Paving the way to today

Choosing your career path can take time and a lot of thought, and that鈥檚 exactly what Trixie gave her decision.

Between finishing her college studies and deciding on a master’s course, Trixie spent four years making the most of her time with learning opportunities and gaining further experience. She completed a language course in Paris, worked with children and spent time travelling, among other things.

After those four years, Trixie enrolled on a Master鈥檚 in Specialised Language for Business. Upon completing her degree she was awarded the title of state-authorised translator. This paved the way for a career that would continuously challenge and reward her over the years.

In terms of work, Trixie found the perfect place for her in the translation and localisation industry. Her first job was with a software localisation company in Denmark, and upon hearing of an opening with Sandberg, she took the opportunity.

Twenty-five years later, Trixie is still here with us as our Lead Danish Translator and holds the proud title of longest-serving employee.

The 3 Ds

When asked how she would describe Sandberg in just three words, Trixie didn鈥檛 skip a beat: 鈥渄edicated, dynamic and diverse鈥�.

Sandberg is dedicated, dynamic and diverse

厂补苍诲产别谤驳鈥檚 dedication is clear as day when you are always 鈥渟urrounded by people with a lot of enthusiasm for languages.鈥� Management also plays its part with a continuously positive and encouraging attitude.

Sandberg is dynamic in its ability to adapt to new situations, and Covid-19 has led to some of the biggest changes to working life. Long before this global pandemic, however, there were gradual but equally significant developments needed to keep pace with technological changes. Sandberg has always been quick to adapt to the latest tools, such as computer-assisted translation (CAT) tools and the use of machine translation (MT).

Finally, Trixie explains that 厂补苍诲产别谤驳鈥檚 diversity stems from the great efforts made towards representing an ever-growing variety of countries and cultures within its workforce.

Call the alliteration coincidence if you wish, but we think this just goes to show the depth of Trixie鈥檚 natural skill with languages.

A day in the life of a translator

For those of you who may not know much about a translator鈥檚 typical working day, Trixie gave us the lowdown.

The process begins with the project manager, who is responsible for assigning linguistic tasks. The translator then checks the content and deadline to make sure they have enough time to deliver their best work before accepting the job. Once accepted, it鈥檚 time to get started.

Translators will use various tools to facilitate the translation process, and CAT tools听 鈥� such as , or 鈥� give translators easy access to term bases and translation memories (TM) which help to accelerate the translation process and ensure a consistent, high-quality translation.

Once translated, a series of automated checks are performed in these same CAT tools. The translation is then sent to a second linguist for revision. If the reviser is a fellow 鈥渋n-houser鈥�, terms and translation choices can be discussed together, which is great for developing linguistic skills and knowledge.

When the revision is complete, the job will either be sent back to the original translator for a final review or it will be delivered straight to the client.

What’s the problem?

I’ve had to swallow some camels – Trixie

Any job can throw out a problem to solve now and then. Interestingly, however, when it comes to translation work, Trixie explains that the hardest things she has had to deal with haven’t been work-related. Instead, the biggest challenge she has had to face concerns developments in the Danish language itself. To give an example, the Danish language is heavily influenced by English 鈥� what with the internet making the English language much more accessible to all.听 it can be difficult to not only implement the new English-esque grammatical structures, but actually accept them as being the 鈥渘ew normal鈥�.

Even though she has had to 鈥渟wallow some camels鈥�, as the Danes might say, Trixie was quick to reassure us that once you have mastered the various translation tools and systems used at Sandberg, the work itself is generally quite straightforward!

Changing with the times

In 25 years, Sandberg has been shaped and reshaped by all manner of changes. On the one hand there are those that are natural and gradual as the company develops; changes that are almost unnoticeable until you look back on things. But on the other hand, Trixie highlighted some changes that have been much more tangible.

Trixie shared her initial apprehensions concerning the game changer that is CAT tools. Like many other translators she feared that this technology would be detrimental to linguists. Would they suck the joy out of translating? Would they start to replace translators as these CAT tools became ever more sophisticated? Was the goal to remove the human from the translation equation entirely?

In the end, no. As it turns out, when it comes to CAT tools, it鈥檚 all in the name: they 鈥渁ssist鈥�. As they became more integrated into the everyday workflows and translation processes, Trixie realised that CAT tools and MT can be very beneficial. These tools facilitate tasks with regard to consistency and speed of production, amongst other advantages.

Skilled linguists still have an important role to play

Even when MT can deliver a high-quality translation, it still needs human input and thorough editing before it can be delivered safely to a client. So, it is clear that skilled linguists still have an important and necessary role to play.

