Tag: interpretation

Are You Cut Out to Work as an Interpreter? Six key traits of professional interpreters

Posted on by drawingboarddesign in Field, Interpretation, Professionalism

Are you a bilingual or multi-lingual individual thinking about putting your language knowledge to work? Perhaps already working as a translator and looking to branch out? Interpretation is rewarding work, but knowledge of languages is only a starting point for success in the field. Do you have several of these six traits of successful and fulfilled professional interpreters? You might be cut out for a career as an interpreter!

Good listener. The ability to speak fluently in multiple languages is, of course key, but more than half your time as an interpreter will actually be spent listening! Interpretation requires focused, attentive listening, often for long periods of time. Your client is depending on you to capture every detail and aspect of an interaction and to convey their meaning accurately, so it is important to be fully attentive to all parties. In addition to the very focused listening required while interpreting in the moment, at the outset of any job you will have to listen to your clients and make sure that you have a clear understanding of their needs and of the situation that you will be entering as their interpreter.

Ability to multitask. Interpretation requires a very particular type of fast paced, mental multi-tasking. Interpreters have to watch and listen (often while taking notes), absorb the meaning of what was said, as well as non-verbal cues, mentally translate the meaning, and then speak clearly and fluently. It is a rapid process, and the interpreter must also be able to easily alternate between translating and speaking both languages.

People skills. While translation can be a solitary, cerebral occupation, interpretation is a highly person-oriented occupation. Good interpreters are not just attentive, focused listeners, they are compassionate and patient listeners. They have the ability to connect with people and establish trust, sometimes under very difficult circumstances such as a medical appointment or court appearance.

Cultural competence. Communication involves much more than spoken language. Non-verbal cues inflect the meaning of the words that we choose, and make up a significant component of how we make ourselves understood. Like words, expressions and gestures vary across culture. An interpreter should have sufficient fluency in both cultures to interpret non-verbal cues. Understanding of cultural norms and expectations is also important to understanding both parties and helping to navigate misunderstandings that go beyond language.

Specialty knowledge (or the motivation to acquire it). Interpreters work in many different areas of specialization, such as community, medical, court or conference interpretation. Each of these areas has its own sets of technical vocabulary and cultural norms that must be mastered not just in one language, but both. If you have existing knowledge of the court system, for example, this is an advantage to becoming a court interpreter. What is more important, however, is the motivation and passion to do the additional learning required to master a specialization.

Emotional resilience. As an interpreter, you will be doing highly demanding work. This is what makes interpretation rewarding. But, you may also find yourself in emotionally difficult situations, such as having to interpret bad news from a doctor, or supporting someone in the legal system, or in the middle of a conflict. While good interpreters are compassionate, they must also be able to maintain boundaries. It is important to be able to sustain your own mental and emotional well-being, as well as your professionalism and dedication.

Does this sound like you? Do the challenges and demands of interpretation sound engaging and rewarding? Then interpretation might be your best next career move!

Making Quality Interpreting Services Easier to Access: Interview with Mayagwe Director Bill Dodd

Posted on by drawingboarddesign in Industry Tips, Technology

This month, ATIA sat down with Mayagwe founder and director Bill Dodd to talk about how the platform is revolutionizing access to professional interpreters. With numerous ATIA members represented on the tech platform, Mayagwe represents the way of the future for clients to connect with certified interpreters and procure their services.

What is Mayagwe?

mayagwe logoMayagwe is a software application that connects clients who need the assistance of language interpreters and professional language interpreters looking for job opportunities. Currently the way clients access interpreters is that they have to contact a company and submit a form. They get an invoice and have to pay a company who then has to issue payment to an interpreter. Mayagwe eliminates the middle person and clients are connected directly to interpreters who are independent contractors. It’s like the difference between taxi cab companies and Uber. The utilization of technology makes the system much faster, more efficient, and more cost effective. There is a reason “Uber” or similar apps like “Skip the Dishes” are is taking over from the traditional methods of doing business. Mayagwe is doing the same for the interpretation sector.

What does the name mean?

Mayagwe is an Ojibway word meaning “he or she who speaks a strange language”. Mayagwe is a Canadian company and nothing could be more Canadian than honouring an Indigenous language in the name of a language company.

Where did you get the idea for starting this organization?

