Interview with a Professional Chinese Translator

American Language Services has worked with some of the same language professionals for 10+ years and beyond. Our Project Managers know the strengths of each linguist and place projects with our language experts according to the project's specifications. Although we know our translators and interpreters very well, we realize that our clients may not. Because of this, we've decided to share some of our linguist's insight with our clients periodically via a short survey they've filled out including their background and overall view of the language industry. Contact our customer service team for any questions you'd like to see answered in the future.

Survey # 1 – Chinese <> English Translator

Q: How long have you been a professional translator?

A: 8 years

Q: What language pairings do you work with?

A: English and Chinese

Q: What type of translation project do you enjoy working on the most and why?

A:

1. Legal—my previous legal education in international law

2. Business—my personal interest

3. Government—my previous employment as a service servant

Q: Do you prefer working alone or with other translators?

A: I prefer working alone.

Q: In your opinion, what is the most challenging aspect of being a translator?

A: I don't envision significant technical problems in translation per se except for the vicissitude of the translation business.

Q: What aspects of translating do you find most rewarding?

A: Being able to bridge the gap between the Chinese and English environments so that clients can have a better sense of the meaning of the original documents.

Q: Many people would say translation is an art form. Would you agree? Why or why not?

A: Partly agree. There can be several equally powerful and adequate versions of translation for the same source texts at the same time and the only question is your discretion.

Q: How would you go about translating creative text like a poem or a song?

A: I don't dabble in translation of high class literature materials.

Q: What do you feel are the biggest misconceptions regarding translation?

A: Translation is a highly professional line of work and simply can't be handled by anyone who happens to know both source and target languages. Some people don't appreciate why poor translation may lead to damages.

Q: If you come across a word or phrase during translation that you are not familiar with, how do you handle those obstacles?

A: I would turn to both online and offline (traditional sources like dictionaries) for help. Sometimes, there is no established or matching translation that can convey the implication of the source texts due to cultural or socioeconomic differences between China and America, you'll have to improvise to the best of your abilities.

Q: What attracted you to working with languages?

A: My personal interest in the English language during my college education and the possibility of working as my own boss conspired to my chosen line of work as a translator.

Q: Any other thoughts you'd like to share?

A: I believe that, despite the inevitable trend of globalization and wage arbitrage, there is always a niche market for high quality translation for companies with a high stake in serious and professional translation.

Keep reading for additional translator surveys to come!

Editing is crucial to the translation process

One very crucial step involved in completing a translation project is the editing process. After a translator completes a translation, the document may be sent to a separate individual for editing. Editing is especially used for documents that need to be “print-ready” at the completion of the project so every step must be taken to ensure a near perfect translation. Editing is normally charged per hour whereas translations are generally charged per word.

The main function of an editor is to fix errors such as spelling, grammar, punctuation, missing text, formatting, and they revise any awkward-sounding translations. The editor does this by checking for accuracy of the translation by comparing source document to target document.

Just as the translator must be a native speaker in the language they are translating into, the editor also must be a native speaker to ensure grammatical or contextual errors are virtually non-existent. In other words, the editor needs to be a native speaker for the same reason the translator does. A good editor must have a keen understanding of grammar, context, writing conventions, cultural diversity, and style of the language he/she is working with.

It is also key for the editor to be an expert in their field. Not only does the editor need to understand the language conventions thoroughly, but he/she also needs to be well-versed and experienced in the subject matter in question. If the editor is editing a medical document, it is absolutely vital that the editor also have a background in the medical field.

Many editors find it helpful to use the Track Changes function in Microsoft Word to assist them in the editing process. Many other software types are used to assist editors in their task, but Track Changes is usually the most widely used among the community because of the simplistic nature of this feature. It allows the editor to make the changes he/she wants by inserting, deleting, or moving text or graphics. You can also change formatting using this feature.


Editing is yet another option the client has at their disposal while submitting a translation request. Review the specifications and requirements of your project and decide if editing is the right option for you.

American Language Services (ALS) is proud to announce its new selection to the Federal General Services Administration (GSA) Schedule.

ALS has been selected to work in the categories of document translation, verbal interpreting, on-site and telephonic, as well as audio/video transcription services. We have received an initial 5 year contract with three 5 year options. After a lengthy, involved approval process, ALS is now part of small select group of language companies to be a part of the GSA. The GSA approval process takes several months to verify that contractors are qualified to sell to the federal government. As you can imagine, the verification process is extremely thorough and intensive. Being a GSA approved company is just another testament to ALS’s already exemplary record involving operating procedures, customer service and overall quality of work.

According to their website, the GSA is an independent agency of the United States Government. The GSA was established in 1949 to help manage and support the basic functioning of federal agencies. The GSA supplies services and communications for U.S. Government offices develops government-wide cost-minimizing policies, and other management tasks. Through these efforts, the GSA can be a very valuable tool in allowing businesses to work with the Federal US government. There are many methods available to businesses who want to sell to the federal government through contracts set-aside for specific categories of small businesses. GSA and the federal government also provide tools to research open business opportunities.

Now that ALS is on the GSA schedule, we have the opportunity to win multiple GSA contracts and work with an even wider array of federal agencies through GSA Schedules. GSA Schedules are open-ended, multiple award contracts that simplify the purchasing process for federal agencies and the businesses on schedule who serve them. ALS also has access to GSA direct training through online training or their mentor-protégé program. Special set-aside opportunities are also available for companies who meet their specific criteria. In our case, ALS qualifies for opportunities available to woman-owned businesses since ALS is WBE certified as well.