Hidden talents

One of the joys of working as a translator is that the projects are always varied and a new challenge is never far away. But just like with any job, you need some downtime.

One pastime Trixie enjoys outside of work is music: both singing and, on occasion, composing! And while Trixie is very humble when it comes to her musical talents, her skill as a composer and lyricist won her first place in a hymn writing competition!

If the past 25 years at Sandberg weren鈥檛 proof enough of Trixie鈥檚 loyalty and dedication, then her hobbies certainly drive the point home. Twenty-five years of hard work with the same company is a testament in itself. But, add 20 years of singing in the same choir and it鈥檚 clear that Trixie sticks with what she loves.

When things are bad鈥�

鈥hey鈥檙e not that bad for long! According to Trixie, the best source of motivation is when things simply fall into place: projects and technology run smoothly, and the client gets a high-quality product delivered right on time.

But on days when a silver lining is particularly hard to find, you can always count on your colleagues at Sandberg. There鈥檚 always someone on hand to crack a couple of jokes or send a few choice memes that hit the spot and put a smile back on your face.

After 25 years, it鈥檚 clear that it鈥檚 really the little things in life and work that make it all great.

So, there鈥檚 really just one final thing to say: from all of us here at Sandberg, thank you Trixie for your continuous hard work and dedication over these last 25 years! Here鈥檚 to many more projects, challenges and good times to come.听

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For many, the pandemic has brought stress to the forefront of our minds: worries of catching the coronavirus, job security, maintaining a healthy work-life balance and home schooling are just a few possible stressors. However, it is important to note that it鈥檚 not always simple to sniff out the cause of stress 鈥� and even if you manage to do so, battling those feelings can feel like an uphill struggle with no end. Especially in the translation industry, with its tight deadlines and the pressure to perform to a very high standard, relaxing and switching off can prove challenging, if not unthinkable.

Despite the fact that stress is hard to completely eliminate, there are a few tried and tested ways to help reduce it. Unlike the abundance of other articles on this subject, I won鈥檛 extoll the virtues of yoga, exercise and taking breaks 鈥� sometimes these just aren鈥檛 feasible, especially if motivation is lacking or you don鈥檛 have the time (or both).

What I would like to do though is take the opportunity of , which runs from 10鈥�16 May 2021, to outline a few methods that I and a couple of colleagues use to lessen our stress, on those days where it might all be a bit too much.

1. Cutting back the caffeine

In the translation industry, it鈥檚 common to find yourself overwhelmed by a heavy workload with a relatively small amount of time to get through it: a situation which can cause stress and anxiety to arise even in the calmest of people. Personally, I鈥檓 aware that if my morning starts off this way, I should in all likelihood limit myself to just the one morning coffee, as any more will cause my heart to race and make me feel jittery. My brain then interprets this as anxiety (as the two sensations are very similar) and tricks me into feeling more stressed than I actually am.

Obviously, it鈥檚 not always easy to reduce your intake of coffee, but limiting your caffeine intake is definitely worth a try if you are anything like me! Switching to a herbal tea could be another good option as well.

2. ? Breaking down your work into smaller chunks

If giving up coffee is not for you, I鈥檝e found that gaining a sense of control over your day can prove equally useful. My favourite (if not slightly convoluted) way to do this is by making a list of all of the things I need to do within a certain time frame, i.e. by the end of the day. I then set a timer on my phone for half an hour and try to complete as much as I possibly can before the alarm rings, after which I treat myself to a cup of tea or a snack, or I go and annoy my pet cat for a minute.

What this does for me is to provide a sense of focus. Instead of panicking and trying to remember all the tasks I need to complete along with their deadlines, the list helps to provide an overview of my work while marking tasks as 鈥渃omplete鈥� and incentivising myself with a treat provides a nice sense of satisfaction.

3. ? Getting away from your screen

Sometimes, it鈥檚 hard to see the bigger picture, especially on busy days when you feel like there is no room to breathe, let alone think. Deadlines, issues with technology and tricky technical texts can all contribute to this feeling of futility, making it feel like there鈥檚 little chance of escape and that the universe is out to get you.

