Collaboration with the Competition – Room for Everyone in Localization
Photo by Stillness InMotion on Unsplash
In Part 15, let’s call out the elephant in the room. Can collaboration exist amongst competitors? Spoiler alert, of course, it can! Let’s keep using Globalization Motivation to oversimplify to promote localization, globalization, and ultimately collaboration. Join forces with our adversaries.
I have been in many meetings where the topic was all about the competition. Competitors are scrutinized, analyzed, and even despised. At times, when someone leaves their job for a competitor, they may be immediately escorted out of the office. Very early on in my career, I wondered why this practice existed? Since most competitors eventually become collaborators, do we want to end the experience on a sour note? In the music business, your artist may appear on another artist’s track or a song may be shared on a movie soundtrack. In television, some networks distribute programs produced by studios that have their networks. In technology, hardware is designed to partner with software created by competing suppliers. Localization is highly specialized and unique and there are many areas where we can support our community and benefit from each other.
To explore this topic in depth I consulted with Tucker Johnson, founder of Nimdzi Insights and co-owner of Multilingual magazine. Tucker co-wrote “The General Theory of the Translation Company'' where he speaks directly to industry rivalry within the localization landscape and references the opportunities we have to “drive innovation.” I knew we could use his input and perspective for this discussion.
Tucker: In our industry, everybody knows each other, it seems like. So people quickly learn not to burn bridges. Why would you hate the competition when there’s a good chance you know a lot of people who work there? Also a not-insignificant chance you may work there one day, as well.
Furthermore, our industry is built by people who are committed to building bridges, not tearing them down. A passion for languages and multilingualism is a passion for connecting diverse peoples and cultures. So our industry seems to attract the “right” kind of individuals: essentially, people who care about people.”
Erica: When implementing a practical global mindset, I am urging the promotion of localization and globalization to everyone within our spheres of influence. This can be in our organizations and in social and professional networks. The explicit goals are to have the global customer always be top of mind. We should want to be viewed as a strategic partner in all aspects of the buyer and user journey. There is the opportunity to be part of upstream planning and to achieve this. I believe it requires collaboration among all of our peers and partners and clear communication of who we are and where we are key contributors to international success. Aligning our initiatives and continually endorsing our impact prompts localization to be seen as essential. In addition, the individual members of our community will be thought of wherever and whenever globalization exists. This can apply to language technologies as well, as it needs to integrate with the existing infrastructure. Where a brand and its messaging travel the globe, we are the people that need to be involved at every stage.
There is always something to learn from our peers. We may see others as roadblocks that are standing in the way of our success. We could be competing for the same client or linguists for the same language. Advances in technology and automation can be viewed as competition. The truth is there are more benefits than deterrents to collaboration. Your competitor may have great blogs worth reading or share vital information at an industry event. Best practices are always great to implement in your processes. I have watched many professionals join forces to support their community and develop additional skills. It is also a great way to keep an eye open for future leaders.
Tucker: And the reality is that direct competition is not very common between LSPs. The market is extremely diversified and successful LSPs usually operate in specific niches. This means they aren’t pursuing the same clients and are therefore not in direct competition.
For example, one way we help LSPs at Nimdzi is by consulting on proposals for RFPs. But we work with so many different clients we have a strict policy that we can’t help two of our clients compete on the same proposal. That would be a pretty obvious conflict of interest. However, this problem has come up exactly zero times that I can remember in the last five years… simply because the pool of work available is deep and diverse enough to support an incredibly diversified supply chain.
Also, focusing on the competition means you’re not focusing on your customers. When we started Nimdzi Insights, I purposefully didn’t follow our competitors too closely. It was important to me not to define our company by our competition. Instead, we focused on what the market was asking for. We take a user-centric, Design Thinking approach here at Nimdzi. Essentially, this means we let our clients, not our competition, dictate our strategy. It has been like this since we founded Nimdzi four years ago, and since then we’ve grown to a global team of over 40 strong, so I would say something is working.
Erica: I have seen many competitors speak on panels together at conferences and networking events. There are opportunities to learn different perspectives to achieve similar goals. We should never limit our access to great information and helpful tips. Volunteer opportunities for organizations such as Women in Localization, Translators Without Borders, and others will allow you to partner alongside fellow members of the localization community from different skill sets and experiences on a variety of projects. This is a great way to see first-hand how much you gain from collaboration among peers. I have met great people who are dedicated and passionate about Globalization and Localization and some of whom I consider close friends.
The localization industry is small in comparison to others. I find that many people who at one time held positions at different companies are now on the same team or collaborate on the same project together. It is putting the right individuals together and building great teams to bring true success to every project. Just remember, today you may be applying for the job, pitching the client, or up for an assignment with someone that will eventually be your teammate tomorrow.
Tucker: I once had a manager tell me that I need to be careful about what others think about me because I never know if I may end up reporting to them one day. In other words, it’s important to play nice in this industry.
While I agree that advice is true, that doesn’t mean it is good, though. In fact, I think it’s horrible.
Defining ourselves by how others perceive us is nonsense. Just as it’s nonsense for an LSP to define themselves by their competitors. Whether at the company level or individual level, it’s best to look inward and define who you are, who you want to be in the future, and how you choose to add value to your stakeholders. Let your competitors play catch up.
Erica: The language industry is thriving due to the global customer demand for personalization. Our collective goal should be to promote who we are and where our contributions have value across the board. Looking at where localization and globalization fit in the big picture can be our driving force. If our peers and partners understand what services, knowledge, and guidance we provide, there will be an increase in the opportunities for our industry as a whole.
Transitioning to Localization Strategic Partnership provides value to every industry. The world seems to be getting smaller by what I refer to as the “Age of Transparency.” The internet gave us a platform, social media built the international community, mobile made information accessible and e-commerce created access to global customers. The pandemic fast-tracked the enhanced digital experience and touchless payments. Our international customers are driving the demand and competition for our products and services. This is why our community needs constant support, education, and to enhance each other.
Sharing best practices and advancing our industry benefits everyone. There is knowledge everywhere and a competitor today will become your co-worker or employer tomorrow. Seek knowledge wherever you may find it and boast about the impact localization has with anyone who will listen. Support our growing community in any way you can. The increased opportunities and collective advancement will foster innovation, opportunity, and above all collaboration.
Tucker: Agree! We founded Nimdzi for this purpose: to improve knowledge sharing in our industry. Our vision statement has not changed since the day we were founded: “Accelerate the growth and maturity of the globalization industry by democratizing access to easy to understand, reliable, high-quality information through market research, education, and consulting”.
A lot of the challenges we have historically faced as an industry has been of our own making. We run into issues when we are not all playing with the same deck of cards, which is to say that we don’t all have access to the same information when making business decisions. The extent to which we share information is the extent to which we thrive together as an industry.
Erica: We can see that the world of localization fosters collaboration with the competition. Special thanks to Tucker Johnson for his contribution to this topic. I encourage everyone to do their part to promote and collaborate.
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