This chapter examines the strategic position of localization management in high-tech software and Web companies through the phases of requirements development, requirements management, product development and portfolio management. It begins by examining the three functional units that formulate the strategies and planning required to transform an idea into a successful localized product: International Product Management, Localization Project Management and Portfolio Management. Next, it discusses the product development process and participants. It then addresses the critical importance of requirements and stakeholder identification, and examines in detail the role of the Business Requirements Document (BRD), Market Requirements Document (MRD) and Product Requirements Document (PRD) in the product development process. Finally, the chapter situates localization management in the context of portfolio management and concludes by discussing implications for practitioners, students and educators.
Most Language Service Providers (LSPs) have implemented some form of project management system. As the LSP grows and diversifies, the system will initially accommodate increased demands, but continued growth will eventually strain the system to its breaking point. At this critical juncture and under tremendous pressure, the LSP must decide whether to modify the existing system, build a new system or consider buying an off-the-shelf solution. A better approach to making such an important decision is to proactively review the project management system periodically, as part of the organization’s ongoing evaluation of its processes and procedures. This chapter provides a methodology and specific tools to facilitate this evaluation and improve the LSP’s decision-making process.
The Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide), a comprehensive project management standard published by the Project Management Institute (PMI®), provides a generic project management framework that can be applied to any industry. This chapter focuses on Project Integration Management, one of the nine knowledge areas of the PMBOK® Guide, to provide an overview of the application of PMI project management processes to translation and localization projects. Furthermore, this chapter explains PMI terminology and processes, and provides best-practice guidelines with examples and illustrations. Adhering to project management standards can help translation and localization project managers to build and expand upon their current set of skills and to achieve predictable and repeatable results in their professional practice.
Managing project scope is essential to ensure that the project includes all the work required, and only the work required, in order to meet the project objectives. Requirements collection and scope definition are the foundations of scope management. Requirements specify the project’s product or service and shape the project scope, which in turn defines what must be done to fulfill the requirements and complete the project according to the specification. This chapter discusses scope management in localization projects. Drawing on the Project Management Institute’s A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide), the chapter examines the five processes that comprise scope management: requirements collection, scope definition, work breakdown structure creation, scope verification and scope control. It then discusses the application of these processes in localization projects, focusing primarily on requirements collection.
In recognition of the importance of time as a project constraint, this chapter discusses time and schedule management in translation and localization projects. It begins by considering the schedule as an explanatory and forecasting model of project execution. The chapter then discusses the standard time management framework provided by The Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide), examining each of the constituent processes in turn and illustrating their application in a hypothetical translation project.
This chapter discusses the challenges of customer-focused quality management in outsourced translation and localization projects. Current quality management theory, which frames quality in terms of customer satisfaction, suggests that quality cannot be defined, but rather must be modeled based on customer requirements. However, most customers cannot state their quality requirements and no consensus currently exists as to the operational definition of quality as a variable in translation and localization projects. These challenges are exacerbated by traditional project management approaches, in which customer quality assessment is undertaken in the final stages of a project based on preferences (unidentified needs) rather than requirements (identified needs). Agile project management methodologies offer effective strategies for overcoming these problems, but require significant changes in approaches to project management and to client review, as well as a greater degree of client involvement.
Successful communication requires that project managers be aware of and address two major factors: personality (value orientations, mental models, thought patterns, and behaviors of an individual) and culture (attitudes, beliefs and behaviors of a group). Culture is an especially critical factor in translation and localization project management, which by nature involve the collaboration of people from different cultures. We first discuss the identification and classification of personality types using the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), and then examine some of the ways in which personality shapes perceptions of time, conflict resolution and problem solving. Secondly, we explore culture, drawing on Hall’s notion of contexting and Hofstede’s theory of cultural dimensions, and discuss the impact of culture on perceptions of time, decision-making and business communication. We conclude by proposing practical strategies for addressing personality and cultural differences in a project communication plan.