To combat this, Mary-Anna, an Account Linguist at Sandberg, suggests that 鈥渋f you鈥檙e feeling like everything is insane and you have too much on your plate, walking away from your screen for just one minute and simply breathing helps. One minute is not going to bring all of your jobs crashing down but it’ll help you breathe and focus.鈥�

 4. ? Using music to help you focus

Charlotte, another Account Linguist, has a slightly different approach to mitigating stress, involving music: 鈥淲hen I have a particularly heavy workload that requires me to power through and concentrate quite a lot, I have some special playlists that are made up of tracks with no lyrics, quite repetitive stuff that won鈥檛 distract me too much; I play them as a 鈥榯reat鈥�. On the one hand, it gets me motivated to focus on my projects because I鈥檓 looking forward to hearing the music, and on the other hand, my brain is now trained to be in a calm and focused mood when I hear that music.鈥�

It could be that these methods don鈥檛 work for you. Everyone鈥檚 brain processes stimuli differently, and it could take a modicum of fiddling about to find a strategy which matches your way of thinking and your lifestyle. However, it鈥檚 worth giving one or two of them a try, even if only to find out what works for you and what doesn鈥檛.

Stress and the issues it causes can be serious if left unaddressed. This article is intended to help you think about stress you may be experiencing and offer some tips that could help reduce it.

If you鈥檙e feeling the burden of stress is too heavy to bear, I would advise speaking to your GP or a mental health professional. There are many concrete ways they can help and guide you. After all, stress is something that鈥檚 going to be ever present in our lives to a greater or lesser degree: the vital thing is that we learn to deal with it as best we can.

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1. Rockin鈥� around the Christmas tree ?

A much-loved staple of Christmas in Norway centres around the Christmas tree, or juletre in Norwegian. Families gather to hold hands and sing traditional carols, all while circling the decorated pine. 滨迟鈥檚 a favourite tradition of Norwegian Translator William, who explains: 鈥淭raditionalists in Norway will not decorate the tree until 23 December, or 鈥榣ittle Christmas eve鈥�, in readiness for the actual Christmas eve (julaften) on the twenty-fourth. Across Scandinavia, this is the big day of the feast, when presents are opened. The revolving procession and hand-linked singing of Silent Night and other classics therefore marks a grand and special opening of the twelve days of Christmas.鈥�

In years gone by, a more public expression of this tradition has been a common sight up and down the country. Communities host Christmas tree parties for locals to celebrate together, often forming several rings, one outside the other, around a large public tree. While this practice may not be possible this year, William hopes 鈥渢hat it may be in for a revival after the current pandemic, when people realise how valuable it is to hold another person鈥檚 hand and join in the joyful singing of silly ditties and solemn carols.鈥�

2. Feasting in odd numbers ?

The night before Christmas (Badni vecher) is very important in Bulgaria, as it is when the main festivities take place. 鈥湵醭兮�檚 the time when the whole family unites and prepares the holiday dinner,鈥� explains Business Administration Advisor, Radostina. 鈥淭here are seven or nine dishes, but they have to be meatless. We prepare a traditional bread with a coin hidden inside before the bread is baked. 滨迟鈥檚 believed that the person who gets the chunk with the coin will be the richest in the coming year.鈥� 滨迟鈥檚 not clear where the importance of the odd number of dishes originates from, but it鈥檚 said to bring good luck.

3. Taking the (polar) plunge ?‍

There鈥檚 nothing like wading into ice-cold water to shake off that festive over-indulgence, and it is a tradition that continues to grow in popularity around UK shores. Buoyed by the yuletide spirit, thousands take to the sea each year, braving water temperatures that average a biting 6鈥�10 掳C. 鈥淎 Christmas Day, Boxing Day (26 December) or New Year鈥檚 Day swim is becoming a new tradition for me,鈥� says Production Manager and keen swimmer, Amy听(pictured right). 鈥淭he day usually depends on my location and how much mulled wine was consumed the night before!鈥�

A New Year鈥檚 Day dip is also a favourite ritual of Swedish Translator Lena, who now lives in the UK. 鈥淚t is something I do every New Year if I am spending it in Malm枚, where I go with a friend to a kallbadhus [a type of bathing house with direct access to the sea], which we have loads of around Sweden. This is one of the things I most miss in the UK, and I鈥檓 now being forced to learn how to swim in the sea without having a sauna before or after!鈥�

4. Decorating with candles ?

Many of us will soon be adding some sparkle to our homes and trees with fairy lights, but for some of our Nordic colleagues, using real candles on their tree is still the way to go. Finnish Account Linguist Aino, explains: 鈥淢y family, to the horror of my English husband, still use real candles on the Christmas tree. My parents鈥� house is wooden, but over all these decades, there have been no accidents…!鈥�

It is a family custom that is also close to translator William鈥檚 heart. In his house they use candle holders passed down from his grandmother. 鈥淓very Christmas Eve, we turn off all the lights, so all you can see is the real candles on the tree,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t makes for a magical atmosphere.鈥�

5. Stepping into the new year ?

New Year鈥檚 Eve brings with it a whole host of global traditions and celebrations, and just one of those practised by some of our UK colleagues is the ritual of 鈥渇irst footing鈥�. This is an ancient Gaelic custom which places great importance on the first person to cross the threshold of your house at the beginning of the new year, often bearing gifts for the household and receiving food and drink in return. It is thought that this tradition dates back to the time of the Viking invasions and it is for this reason that it鈥檚 considered very unlucky for a fair- or red-haired person to be the first footer!

鈥淢y dad insists on first footing at New Year,鈥� says English Account Linguist Mary-Anna. 鈥淣owadays he leaves and comes back in, although when he lived in Glasgow he used to either first foot all of the neighbours or essentially do a party crawl and first foot all of his friends… A very efficient way to get a few free drinks!鈥�

And no British New Year鈥檚 Eve party would be complete without a rendition of Auld Lang Syne, written by famous Scots poet Robert Burns. 鈥淎t midnight on New Year鈥檚 Eve we always gather with the family or neighbours in a circle (sometimes in the middle of the road), cross and hold hands, and sing Auld Lang Syne,鈥� says HR Advisor Melissa. 鈥淭hen we open the front and back doors to let the old year out the front door, and the new year in through the back.鈥�

6. Watching a Christmas classic ?

And finally, for some of us, curling up on the sofa in front our favourite festive film is about as Christmassy as it gets. Cue blankets, hot chocolate… a crackling fire if we鈥檙e lucky! And while many may opt for a heartfelt drama or a cheesy rom-com to get them in the Christmas mood, for Norwegians, the main draw of their favourite holiday movie might have less to do with the film itself, and more to do with the questionable voiceover. Norwegian Account Linguist Ingrid, explains: 鈥淥ne of my very favourite Christmas traditions is watching the film (Three Wishes for Cinderella) at 11am on Christmas Eve. 滨迟鈥檚 dubbed into Norwegian with just one man doing all the voices. If that sounds ridiculous, that鈥檚 because it is! But I and a good chunk of the Norwegian population watch it and make the same jokes about it every single year.鈥�

Hopefully we have introduced you to some new festive traditions, one or two of which you might even want to try out yourselves. However you choose to celebrate this year, we at Sandberg wish you a safe and happy festive season and a prosperous new year to come!

The post A Sandberg Christmas: 6 of our favourite festive traditions appeared first on sa国际传媒.

There is, however, an important distinction between being thrown in and learning on the job. After all, most of us learn best by doing. With 厂补苍诲产别谤驳鈥檚 structured guidelines and buddy system, we make it through our first newbie weeks stronger, wiser, infinitely more caffeinated 颅and, most importantly, ready to take responsibility for the important work we do.

Hitting the ground running听?

At Sandberg, we believe that by training and supporting our new starters, we鈥檙e setting them up to be the best they can be 鈥� for us and for our clients. A full week (!) is set aside for induction and training. New starters are introduced to the translation industry as a whole and 厂补苍诲产别谤驳鈥檚 position in it, as well as our vision and company values.听They鈥檙e acquainted with their role and their team, their accounts and their clients. 滨迟鈥檚 a chance to get familiar with the computer-aided translation (CAT) tools they might be working with, explore the oddly named internal systems (Wookie?) and, not least, have a crack at learning their new colleagues鈥� names from the get-go.听

Ivan Gechev, a Project Manager at our Varna office in Bulgaria, was a complete newcomer to project management and the translation industry when he started at Sandberg in 2019. The induction week helped him wrap his head around not only his own role, but also where he fitted within the structure of his team and where his team fitted within听the听company.听

He says: 鈥淚 remember being amazed by just how detailed and hands-on the training sessions were. For example, the session with Anu [our Managing Director] was key to introducing me to the informal and personal nature of our company culture.鈥� An introduction to project management with team leader Mihaela Ikonomova prepared him for what his actual working day would look like. 鈥淓very single training session,鈥� he says, 鈥減rovided valuable information, whether on ISO standards, a variety of CAT tools or, for example, the intricacies of translator selection.鈥�

Your buddy鈥檚 got your back听?