When I was a member of the Calgary Police Service, an incident occurred where investigators required a language interpreter ASAP. A person had been detained in relation to a bomb threat at the Calgary Provincial Court building. As a result, the court building and surrounding area had to be evacuated, displacing thousands of people and tying up multiple police resources for hours. It took over 5 hours to find an interpreter so that the situation could be resolved. This exposed the inadequacies of the current methods of finding qualified language interpreters. The Chief of Police at the time tasked me with finding a solution to this issue. As a result, I discovered that the Calgary Police Service was not unique. No other police service or other organization in the country had an effective system for accessing in-person language interpreters. As a result of funding and contributions from the Calgary Police Service, Alberta Health Services, and the Calgary Foundation, Mayagwe was born and a custom-made software application developed in Calgary was created to address this need. What use to take multiple hours (like the court house incident), or sometimes even multiple days, can now be handled in literally minutes.

Creating a system that makes using interpreters was not easy. Many problems needed to be overcome, including issues around what constituted a “professional” interpreter, favoritism, a lack of transparency, a lack of cooperation between agencies competing for government funding, siloing of resources, exploitation of new immigrants or as some immigrant service agencies like to call them “volunteers” etc. Mayagwe addresses these issues by creating a democratic and transparent system that protects the needs of clients requiring language assistance and the needs of interpreters providing that assistance. Language assistance is a professional service where people need to be treated fairly.

There was also the issue of out sourcing of  interpretation services, meaning either over the phone interpretation or in-person interpretation. Because of the arduous old process of contacting many “interpreter providers” who don’t cooperate with each other and don’t share their “interpreter lists,”  big clients such as Alberta Health Services began to outsource thousands and thousands of tax payer dollars to foreign companies – money and resources that could instead stay here in Alberta and support the local economy while creating good paying jobs. Everyone who uses an interpreter agrees that in-person interpretation provides better outcomes and the research also support it. The justification for over the phone is that it is more convenient and less expensive. Although there are times where over the phone may be a better option, with the Mayagwe system, we are demonstrating that using an in-person interpreter can be just as easy, and as cost effective as other options.

What’s your background?

My background is that I was born and raised in Calgary and am a unilingual English speaker so it may seem odd for me to be working in a company that is all about other languages, but I don’t think it is at all. I became a police officer because I wanted to help people and make a difference in my community and I truly admire those who can communicate in multiple languages. (they are so much smarter than me). Mayagwe is a way to continue to contribute to my community.

How did you get into this?

During my work I saw that language can be a huge barrier to providing critical services to under-served Calgarians. I met many people in our community who also wanted to help and who had the languages skills that could make a difference. One powerful example of this occurred a few years ago. The Calgary Police Service has a team who assist victims of crime called the Victims Assistance Unit or VAU. The members of this team contact Calgarians who have been the victim of a crime and offers assistance. This team does absolutely fantastic work on a daily basis and one of the people who has worked on this team is a wonderful woman named Amina.  Not only is Amina a terrifically smart and empathetic person, she also has the added ability to converse in multiple languages. A few years ago a situation occurred  where a woman who had recently come to Canada was the victim of a terrible crime, and the police were needed. The officers who attended to her did their best,  got her to place of safety and filed a report. By chance Amina was the person from VAU who got the file and contacted this women offering assistance. During the conversation Amina recognized that she spoke the same language as the victim. Once they could fully converse it became clear that so much more had happened than the initial investigating officers had been able to determine. The victim was able to tell her whole story which was so much more complicated. As a result, more appropriate and much more serious criminal charges could be brought against the perpetrator of this crime. Amina was able to help this person navigate an unfamiliar system, help with her family situation, her immigration situation and so forth. It is a long story and brings people to tears when they hear it, but it is no exaggeration to say that Amina’s intervention and her ability to communicate fully with the victim literally saved this person’s life (the victim’s own words). Unfortunately many people still fall through the cracks and even though there are many examples like this, leadership of critical social serving agencies such as the police still do not provide their front line workers with the tools they need to provide the best service possible. We hope to help fill some of those cracks.

What are the principles and vision behind what you do?

Mayagwe is a nonprofit whose vision is to make language assistance as efficient as possible to anyone who requires it, create good paying local jobs and contribute to a better quality of life for everyone in our community.

What are the benefits for participating Interpreters?

  • Provides fairness and equal access to job opportunities.
  • Provides employment opportunities with maximum flexibility for participation.
  • Provides business experience as independent business operators.
  • Provides connection and understanding of social serving agencies, reducing any stigma which may exist about the roles of these agencies.
  • Eliminates favoritism or cronyism in offering employment opportunities to a select few.
  • Recognizes interpretation as a professional service.
  • Quick direct payment for service.

