Translation/Localization Project Management & QA

Preparing for a career move in translation and localization sales?Here are five key steps to succeeding at interview.Sales professionals have a delicate balancing-act to perform at interview time.Often employers are hoping to see a range of skills and personality traits, several of which overlap and a few of which seem to flatly contradict.You need to be determined, focused and competitive when it comes to winning new business, but easy-going and collaborative as a colleague and member of the team.Employers want to see that you’re driven by financial incentive, but not just chasing dollars without a commitment to the company’s broader mission.Striking the right tone is no easy task.To help you showcase your experience in the best light, we’ve chosen our top five pieces of advice based on hundreds of language industry sales interviews. Understand the needTo excel in interview it’s vital to know exactly what the company is looking for – and that’s sometimes not as obvious as it sounds.Interviewers are, of course, always vetting for someone who can fundamentally be trusted to hit a sales goal, but there are lots of nuances and details beyond that which could be important clues as to how you should present or discuss your experience.Do they need someone who can upsell and expand existing accounts, or simply kick in new doors?Are they on the lookout for someone with management potential, or is it a solo role?Have there been issues with previous hires which have shaped the focus of this search?Often interviewees can be so eager to share their accomplishments that – although impressive – they may be missing the mark and talking about issues that don’t resonate with the company’s more important needs.Early on in the interview, try and establish what the hiring company is really trying to find. Not only will this help you understand if the role is truly a match for you, but it will enable you to shape the way you present your achievements and background.Show that you can evolveIn a fast-moving and competitive global market, translation companies are always changing – exploring new customer sectors, reacting to pricing pressure, implementing new technologies, hiring new personnel and adopting new marketing strategies.A recurrent concern among hiring managers is whether sales candidates will be able to adapt and succeed throughout the inevitable change ahead.Sales candidates who set out to demonstrate to an interviewer that they have a ‘tried and tested’ approach to sales risk inadvertently signalling to that interviewer that they are uncomfortable with change or may struggle in a new environment.While a company needs to know that you have a formula for success, it’s important to make clear that you’re able to adjust to evolving circumstances and have done so successfully in the past.It’s great to be focused, but avoid coming across as rigid.Focus on growthAbove all else, make sure that what shines through from your interview is your ability and drive to create top-line growth.“If we hire this person, are we going to see increased clients and client spend?”With so many other variables in play, it can be easy to get taken off track into a discussion about marketing, management, training or other areas of conversation – and while it’s fine to show a broad perspective and hold opinions on these topics, it mustn’t come at the cost of convincing the interviewer that the net effect of your hire will be customer growth.As a guiding principle, there are few better ways to formulate your answers to interview questions or to choose your own anecdotes to illustrate your experience.The interviewer may decide you’re smart, thoughtful, well informed or a thousand other things – but if they don’t decide you’ll create new revenue, it’s all been for nothing.  Give examples of being a team playerThe translation industry’s most successful salespeople go beyond the basics of a standard sales role – they are company ambassadors, with great relationships across the organization they represent and the ability to engineer ‘win-win’ scenarios for their agencies and their clients.Hiring managers want someone who is an asset to the business, and not just someone who can bring in their numbers (especially if that means disrupting morale, causing internal rifts or draining time from management).Showing your ability to collaborate with marketing colleagues, production teams and other areas of the organization goes a long way to helping set interviewers’ minds at ease. Analyze what YOU do wellStepping into the interviewer’s shoes, one of the most important things they’re trying to figure out is how much of your performance in previous positions was down to the environment, team or market you worked within, and how much was down to your contribution and skill set.This is critical – an employer isn’t buying your past, they’re hiring you for your future contribution.You can swing the interview in your favour by actively helping the interviewer to make this distinction.Go back over your previous roles and identify all areas where your impact influenced events, and analyze what you did well to achieve positive outcomes and hit goals.Have you been successful mostly because of high activity volumes? Determination? Deep subject-matter understanding of client markets?Rapport and relationship-building?Willingness to go the extra mile, take calls late at night or schedule meetings on weekends?This helps you understand exactly what you’re bringing to the table.Working out your personal strong suits and ensuring they are clearly communicated during your interview lets a prospective employer cut through the distractions in your CV and understand the core abilities you offer, regardless of environment. ***Adaptive Globalization fills jobs in Sales, Account Management and Sales Leadership in the translation and localization industry around the world – browse our full list of vacancies here.

Here at Adaptive Globalization we spend our days and weeks searching for perfect candidates and it leads us to look in some of the dark corners of the job-seekers section of the internet. As we trawl through many webpages, job boards and speak with a lot of our clients and candidates, we come across some fantastic job titles – from Mischief Maker to Wizard of Lightbulb moments, I recently discovered that there’s a market for an Emoji Translator – what a job that would be, especially as Adweek reported in 2017 that more than 60 million emojis are used daily on Facebook, with a further 5 billion (plus!) on its Messenger platform. In the localization industry, it’s important we’re across every single language, even emojis! So, after a few laughs in the office, we thought we’d share our top 10 picks of the weird and wonderful we’ve discovered across a range of industries and have translated them for you… do you fancy doing any of these? Wizard of Light Bulb Moments – Marketing Director Emoji Translator – Not sure where to begin… Mischief Maker – Content Creator Chief Evangelist – Brand Ambassador Sales Ninja – Sales Executive Disruptor in Chief – Head of Daily Business Operations Problem Wrangler – Counsellor Talent Delivery Specialist – Recruitment Consultant Digital Overlord – Website Manager Great Service Agent – Receptionist I’m sure all of you have seen some weird and wonderful job titles in your time, why not share with us your favourite ones?

Here at Adaptive Globalization we want to share our expertise with the industry.Having been one of the leading names in recruiting in our fields for many years, we know a thing or two about current trends, industry insights and are well connected to get a one-to-one with a friendly face, interviewing them about hot topics in the world of localization.Published quarterly, our newsletter aims to be a forum in which Adaptive’s network of business owners, leaders and professionals can share their expertise to discuss a range of issues and hot topics.Looking for your next career move? Perhaps you didn’t know you were, but you’ve now thought about it. Well, we’ve even included a handy selection of our top jobs in the newsletter – a quick roundup of what we think are some amazing opportunities. Of course, we have more on our website – just head to the jobs page here.With all of this – it’s not all-serious stuff. We like to throw in something a bit light-hearted, too – ranging from strange jobs we’ve stumbled upon, including Emoji Translator and ‘Chaos Creator’ weird, right? And more, these publications will give you your quarterly fill.So click here to check out the latest edition!We hope you enjoy the articles, interviews and information – and please let us know of any ideas you would like to submit for the next LocRecruiter edition.