After the induction week, training continues in-team. 鈥淏uddies鈥� and experienced colleagues are on hand to offer advice and guidance, and crucially, feedback. When听you鈥檙e ready to deal with most aspects of your role independently, it can be nice to take a moment to bask in the sweet glory of mastering something new.听

Yet in a fast-moving industry, the ability to be flexible and adapt quickly is key. That鈥檚 why we continue to train our employees and encourage them to learn more about special areas they might be particularly interested in, whether it be learning about search engine optimisation (SEO), improving their Icelandic or diving into one of the guidelines, for example on translation quality, from听, a language data network.

The name of the game听?

Another term for this is Continuing Professional Development (CPD). Required by translation service standards that Sandberg complies with such as ISO 17100, CPD听boils down to life-long learning. Maintaining or acquiring knowledge and skills, and developing personal qualities that aid your work, means that you鈥檙e engaging in CPD. What sets it apart from more formalised training is that it鈥檚 self-driven and systematically documented.

Acquiring and documenting our skills through CPD is good for several reasons. Not only is it an opportunity for our employees to keep learning and be challenged, they also become more agile and can help with other types of work not directly linked to their own role when there is a business need. But ultimately, we believe that well-trained and confident professionals are best equipped to provide the localisation solutions our clients are looking for.

Learning never stops听听

Many a Sandberg heart has skipped a beat upon first receiving their Learning Units (LUs), the core of 厂补苍诲产别谤驳鈥檚 training structure and basis for CPD.听滨迟鈥檚 a bit of a wedge, to say the least. If you thought that promotion might be more easily within reach by schmoozing down the pub with your manager, you might want to think again. Our company culture reflects our Nordic values: consultative management, a focus on teamwork, transparency and equal opportunities. This means sharing knowledge, giving feedback, embracing technology and training continuously.

The LUs cover several topics such as project management, linguistic competencies, client/supplier relationships and teamwork. These topics are divided into sub-sections detailing various skills. Completing a skill is done by documenting, either through team leader observations, case studies or written summaries, how you have come to learn the skill and how you have applied it in your daily work.

Laura Karkimo, who just started her seventh year in the company, has been using the LUs to document her professional development while working towards becoming a Senior Finnish Account Linguist. Had the LUs been a physical document, hers would probably be pretty tattered by now. 鈥淗aving trained and been a 鈥榖uddy鈥� to several team members over the years,鈥� Laura says, 鈥淚 can see how the learning units give structure to training. They鈥檙e vetted, formalised and objective, ensuring consistent and fair learning opportunities across the company.鈥�

However, even after so many years, Laura finds that there鈥檚 no shortage of new things to learn or, indeed, relearn. She says: 鈥淐ontinuously updated LUs, for example information on feature announcements in CAT tools, help to ensure that I do my work in a way that is the most optimal now, not in the way that was the most optimal, say, four years ago.鈥�

Training 鈥� what (or who) is it good for?听?

The short answer: absolutely everyone. Setting our starters up with an induction week and buddy system isn鈥檛 just out of the听goodness听of our hearts. Neither is our focus on CPD, or why we encourage our employees to keep working on their LUs. Quality translations are at the forefront of everything we do at Sandberg.听

We believe that trained professionals are better at understanding what clients want and setting out with a clear idea of how to achieve that. They will, for example, know what and why reference materials are necessary and how to make the best use of them. They can effectively apply and navigate tools that aid our translations, such as glossaries, translation memories (TMs) and, if the client wants, machine translation (MT).听

Investing in our employees is a way of investing in our clients 鈥� only the best results will keep our clients coming back to us.

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Recently we caught up with three of our interns and asked them about what they expected from their internships, what they鈥檝e learnt, what their challenges have been and what they鈥檙e proud of achieving in their three months with Sandberg.

Jere is a student of English translation at the and interned as a Finnish Account Linguist. 鈥淲hen I began my internship at Sandberg in June, the world was, as it still is, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the remote nature of this internship, I was very excited for my first professional LSP experience.鈥�

鈥淎lthough this wasn鈥檛 my first internship, this was my first internship in a setting focused on language services, so I set some goals for myself: learning to use new tools (and getting better at using some I already knew), becoming a better translator and generally learning what it鈥檚 like to work in a professional setting.鈥�

鈥淒espite the unusual conditions, I feel like I鈥檒l end this internship having reached all my goals and then some. I鈥檝e got to use multiple tools and become quite comfortable with them. This could have been difficult to do remotely with no one physically present to show you how everything鈥檚 done, but I鈥檝e been happy to see that even 鈥榮illy鈥� questions have been met with supportive guidance all the way to the point where things are clear.鈥�

鈥淭his patience is definitely important and encourages you to keep asking those questions that might seem silly: for someone starting their internship (or anything new really) in a new setting, things could easily seem a bit scary or overwhelming without this kind of supportive environment.鈥�

This kind of constructive feedback boosts your confidence and encourages you to embrace learning new things.