What are the benefits for Client Agencies?

  • Direct access to trained interpreters.
  • Maximum flexibility in scheduling, from immediate requests to long-term scheduling.
  • Ability to set criteria for interpreters unique to each organization.
  • Ability to customize interpreter requests.
  • Assurance of accreditation standards.
  • Cost-effectiveness by only paying for services provided.
  • Providing connection to people in the communities they serve.
  • Reducing risk of miscommunication and improper service.
  • Demonstrating commitment to inclusiveness.

What is a good story you have heard in relation to Mayagwe that you would like to share?

A good story about Mayagwe is that more and more people are recognizing the positive social impact this can have in our communities. A good example is the Canadian Western Bank who has recognized the positive social impact this will have in communities in which it operates and has provided generous financial assistance to help expand this service to Edmonton.

What is the future of Mayagwe?

The Mayagwe application is unique in Canada and plans to expand this service to social serving agencies across the country.

What’s one thing you would like interpreters to know?

If you are providing Interpretation services, you need to make certain that they are covered by professional liability insurance. If you are being contracted through a company or social serving agency to do this work, ask them to provide you the details of that insurance policy such as: the policy details, policy number, coverage amount etc. If you do not, you are potentially exposing yourself to personal risk of a lawsuit.

To join the database of interpreters on the Mayagwe system, just go to www.mayagwe.com and follow the easy steps detailed there

Strength in Numbers: How joining a professional association benefits you, your clients and your field

Posted on by drawingboarddesign in Field, Professionalism

?Are you looking to establish and build a new career as a translator or interpreter or are you an already an established professional looking for ways to continue your professional development? Interested in becoming more actively engaged in your chosen field of translation or interpretation? Membership in a professional association has numerous benefits for both early career translators and interpreters and more seasoned professionals.

Some of the benefits of joining a professional association are practical and tangible. A professional association is a trusted source for clients seeking translators and interpreters, so being included in a respected association’s directory will make it easy for prospective clients to find you. Membership, whether at an associate or certified level, also designates you as a professional in your field. This indicates to prospective clients and employers that you have a certain level of experience and training. ATIA members undergo an application and certification process tailored to their specialization. There are five categories of ATIA membership: Translator, Court Interpreter, Community Interpreter, Medical Interpreter, and Conference Interpreter, and members may attain certification in multiple categories.

In addition to standardized membership requirements and certification, many associations offer professional development opportunities and resources such as seminars and webinars. ATIA has offered webinars in topics ranging from exam preparation, to how to freelance as a translator, to elevating your English grammar skills, as well as mini-courses on different specializations within the field of translation and interpretation.

Other advantages of involvement in a professional association, such as collegiality and a deeper engagement with your chosen field, are less tangible but are still important to developing a successful and rewarding career. For younger professionals, joining an organization opens opportunities to network, learn their new industry, and access a degree of professionalization while building early career experience. It is often recent graduates and new professionals who are most likely to seek and utilize networking opportunities, but experienced professionals should not underestimate the importance of collegiality and connection. Participating in a professional association is a way to maintain and develop professional connections and to stay in touch with industry developments and news. Ongoing learning and active engagement keep skills fresh and careers dynamic.

? Professional organizations, whether at a provincial level such as the ATIA or national, contribute to the health and strength of the entire professional field. By developing and implementing standardized certifications and Codes of Ethics, professional associations maintain the quality and consistency of the field, protecting the interests of both clients and providers. Standardized certification and regulation ensures that the expertise that translators and interpreters work hard to attain is recognized as a profession. It also ensures that clients and employers are able to connect with consistent, quality services. A professional association’s strength is in its members, though! Each individual who joins a professional association contributes to making that association a robust and active presence in its field.

The Association of Translators and Interpreters of Alberta is itself a member of the Canadian Translators, Terminologists and Interpreters Council (CTTIC), and through the CTTIC is affiliated with the International Federation of Translators (FIT). To find out more about the ATIA membership categories and the membership process, check out the Membership page.   ?

