AI isn’t just changing tools, it’s changing expectations
Three years into working with AI in localization, I’ve seen the pressure build: automate faster, scale more, do it now.
But the real challenge isn’t the tech itself. It’s the gap between hype and reality , and what happens when teams are expected to act like everything’s already working.
In this post, I break down five common challenges that keep showing up, and what we can actually do about them.
Words have the power to shape perceptions and influence actions, which is why reframing is such a powerful tool. In localization, we can reframe our role from simply translating to driving alignment across the company. By ensuring content is consistent, culturally relevant, and strategically aligned with business goals, localization professionals play a key role in helping businesses grow globally. This post explores how we create that alignment and why our work is much more than just translation.
Choosing between a single-vendor or multi-vendor localization model is not only about price. The real difference shows up in the day-to-day metrics: turnaround time, quality stability, cost control, and how much coordination your teams need to do. In this post, I walk through the core metrics that tend to improve with a single-vendor setup, and how they can help you understand which model fits your localization strategy right now
Even when localization teams aren’t directly affected by a company reorg, everything around them can change fast sponsors move, teams merge, budgets shift.
That’s when weak governance shows its cracks.
This post explores how strong localization governance keeps programs stable, visible, and credible no matter how often the org chart moves.
Over the years, I’ve noticed that localization buyers, like the emotions in Inside Out, are often driven by one dominant need. Some are in survival mode, juggling too much. Others are just getting started and need guidance. Some care about speed, others about cost, and some are laser-focused on how things feel in-market.
Most localization discussions stop at per-word rates. However, what appears inexpensive on paper can often turn into costly delays, rework, and frustrated teams.
Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) provides a more comprehensive view, one that encompasses engineering fixes, QA cycles, support tickets, and brand impact.
When procurement and leadership focus only on price, localization becomes a cost center. When they consider TCO, it becomes a key driver of quality and efficiency. And this post explains how to approach that
Many teams treat localization vendors as interchangeable compare rates, sign the contract, move on. But every switch comes with invisible costs: lost context, quality dips, and team fatigue. In this latest post, I unpack what really happens behind a vendor change ( and how to prepare for it like a continuity project, not a quick fix)
Localization teams collect tons of data, edit distance, LQA errors, fuzzy matches, deadlines met, but too often, that data doesn’t speak the language of business. This post explains how to change that. By linking each localization metric to one of the classic project management levers, quality, time, or cost, and showing its real-world impact, we can turn linguistic KPIs into insights that leaders understand, value, and act on.
Let’s be honest. Our industry has not done a great job explaining the cost behind a good translation. What does the translation cost? Is it by word, per page, per type of document? We've been opaque for years about this topic. There are many reasons behind the cost of translation. This post will help you understand what you should take into consideration when purchasing a localization job.
“Welcome to my blog. The space where I document my passion about Localization, Project Management and Leadership”
"In my latest post, I share key takeaways from Good Strategy/Bad Strategy by Richard Rumelt. The book reveals what makes a strategy effective; clear diagnosis, guiding policy, and coherent actions, while exposing the pitfalls of bad strategy like vague goals and buzzwords.
A summary of my reding during 2023!
The book explores the differences between introversion, extroversion, and the Extroverted Ideal. It also encourages introverts to embrace their true nature and unique strengths
This is a tremendously helpful book to learn why some leaders bring out the best in us and make us love our work while others take away our confidence and make us go through life with a sense of sadness.
Productivity books there are many, but I consider this one to be a different book because it doesn't focus on how we can get more done. Instead, it's a framework designed to help us actually create more time in our day for the things that matter to us, whether it's spending time with our family, learning a language, starting a side business, volunteering, blogging, or playing video games🙂
Professionals working in the Localization industry interact with many stakeholders, so I think it is imperative to learn how to ask questions, when to ask them, and why to ask them.
Learning to ask better questions seems to me a very interesting skill to polish because questions help create a partnership, help to align objectives, help to understand what is interesting for the other person.
A question can unite, and a statement can separate.
Questions to unite is a behavior that fits very well with the role we play Localization leader roles worldwide
As our professional and personal lives become more and more digitized, we no longer have traditional body language to help facilitate understanding – and our communication (as well as productivity and morale) is suffering as a result. To reduce friction and banish confusion, we need to establish a universal digital body language based on four core principles:
The culture at Netflix was that of valuing people over process, emphasizing innovation over efficiency, and having few controls, a culture where No Rules Rules
An interesting perspective on military leadership brought to the business world
Extreme Ownership is written by Jocko Willink, a SEAL leader who explains how the lessons he learned in combat are relevant to leaders in any role. The importance of team is emphasized, you are only as good as the men or woman behind you.
This short book is really inspirational. Read it to change your mindset!!
We need to do it all. We can have it all. Can we? really? The reality always hits us at the end of the day. Exhaustion and setbacks are some of the side-effects of going in a million directions at the speed of a snail .... great book; food for thought. Enjoy my summary!
This feels like a pivotal moment. Localization teams are being asked to support more markets, move faster, use AI responsibly, and show impact, not just output. Expectations are higher than ever, but many teams are still trained mainly for execution. We are strong at delivering localization work, yet we often struggle to move from output to outcome and to clearly explain the impact of what we do.