鈥淐onstructive feedback from more experienced translators has been invaluable, even more so in cases where the subject matter might be familiar but the client has their own unique style that requires you to adapt, for example.鈥�

鈥淭his kind of constructive feedback also boosts your confidence and encourages you to embrace learning new things: when you鈥檙e confident, the bar to try and learn new things is much lower than if you鈥檙e afraid of failing.鈥�

鈥淚鈥檝e worked with many different people and every interaction has been pleasant and everyone has offered help when I needed it, for which I鈥檓 grateful.鈥�

Lotta is a master鈥檚 student in translation at in Sweden and interned as a Swedish Account Linguist. 鈥淢y goals for the internship were to learn as much as possible about what it鈥檚 like to work as a translator, about translating and about how to handle getting stuck on segments, retrieving information and working to tight deadlines.鈥�

鈥淚 feel like I鈥檝e learnt to translate much faster and how to find translations of tricky words. Both of those things will be useful to me in the future and I鈥檓 very grateful! I鈥檝e translated very different texts and I鈥檝e learnt project management. I feel like I鈥檝e really developed my skills.鈥�

滨迟鈥檚 easy to doubt yourself and your capability, but if you鈥檙e persistent you will prevail sooner than you think.

But what about the challenges? 鈥淧roject management for sure! It was difficult in the beginning, but it got easier and easier and now it is not difficult any more. There was a lot to learn in the beginning about translating as well, but it all sticks eventually and you shouldn鈥檛 worry too much.鈥�

鈥湵醭兮�檚 easy to doubt yourself and your capability, but if you鈥檙e persistent you will prevail sooner than you think. As I mentioned before, I do feel like my translation skills have improved significantly, which I am certain will help me during my last year at university. 滨迟鈥檚 been a challenge but also a blast!鈥�

Jesper has a degree in Spanish, another in video game translation and localisation, and has just finished a third in Swedish. He鈥檚 based remotely in Manchester and interned as a Swedish Translator. 鈥淲hen I started this internship, my main goal was to learn as much as possible and really get a sense of how it is to work as an in-house translator, and as a translator in general. I had previously done some freelance work, however I never received any feedback and felt a bit stuck. At Sandberg, not only did I receive constructive feedback on a lot of my jobs, but I also felt like a valued member of the team.鈥�

鈥淭he Swedish translator team were extremely helpful and always willing to help me and provide me with great feedback and useful tips. With regards to the ISO quality standards, they now finally make sense to me and I understand how they are implemented in an agency and in a translator鈥檚 daily work. Finally, with regards to the tools, I have learnt how to work with five different tools.鈥�

鈥淚鈥檓 very happy about the achievements mentioned above, and equally happy about the relationships I have been able to make here at Sandberg. Even though everything was remote, I still managed to make some friends. I have thoroughly enjoyed my daily contact with the Swedish translator team, the project managers and of course, my team manager.鈥�

鈥淧rior to starting the internship, I was a bit nervous whether I would be able to measure up to what was expected of me. I was questioning whether my language skills were up to par and whether I would be creative enough for the marketing jobs. I鈥檝e found that these insecurities were just that, insecurities.鈥�

I appreciated especially being treated as a valued member of the team, and not necessarily as an intern.

鈥淲ith regards to being creative, it鈥檚 true that I have at times felt a bit scared to alter a text too much. This is as well something that my peers have pointed out. I believe this to be my biggest challenge moving forward, to trust myself enough to focus on translating meaning and not merely words, and thus creating the best translation possible. With all the help I have received from the rest of the team I am sure that this will come with time, and of course with effort from my side.鈥�

鈥淚鈥檝e also learnt that investing some extra time in doing the proper research and reading through the references does make a great difference. This is especially important for a generalist, with so many different clients that all require different solutions and wordings (a lot of them being merely preferential, as I鈥檝e learnt).鈥�

鈥淥verall, I鈥檓 very happy with my experience here at Sandberg. I鈥檝e learnt a lot and my time here has passed incredibly quickly. I appreciated especially being treated as a valued member of the team, and not necessarily as an intern. It was clear that not only was I here for my own learning, but also in order to have a positive impact on the company. This, for me, makes all the difference and encourages you to work harder and feel a lot more motivated.鈥�

Why not start your career at one of the world鈥檚 top specialist translation companies, getting guidance, support and training along the way? To find out more about what we do and the employment opportunities we currently have available, take a look at our jobs and vacancies pages.

