and trust
(All of this requires more added effort.)
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But:
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The effort invested in risk aversion must
be less than the benefits of the
purpose.
So what is the purpose?
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Identify the purpose:
“1 files left to download”
“spesifications”
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Identify the purpose:
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The purpose?
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The purpose?
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The same purposes here?
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Your client changes their mind every
two days.
You miss deadlines by months.
Your translators / project managers
change jobs frequently
You start using new technology without
adequate testing/training.
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Purposes can concern:
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The use of a product
The profits of a company
The long-term standardization of
languages
Relations between cultures
Social inclusion
Cultural diversity?
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Risk aversion?
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The expert’s entire article is about reducing
or avoiding risks, no matter what the cost.
The proposed universals of translators’
behaviour (explicitation, reduced variation,
added length) are also all risk-averse.
So localization and translation are risk-averse
by nature?
And thus marginal luxury services, by nature?
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Risks at Ikea:
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In Malaysia:
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In Greece:
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In Poland:
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In Sweden:
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In Germany:
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In France:
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In Hong Kong:
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So:
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The localization industry is risk-averse
and thus a marginal luxury?
But marketing has high risk tolerance, is
even better paid, and has more impact?
Meanwhile, the world is localizing
without even considering the main longterm risks?
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