Risk management, a set of processes designed to maximize opportunities and minimize threats, is essential to successful project management. This chapter discusses risk management in the context of outsourced localization projects. It begins by proposing a localization Risk Breakdown Structure (RBS) to categorize recurring localization project risks. It then discusses the Project Management Institute’s (PMI) standardized risk management framework, which involves proactive and systematic risk identification and prioritization, response planning and monitoring. The chapter concludes by examining the application of the PMI risk management framework to localization projects and by proposing responses to common localization risks.
Many corporations do not understand the relationships and dependencies between localization, internationalization, and globalization. This state of affairs presents challenges and opportunities for localization project managers (LPMs). LPMs are well positioned to improve the integration of localization, internationalization, and globalization, enhancing their career prospects in the process, but doing so requires knowledge and skills that fall outside project management per se and that have not traditionally been addressed by translation, project management or business training programs or academic curricula. This chapter addresses this gap by examining knowledge and skills that LPMs need and strategies they can employ to improve the integration of localization, internationalization, and globalization and lead the corporation closer to global maturity.
The process of learning is fundamental to project success. In translation projects, learning is not confined to aspects of the text being translated (such as the domain, topic and text type) or to pragmatic text-related variables (such as the purpose of the source and target texts and the target audience). It extends to the project itself, encompassing the processes and tools to be used, the expectations held by various stakeholders, as well as the requirements that the project must fulfill. Empirical research shows that project managers can increase the likelihood of project success by managing the learning process for their teams and for themselves. This chapter proposes the use of the pedagogical technique of scaffolding as one way to manage learning in project teams.
Global virtual teams are project teams whose members do not work together at the same physical location, but who collaborate across geographic, national, temporal, cultural and/or linguistic boundaries. Over the past decade, most organizations have begun using global virtual teams; they are particularly prevalent in the translation industry. Due to the distance, language and time differences that typically separate their members, global virtual teams raise a number of unique challenges for translation and localization project managers. These challenges are compounded by cultural differences that impact communication, decision-making, mutual trust and common vision. The first part of this chapter describes strategies to best deal with the above challenges. Additionally, since communications technologies are important enablers of virtual teams, the second part discusses the applicability of those technologies in the context of the translation industry.
Localization success depends largely on activities which precede localization, performed by groups outside the localization function that may be unaware of their role as stakeholders in the localization process or may even refuse to acknowledge that role. Consequently, localization project managers must manage relationships with stakeholders in other functional units (and even in other organizations) to obtain what they require to ensure successful project outcomes. Thus, this chapter examines the management of outsourced localization projects through the lens of relationship management. It contrasts the variables that shape localization project management in client organizations versus vendor organizations, proposes relationship management strategies for addressing these variables, and concludes by examining a number of tools that can be used to facilitate relationship management in outsourced localization project management.
This chapter describes the unique challenges posed by game localization projects. It begins by examining the various activities that comprise a typical multi-platform game localization project. It then situates the localization function in a game publishing corporation and discusses the composition of game localization teams, as well as the respective roles and responsibilities of the team members in a typical game localization project. Next, it examines the relationship between the development and localization functions and discusses the two main approaches to game localization today, namely post-release and simultaneous shipment (“simship”) projects. Finally, it explores four project management processes that are especially critical to the successful management of game localization projects: communications management, scope management, risk management and change management.
The community or “crowdsourcing” project model presents opportunities for organizations to translate content that might otherwise not be financially feasible to offer in other languages. In this chapter, the authors find that relying on the voluntary labor of the community raises a variety of traditional and new project management issues. They describe the challenges faced and solutions chosen by four commercial pioneers of community translation: Facebook, Microsoft, Plaxo and Sun Microsystems. Each of these companies recognized the existence of a community willing to volunteer time and expertise in return for some benefit other than direct compensation. Then, the companies actively invested in developing the community, refining processes, incorporating technology, and managing the work.