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Which languages do you speak, Alex?
Bulgarian, English, Russian and Ukrainian, and a bit of French, I guess, though maybe not enough that counts! I was born in Ukraine, and I鈥檓 Russian by nationality.

Where did you grow up?
In , it鈥檚 a city on the Black Sea. Similar to Varna, but bigger. I鈥檝e lived in Bulgaria on and off, I left and then I came back, so altogether I鈥檇 say six years.

What did you want to be when you were growing up?
Well, I didn鈥檛 exactly have a dream job, but I always knew I was going to be connected to languages in some way. I wanted to be a translator at one point, an interpreter, but then suddenly I changed my mind. But hey, I鈥檓 still working in the translation industry. I didn鈥檛 have an exact job in mind, I guess.

So you鈥檇 call yourself a bit of a language nerd?
Yeah, maybe. I鈥檓 a grammar Nazi for sure, but I鈥檓 [mostly] interested in cultures.

What was your first job?
My very first one was here in Bulgaria, in Varna. I was a hostess in a hotel in Golden Sands. It was a five-star hotel, and I was a hostess for four months. It was hard because we would work twelve hours straight 鈥� two days鈥� work, two days鈥� rest. It was tough, so obviously I made up my mind not to work in the hospitality industry.

How did you go from hospitality to working in the translation industry?
滨迟鈥檚 been quite a ride! I always wanted to do something with languages. I didn鈥檛 exactly want to be a translator into Russian, maybe once a long time ago, but now not really. I just wanted to try something different. Before Sandberg, I was working at an IT company doing customer support, but that鈥檚 totally different from what I do now.

What does a normal day look like for a project manager at Sandberg?
Coffee. I need my coffee and then I can start the day!

We receive projects from the client that we need to set up in our system, prepare in the CAT tool (Trados Studio or memoQ, for example), optimise as best possible for the linguist, and we send out purchase orders, keep in constant contact with the client and linguist, answer queries from all possible sides. And in the meantime, we also handle old projects from previous days.

We also have meetings with other teams, vendor management and client services. There鈥檚 also approving projects for invoicing, so a lot of stuff!

What鈥檚 the most important quality for a good project manager?
There are a lot of things a good project manager should have. Attention to detail is important. Patience.

Finding the time for everything is also super important; time tracking. Sometimes the whole process can swamp you, but you need to keep an eye on things because you have several projects ongoing at the same time and you can鈥檛 be engulfed by one.

Multitasking is another very important thing! 滨迟鈥檚 hard to pick just one.

What is your favourite part of your role?
Getting my coffee! Delivering the projects, on time with great quality, without any issues. That鈥檚 the best, best thing.

Any advice for new people starting out in the industry?
My advice would be not to panic and not to get stressed by all the stuff, because it鈥檚 a lot. I鈥檝e been panicking myself, but you just need to get past it and you鈥檒l be alright after some time!

Machine translation 鈥� friend or foe?
From the training I鈥檝e had, I understand that if the MT is good, then it鈥檚 good for the linguist. It can increase productivity and then it鈥檚 a friend. When proper MT is used for the proper job, then it鈥檚 definitely a friend.

If you could do any other job for a week, what would it be?
Testing beaches in different countries. I鈥檇 get cocktails and read a book. I like to chill!

If you could wake up and be fluent in a new language, what would it be?
French. I鈥檝e always wanted to speak French. I鈥檝e been studying French all my life and I鈥檓 still not fluent!

What鈥檚 your favourite word?
Bulgarian is a foreign language to me. I really like the word 谐褍褕泻邪屑听(驳耻拧办补尘), 鈥渢o hug鈥�. Slavs tend to make words smaller and cuter, especially in Russian. 袚褍褕懈 (驳耻拧颈)听is a short version of this word and I really like it, I use it a lot at home!

My mother tongue, so to speak, is Russian. Ukrainian is a bit harder for me even though I was born there. But they鈥檙e so different. People say Bulgarian is like Russian, but that鈥檚 not true. I mean the Slavic languages are all similar, but still different.

People born in Odessa like me speak Russian mainly. But now with the political situation it鈥檚 a bit more complicated, I suppose.

What鈥檚 something about you that surprises people?
When I was smaller, I moved to the United Arab Emirates. I can鈥檛 speak Arabic though, I can only write my name.

