1. Cool Careers in Localization
Angelika Zerfass – Zaac
Petra Dutz – SDL
Markus Kuhnert – 1io
Barbara Hoegler - Citrix

3. Our Customers’ Business
Electronic and Bio-Analytical Measurement
Life Science and Medical Devices
Wellness and Life Style
Manufacturing
Internet Publishing and Broadcasting
Education and Health Services

4. Rockant Fun Facts 4 23% 56% $24 billion
Average reduction in staff turn-over through consulting and training
Cents shaved off total cost per word within six months of engagement
56%
$24 billion
Increase in staff productivity through implementation of technology and workflows
Estimated total annual revenue that customers make through localization

6. Cool Careers Language Engineer
One of the cool careers in our industry has to do with all the technical stuff, like file formats, troubleshooting, defining preparation or post-processing processes, learning new technologies etc.
Localization World Conference 2015
Berlin
Angelika Zerfaß, Translation Tools Consultant

7. 1995
Degree in Translation (Chinese/Japanese) + Computational Linguistics
Japanese Embassy (Germany)
Trados (Japan/USA)
During the last 15 years I have come closer and closer to being a language engineer myself.
Starting out as a translator (the only one who had a laptop at that time) through the Japanese Embassy (where I would help my colleagues to get into Windows 3.11) on to Trados as a training and support specialist for their tools I finally decided to go freelance in the year First as a trainer, but then clients asked for tools comparisons, workshops and in the last years more and more people turned to me with their questions on error messages, evaluation of translatability, file preparation, data migration etc.
Independent trainer since 2000
Training
Webinars
Workshops
Training material
Consulting
Technical Support

8. Language Engineer What do they do?
Evaluation of translatability / analysis of the source material
Preparation of files / conversions
Setup of translation tools (filters, pre-translations, import/Export of TMs, term bases…)
Post-processing
Troubleshooting error messages / finding workarounds
Develop macros, regular expressions…
Develop processes with available tools
Educate clients/project managers/translators about best practices
Document solutions / prepare step-by-step guides
From technical support it is but a small step to being a Language Engineer

9. Language Engineer Skillset
Like to play detective
Do not be afraid of new things
With ever and ever more complex tools and file formats, the need for people who can be the intermediary between developers, project managers and translators when it comes to technical questions is growing.
Some call it Language Engineer, some call it Support and QA person or technical project management, some call it Localization Engineer (although that goes more in the direction of software localization).
You should not be afraid of new things and always eager to learn and teach yourself
You should like to play detective to find the cause of a problem and develop a solution
You need to be very logical to understand what the computer does
You need to be able to communicate the same thing to different players in their language (developer lingo, translator speak, PM talk…)
Creative / out-of-the-box thinking
Be logical and organized
Communicate with different players

10. Language Engineer Background Knowing more than one language is a plus
Experience with translation tools and translation projects is a plus
Anything else (except the skills) can be learned 
With ever and ever more complex tools and file formats, the need for people who can be the intermediary between developers, project managers and translators when it comes to technical questions is growing.
Some call it Language Engineer, some call it Support and QA person, some call it Localization Engineer (although that goes more in the direction of software localization).

11. Careers in Localization at Enterprise level
Barbara Hoegler
Sr. Manager, Localization Services
Citrix

12. Facts about Citrix Localization
Enterprise software, mobility apps, technical content, marketing, legal, web content, KB, education
20+ people in a globally distributed team
30+ languages
Localization platform, MT, linguistic testing, localization consulting

13. Emerging in-house roles
Process designer/solution architect
M&A, constant change
Variety of content types/formats
Waterfall to agile methodologies
Holistic view and analyze needs of departments
Terminologist
Drives global brand recognition/consistence
MT success

14. How do you get there University degree: linguistics + technology
Get involved early, don’t wait
Specialize in new trends

15. About myself Past Today
Trained Translator (EN, IT) Faculty of Translation Studies, Linguistics and Cultural Studies (FTSK), Germersheim
Support & Training Engineer Trados GmbH
Consultant Professional Services Trados GmbH
Language Technology Expert SAP AG
Today
Partner Manager (D/A/CH) SDL (since 2009)
Lecturer FTSK, Germersheim (seit 2005)
Lecturer Hochschule Karlsruhe (seit 2012)
Member of Termnet Executive Committee

16. A typical student today …
is a digital native is uncertain of what to do after graduation (other than “just” translating) is unaware of the importance of intercultural skills and the value they can bring
Much more familiar with technology than 10 or 15 years ago (a plus)
Intercultural skills today are more importan than ever before
Very often, they leave university without knowing the interesting options the industry offers. Many of them discover these options only by chance (like myself)

17. What can our industry do to be more attractive
Become more involved in training
Guest lectures
Specialized workshops
Train-the-trainer courses
Invite students (and lecturers) to an open house day
Offer paid(!) traineeships
Involve students in real-life projects, e.g. sub-contract a paid project
Encourage students to better market themselves
Self-marketing: The whole industry would benefit

18. BUT … This does not apply to students exclusively
We need much more awareness and self- confidence in the value of what we do and the value we create
Language is a the core of international success!
… but rather to a lot of people in our business

19. Yes, we can!
There are so many options of what we can do with the knowledge and skills we have, we just have to have a bit more confidence in ourselves!