This chapter examines the strategic position of localization management in high-tech software and Web companies through the phases of requirements development, requirements management, product development and portfolio management. It begins by examining the three functional units that formulate the strategies and planning required to transform an idea into a successful localized product: International Product Management, Localization Project Management and Portfolio Management. Next, it discusses the product development process and participants. It then addresses the critical importance of requirements and stakeholder identification, and examines in detail the role of the Business Requirements Document (BRD), Market Requirements Document (MRD) and Product Requirements Document (PRD) in the product development process. Finally, the chapter situates localization management in the context of portfolio management and concludes by discussing implications for practitioners, students and educators.
Most Language Service Providers (LSPs) have implemented some form of project management system. As the LSP grows and diversifies, the system will initially accommodate increased demands, but continued growth will eventually strain the system to its breaking point. At this critical juncture and under tremendous pressure, the LSP must decide whether to modify the existing system, build a new system or consider buying an off-the-shelf solution. A better approach to making such an important decision is to proactively review the project management system periodically, as part of the organization’s ongoing evaluation of its processes and procedures. This chapter provides a methodology and specific tools to facilitate this evaluation and improve the LSP’s decision-making process.
The Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide), a comprehensive project management standard published by the Project Management Institute (PMI®), provides a generic project management framework that can be applied to any industry. This chapter focuses on Project Integration Management, one of the nine knowledge areas of the PMBOK® Guide, to provide an overview of the application of PMI project management processes to translation and localization projects. Furthermore, this chapter explains PMI terminology and processes, and provides best-practice guidelines with examples and illustrations. Adhering to project management standards can help translation and localization project managers to build and expand upon their current set of skills and to achieve predictable and repeatable results in their professional practice.
Managing project scope is essential to ensure that the project includes all the work required, and only the work required, in order to meet the project objectives. Requirements collection and scope definition are the foundations of scope management. Requirements specify the project’s product or service and shape the project scope, which in turn defines what must be done to fulfill the requirements and complete the project according to the specification. This chapter discusses scope management in localization projects. Drawing on the Project Management Institute’s A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide), the chapter examines the five processes that comprise scope management: requirements collection, scope definition, work breakdown structure creation, scope verification and scope control. It then discusses the application of these processes in localization projects, focusing primarily on requirements collection.
In recognition of the importance of time as a project constraint, this chapter discusses time and schedule management in translation and localization projects. It begins by considering the schedule as an explanatory and forecasting model of project execution. The chapter then discusses the standard time management framework provided by The Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide), examining each of the constituent processes in turn and illustrating their application in a hypothetical translation project.
This chapter discusses the challenges of customer-focused quality management in outsourced translation and localization projects. Current quality management theory, which frames quality in terms of customer satisfaction, suggests that quality cannot be defined, but rather must be modeled based on customer requirements. However, most customers cannot state their quality requirements and no consensus currently exists as to the operational definition of quality as a variable in translation and localization projects. These challenges are exacerbated by traditional project management approaches, in which customer quality assessment is undertaken in the final stages of a project based on preferences (unidentified needs) rather than requirements (identified needs). Agile project management methodologies offer effective strategies for overcoming these problems, but require significant changes in approaches to project management and to client review, as well as a greater degree of client involvement.
Successful communication requires that project managers be aware of and address two major factors: personality (value orientations, mental models, thought patterns, and behaviors of an individual) and culture (attitudes, beliefs and behaviors of a group). Culture is an especially critical factor in translation and localization project management, which by nature involve the collaboration of people from different cultures. We first discuss the identification and classification of personality types using the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), and then examine some of the ways in which personality shapes perceptions of time, conflict resolution and problem solving. Secondly, we explore culture, drawing on Hall’s notion of contexting and Hofstede’s theory of cultural dimensions, and discuss the impact of culture on perceptions of time, decision-making and business communication. We conclude by proposing practical strategies for addressing personality and cultural differences in a project communication plan.
