Engaging the freelance community: The Importance of Conferences in the Linguistic Industry
A cornerstone of TransPerfect’s continued success is the relationship we build with our vendors, and as a company, we couldn’t be happier our freelance experts have embraced the “age of digital communication"! However, the opportunity to take part in industry events such as the American Translators Association (ATA) 59th Annual Conference and Language Show Live at Olympia is valuable because it allows both vendors and companies to shake hands, have a cup of coffee, and celebrate how far the industry has evolved with raised glasses.
American Translators Association - US
The ATA Conference is the place to be each year as 1,600 dedicated Translation and Interpretation industry professionals come together to expand their knowledge and their network. For many of our Freelance family meeting with TransPerfect was the highlight of ATA 2018, as they consider us a “key business relation” and true partners within the translation industry. We know TransPerfect’s commitment to quality and vendor experience has genuinely been conceptualized as vendors remarked on finding hundreds of exciting projects through us and praise the ease of partnering with our knowledgeable and experienced staff. Special giveaways and an evening appreciation party are among the many ways together we share our gratitude and strengthen relationships at ATA.
The Language Show - UK
The Language Show takes place every year and is the UK’s largest language industry event with over 8000 visitors coming from across the UK and Europe. TransPerfect is proud to have been an exhibitor for the past five years, and each year we look forward to engaging with our freelancers and veteran visitors.
Michele Essman, a member of our Freelance family, was kind enough to share her thoughts on language industry conferences: "I think it is important because an industry conference should represent all aspects and participants–in this case, from large agencies to independent freelancers.” That representation is especially important because each year TransPerfect welcomes hundreds of soon-to-be language and translation graduates keen to get on the first rung of the industry career ladder, either as a freelancer or in-house.
As a leading new-graduate employer with the largest family of freelancers in the industry, we’re uniquely placed to give practical face-to-face advice on what we look for in our freelancers. We feel the opportunity to speak with linguists who have yet to work with us, as well as the next generation of future freelance experts always provides valued takeaways. “Quite simply, the presence of giants such as TransPerfect is what makes these conferences truly worthwhile; a company like TransPerfect sets the trend, and not being able to interact with it at a conference would deprive both linguists, and TransPerfect of key mutual interaction” explained freelancer Benedetto Cataldi.
While ATA and The Language Show are just two examples of how conferences bridge a gap in the bonds we create with the freelance community, the real takeaways from the experiences are that our vendors care. Whether TransPerfect is helping language grads climb the industry ladder, improving perspectives about working with language service providers, or giving a huge thank you to our tenured freelance experts, there is no substitute for face to face communications.
We are so grateful to the staff of the American Translators Association and to the contributors in the Language show for providing these fantastic opportunities to connect and strengthen our relations. From a business perspective, both vendors and TPT agree it’s worth investing time and money to engage at conferences because emails and skypes will never replace the “personal touch." “Even the most high-tech companies in Silicon Valley have learned that you cannot replace all interaction with structured, virtual communication. Relationship-building is at the core of any successful team, and translation companies who treat translators as just "inputs" rather than team members are losing tremendous opportunities,” explains Tom Fennell, another member of our Freelance family. We as a company are always looking for new team members, so if you know anyone who is interested in being a part of our freelance community, please encourage them to visit gateway.transperfect.com and apply today.
We look forward to seeing you at the next industry event.
For more information on upcoming events in the translation industry, check out "Between the Lines," our quarterly newsletter for TransPerfect freelance experts.