Practicing Customer Service as a Freelancer: Nine tips for translators and interpreters

Posted on by drawingboarddesign in Industry Tips

Providing customer service based on communication, responsiveness and integrity is essential to a successful freelance career. When seeking new clients, customer service is what sets one certified expert apart from another. It is also what keeps clients returning. But what does good customer service actually look like for a translator or interpreter? We have nine tips for stepping up your customer service game from first contact with a client to end of contract:

  • Invest in a good website. Most clients will seek you out online. Make sure that your online presence is easy to navigate and clearly provides all the information that a potential client will need to understand your services and recognize your value. Make it easy for them to contact you.
  • Practice good email and phone etiquette. Customer service for freelancers is all about building relationships, so be friendly, positive and professional. Use salutations in your emails. Smile on the phone and say thank you.
  • Listen to your clients. The goal of good customer service is a satisfied client – or better yet, a client who has been truly wowed. To satisfy a client you must understand what they want and deliver the product or service. To wow a client you must understand their values and priorities and be able to deliver an experience beyond their expectations.
  • Use your expertise, with tact. The customer is always right, except that they have come to you as an expert. You have the experience and knowledge to avoid potential issues in a project, so don’t be afraid to share your expert perspective on a course of action.
  • Set clear expectations from the start. Good customer service requires flexibility, but professionalism includes setting limits that reflect the value of your time and expertise. Agree upon clear and realistic deliverables and deadlines from the outset of a project. Include limitations such as how many revisions you will provide before incurring additional charges.
  • You and the client are a team. Even with the best laid agreement, clients will occasionally make unexpected requests and projects will hit setbacks. Remember that the client and you are on the same team and respond with flexibility and a collaborative attitude.
  • Focus on solutions, not blame. When problems arise or you receive critical feedback from a client, focus on generating solutions rather than assigning (or dodging) blame.
  • Be able to apologize. Owning up to your mistakes with humility demonstrates integrity.
  • Follow up. After completing a contract, follow up with the client to thank them for their business and ensure they are satisfied.

Success as a freelance professional depends on good client relationships and a positive reputation. This is especially the case in professions such as translation and interpretation, where the freelancer is involved in something as intimate and nuanced as communicating on behalf of a client. Consistent customer service practices demonstrate professionalism, dedication and integrity, all of which are qualities that will bring both new and repeat clients.

The Art of Exceeding Client Expectations: Why customer service should matter to freelancers

Posted on by drawingboarddesign in Industry Tips

As a freelance translator or interpreter, you’ve dedicated years to learning your craft, building a portfolio and mastering certifications. You may want to believe that your specialized knowledge and experience will speak for (and sell) itself, but succeeding as a freelancer takes a whole host of other skills. A freelancer has to be his or her own sales and marketing team, accountant, office administrator and maybe even web designer. Among all the roles that freelancers play, it is easy to see why the importance of customer service is sometimes overlooked. It should not be that way, though. Effort put into customer service saves double that effort in seeking and securing clients.

What is customer service? It is about more than fielding complaints and practicing good email etiquette. Customer service is the art of exceeding customer expectations. Success as a freelance translator or interpreter relies on being able to build strong relationships with clients. You are not just a representative of a business, you are your business. Customer service based on communication, responsiveness, and integrity will help secure new clients, build long term relationships with existing clients, and will contribute to a positive reputation.

A freelance professional who communicates clearly is easy to hire and easy to work with. You are the expert, so give potential and new clients the information they need to understand your services and value as an expert. Good communication builds rapport and connection, setting you apart from the competition. You are not just trying to secure a contract. You are establishing a relationship that may lead to repeat contracts and recommendations. Good communication is also essential to ensuring that you deliver the service that the client expects, or better yet, a service that fulfills their needs and priorities so well that it exceeds their expectations. Ultimately, this is what generates repeat business and good word-of-mouth.

Clients will also return to a freelancer who demonstrates that they are responsive to the client’s needs. This may mean being flexible to changes of direction and being open to unique requests. It also means being able to resolve problems and rectify mistakes with a positive, solution oriented attitude. Flexibility and responsiveness to requests will garner new clients. To existing clients, it will demonstrate your ongoing dedication to their satisfaction. Being able to effectively respond to problems and mistakes, which will inevitably occur, demonstrates reliability and integrity.

Like most relationships, the most successful, long term client-freelancer relationships are based on trust. Integrity is fundamental to establishing and maintaining this trust. This is can be as simple as delivering work by agreed upon deadlines, or as challenging as resolving conflicts or rectifying mistakes in a fair and constructive manner. Becoming a trusted name in your industry will also generate new business.

A strong portfolio and certifications are fundamental to establishing a career as a translator or interpreter. Customer service, however, is what will set a career as a freelancer into motion.  Prioritizing customer service from first contact with a potential client and throughout the entire project pays off in a positive professional reputation, long-term, repeat clients, and new business.