Risk management, a set of processes designed to maximize opportunities and minimize threats, is essential to successful project management. This chapter discusses risk management in the context of outsourced localization projects. It begins by proposing a localization Risk Breakdown Structure (RBS) to categorize recurring localization project risks. It then discusses the Project Management Institute’s (PMI) standardized risk management framework, which involves proactive and systematic risk identification and prioritization, response planning and monitoring. The chapter concludes by examining the application of the PMI risk management framework to localization projects and by proposing responses to common localization risks.
Many corporations do not understand the relationships and dependencies between localization, internationalization, and globalization. This state of affairs presents challenges and opportunities for localization project managers (LPMs). LPMs are well positioned to improve the integration of localization, internationalization, and globalization, enhancing their career prospects in the process, but doing so requires knowledge and skills that fall outside project management per se and that have not traditionally been addressed by translation, project management or business training programs or academic curricula. This chapter addresses this gap by examining knowledge and skills that LPMs need and strategies they can employ to improve the integration of localization, internationalization, and globalization and lead the corporation closer to global maturity.
The process of learning is fundamental to project success. In translation projects, learning is not confined to aspects of the text being translated (such as the domain, topic and text type) or to pragmatic text-related variables (such as the purpose of the source and target texts and the target audience). It extends to the project itself, encompassing the processes and tools to be used, the expectations held by various stakeholders, as well as the requirements that the project must fulfill. Empirical research shows that project managers can increase the likelihood of project success by managing the learning process for their teams and for themselves. This chapter proposes the use of the pedagogical technique of scaffolding as one way to manage learning in project teams.
Global virtual teams are project teams whose members do not work together at the same physical location, but who collaborate across geographic, national, temporal, cultural and/or linguistic boundaries. Over the past decade, most organizations have begun using global virtual teams; they are particularly prevalent in the translation industry. Due to the distance, language and time differences that typically separate their members, global virtual teams raise a number of unique challenges for translation and localization project managers. These challenges are compounded by cultural differences that impact communication, decision-making, mutual trust and common vision. The first part of this chapter describes strategies to best deal with the above challenges. Additionally, since communications technologies are important enablers of virtual teams, the second part discusses the applicability of those technologies in the context of the translation industry.
Localization success depends largely on activities which precede localization, performed by groups outside the localization function that may be unaware of their role as stakeholders in the localization process or may even refuse to acknowledge that role. Consequently, localization project managers must manage relationships with stakeholders in other functional units (and even in other organizations) to obtain what they require to ensure successful project outcomes. Thus, this chapter examines the management of outsourced localization projects through the lens of relationship management. It contrasts the variables that shape localization project management in client organizations versus vendor organizations, proposes relationship management strategies for addressing these variables, and concludes by examining a number of tools that can be used to facilitate relationship management in outsourced localization project management.
This chapter describes the unique challenges posed by game localization projects. It begins by examining the various activities that comprise a typical multi-platform game localization project. It then situates the localization function in a game publishing corporation and discusses the composition of game localization teams, as well as the respective roles and responsibilities of the team members in a typical game localization project. Next, it examines the relationship between the development and localization functions and discusses the two main approaches to game localization today, namely post-release and simultaneous shipment (“simship”) projects. Finally, it explores four project management processes that are especially critical to the successful management of game localization projects: communications management, scope management, risk management and change management.
The community or “crowdsourcing” project model presents opportunities for organizations to translate content that might otherwise not be financially feasible to offer in other languages. In this chapter, the authors find that relying on the voluntary labor of the community raises a variety of traditional and new project management issues. They describe the challenges faced and solutions chosen by four commercial pioneers of community translation: Facebook, Microsoft, Plaxo and Sun Microsystems. Each of these companies recognized the existence of a community willing to volunteer time and expertise in return for some benefit other than direct compensation. Then, the companies actively invested in developing the community, refining processes, incorporating technology, and managing the work.