Winning a GSA contract requires a good deal of time and energy from the supplier. Before a supplier can submit an application, they must first register and be accepted in the Online Representations and Certifications Applications (ORCA) and Central Contractors Registration (CCR) programs. ALS is registered for both. We’re also required to submit to a past-performance evaluation, wherein our existing customers are contacted and asked to complete an extensive review of our performance. This report compiles the customer reviews into an overall-performance factor used to evaluate the stability and capabilities of our overall company.

The GSA monitors and consistently verifies our operating procedures to ensure high quality service every time. ALS is committed and determined to meet these challenges on a daily basis. We look forward to providing excellent language services and building a long lasting working relationship with the federal government for years to come.

Fast Turnaround for Wells Fargo

Wells Fargo has been a long time client of ALS and contacts us for translation work for various insurance documents on a regular basis. As with most of our client, occasionally an urgent translation is needed and ALS is able to process those expedited requests while still providing excellent quality service. One of Wells Fargo most recent requests is a perfect example of this.  They contacted us with a 6,525 word Englishto Spanish Open Enrollment document they needed turned around in less than 1 business day. The document also needed additional formatting work applied since the document included specific graphs and tables. Although formatting work generally takes more time to complete, ALS was able to turnaround the translation with all necessary formatting in less than 1 business day as requested by the client.  The client expressed their satisfaction with the prompt delivery as well as the overall quality of the translation services.

Wells Fargo is one of our many clients who are generous enough to take the time to let us know we’re doing a good job, which ALS is supremely appreciative. In fact, a representative from Wells Fargo emailed us recently to say the following:

“Thanks so much to [the sales representatives and project manager] who did a magnificent job on these booklet translations just over a week ago. We really did give you guys a deadline and you made it perfectly and with a very accurate representation of our English counterpart booklets.

Just wanted to take a minute out to say thanks and that we will no doubt call you guys again when the need arises. We’ll also be able to talk up your services when other teams in the office need translation services.”

We look forward to providing Wells Fargo and all our clients this type of excellent service for years to come.

US Attorney working with ALS in Los Angeles

ALS has contracted with governmental clients for many years and has worked with several different sects of the US Attorney’s Office. For the past several months, the LA Criminal division of the US Attorney’s Office has contracted with ALS to assist them with transcription and translation projects in Armenian, Cambodian, Vietnamese and English for an ongoing criminal case. 

In May, the US Attorney’s Office contacted ALS to provide transcription services from English to English and Armenian to English for the same ongoing case. For this particular project, ALS was given 2 hours of audio in CD format. A majority of the audio was in English, but also had a substantial amount of Armenian language mixed in on the audio files. Once the project was formally approved by the client, ALS’s Operations team sourced the English audio to our best English typists and sourced the Armenian portions to our best Armenian typists who have partnered with ALS for years to provide excellent transcription, translation and interpreting services. Our typists used transcription equipment to assist them with accuracy and efficiency during the course of the project and both English and Armenian to English transcripts were delivered to the client on-time. 

The US Attorney Office continues to contract with ALS regarding their language needs for this particular criminal case as well as their other translation and transcription needs.

ALS assists Hewlett-Packard with Conference Interpreting and Equipment Needs

May was a busy month for large scale conferences and Hewett Packard was one of the many companies that came to ALS to assist them with their conference interpreting and equipment needs. 

The Hewett Packard Discover 2011 Conference was a 3 day event starting on 6/5/11 and ending on 6/7/11. Interpreting in 3 different languages was requested, included Mandarin, Korean and Japanese. The event was held at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas, NV and according to the HP website, it was held as a new Enterprise Business event for all alumni of HP Software Universe, HP Technology Forum and HP Technology@Work. The event allowed its participants to experience HP’s entire portfolio products, solutions and services and many of HP’s high profile members were in attendance. The event included online content, select breakdown sessions, demos, exhibitors, streaming video, track keynotes plus post-event activities as well.  ALS scheduled 2 interpreters per language per day for the event and scheduled linguists with technology expertise to better assist the participants. 

ALS also assisted HP in equipment rental for the event which included portable transmitters for each interpreter and headset & receiver sets for each of the participants requiring interpreting services. Before the event, our interpreting department scheduled the interpreters several weeks in advance and provided the speakers with all pertinent information to successfully interpret for the assignment at hand. The client was sent all confirmation materials and all equipment was quality checked before leaving our facilities. The event was a successful one and ALS looks forward to working with this client for all their future language and equipment needs.

Rockwell Collins: Foreign Language Voiceover Needs for Training

As discussed in April, Rockwell Collins is one of the many international companies that contract with ALS for their foreign language voiceover needs. Rockwell contacted ALS again this month to provide voiceover work in several languages for an ethics training program. A vast majority of Rockwell’s voiceover needs pertain to online training for their employees all over the world.

As is usual for Rockwell, the voiceover language needs were requested in French, Spanish & German. The German was put on hold initially, but eventually send in for production as well. One male and one female speaker were requested per language. Once the project was formally approved by the client, our Interpreting department worked with both the voiceover talent and our voiceover studio in order to set up a time to begin recording and production. Many of the voiceover talent have previously worked on voiceover projects for Rockwell Collins, so they were already familiar with the training platform of the project. Once recording began, the engineers ensured each line was said properly to meet the client’s requirements and edited as necessary. Once recording and post production was completed, the audio files were sent to our Project Managers for additional quality checking.


The final audio files were delivered to the client on time and in the specified format. View Samples of our voiceover work.