When selecting a translation service, you need to ask yourself an important question: what elements are vital to ensure a high-quality deliverable that meets the needs of your organization?
There might be several critical factors required to meet your organization’s objective, but quality is always one of them. However, not all organizations have an available reviewer proficient in the target language.
In that sense, the ISO 17100:2015 certification is a valuable tool to determine quality and suitability in translation services.
The ISO 17100:2015 standard is specific to the translation industry, and it certifies that the services provided fulfill certain basic requirements, namely: the qualifications of translators, editors and proofreaders, resource management and availability, and data and confidentiality protection, among other essential aspects of the professional translation process.
Some of the requirements in order to secure this standard are:
- Clear roles in the team: translators, editors, subject matter experts and proofreaders, as well as Project Managers.
- Documented processes to ensure that the translation and Project Management staff has all the required capabilities and qualifications.
- Proficient translators in both the source and target languages, as well as in research and processing, and the cultural, technical and contextual domains.
- The infrastructure to ensure availability of technical teams to carry out the projects, and to manage, store, recover, file and destroy all data and relevant documents in a safe and confidential manner.
At Idea Translations, our core translation process includes a review by a professional translator native on the target language, a bilingual independent review done by an editor, a subject matter review, a proofreading stage and a final verification.
The ISO 17100 certification adds value to our clients since we can attest that all of our linguists have the necessary professional qualifications to complete the work and that there is a structured process centered on quality and subject matter expertise. Additionally, the process includes a client review step to make sure we have taken into account their preferences, such as unique terminology or an organization’s style guide. This way, the final product is not only accurate, but it maintains the client’s unique voice.
For us, translation is not just taking content in one language and delivering it in another. Our approach is holistic and solutions-oriented. We see translation as a necessary piece to enter into a new market, get your product approved in a different country or to provide communities that don’t speak the language access to critical information.
We believe that language should not be a barrier, but a gate into wonderful new opportunities, cultures and experiences.