People at work know me as a positive person, but once I showed up really tired and moody and everyone was asking if I was sick!

Describe yourself in three words.
Positive, international, sociable. I like to be around people. If I was working from home I鈥檇 go crazy!

Do you have any hidden talents?
I can do origami, but only flowers, so I鈥檓 not sure that鈥檚 a talent! I can rollerblade pretty well and iceskate. I broke my hand when I was little, but that didn鈥檛 stop me. When my cast was removed, the first thing I did was go back and rollerblade.

滨迟鈥檚 fika听time. Tea or coffee?
Coffee, with milk and sugar.

What鈥檚 your idea of a perfect day?
To go to the beach and have drinks and see friends and listen to good music. 滨迟鈥檚 summer, that鈥檚 all I can think about right now. I like winter too though, I prefer the cold to the heat. In winter we often go to the beach as well, just with coffee.

How do you unwind at the end of a long day?
I like to watch TV shows just to chill. I recently started watching Stranger Things. 滨迟鈥檚 good, really interesting. Before that I watched Game of Thrones. I was really disappointed by the last series! I recommend trying the books, I loved the books.

Where is your favourite place to be?
Where my close people are, my best friends and my husband. People are important to me.

Your dream travel destination?
I鈥檓 going to Rome in October 鈥� I鈥檓 really looking forward to that. I鈥檝e never been to Italy!

Describe Sandberg in three words.
Welcoming, challenging, fun.

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Which languages do you speak, Danielle?
English and Swedish, but I understand Norwegian and Danish as well, and a bit of French, too. I also did Latin at school and at university, but I鈥檝e forgotten most of that! I did study Polish for a couple of years, but haven鈥檛 really kept it up.

What did you want to be when you were growing up?
I didn鈥檛 have a career in mind when I was little, but I wanted to do something with languages. No one in my family had gone to university, so there wasn鈥檛 a huge variety of careers in my background. I just knew I didn鈥檛 really want to be a builder, a plasterer or a farm labourer!

How did you end up working in the translation industry?
For reasons I can鈥檛 remember, I decided to study Swedish at university. I wanted to use my degree in a relevant field. I did try teaching, but I came to realise that translation was the perfect career for me.

What does a normal day look like for a lead translator at Sandberg?
In general, roughly the same as for the other translators. Since I鈥檓 a lead translator, it is more likely that project managers send queries from freelancers and clients for me to look at. I鈥檓 responsible for updating our English language style guide听and our internal client-specific style guides. I also stay in touch with the other lead translators and our line manager.

I鈥檓 the terminologist for the Nordic-English team, so I spend time checking existing term bases and adding new terms to them.

What differences are there between working at the office and working from home?
滨迟鈥檚 quieter 鈥� and as tidy as I like it! If there鈥檚 any washing up in the sink, I know it鈥檚 mine! I can鈥檛 just walk over to someone and ask them a question any more, but I can easily contact anyone I need to online. You get used to that.

I do miss the lunch time chats about films and books. Now we have the Leeds office, though, which has offset that a bit. I can meet up with them to do that outside work!

What鈥檚 the most important quality for a good translator?
Conscientiousness. You have to be prepared to check and double check things. Especially now in the age of machine translation post-editing. You need to be conscious of all the different reference materials for a job and make sure the machine translation engine hasn鈥檛 missed anything. On top of that, you need to take into account the fact that the source text might have some mistakes in it as well!

How do you look after your target language skills?
I read a lot, older and newer books. Language does change! I try to be mindful of the fact that other people use language in a different way than I do. I live in my native country, so it鈥檚 less of an issue for me.

How about your source language skills?
I guess it鈥檚 similar to how I look after my English skills. I listen to Swedish radio programmes, for example , which is a programme all about language. It airs on but you can download it online as well. And I watch a lot of Swedish and Danish programmes in particular and chat to Swedish friends in Swedish.

滨迟鈥檚 actually quite hard to find a way to subscribe to magazines or to order books from the Nordic countries to be shipped to the UK. I swap books with a Swedish colleague and I鈥檒l pick up some new ones when I go to Copenhagen later in the year. I do get the magazine published by the . That helps with bokm氓l and nynorsk as well, though mostly we translate from bokm氓l.

Now would be such a good time to learn a foreign language, since you have all of these resources available to you online! When I was studying Swedish at university, you were reliant on what you had access to through your department.

What is your favourite part of your role?
Probably the terminology work I do. I鈥檓 just a bit obsessed with it! I find that quite satisfying.

Machine translation 鈥� friend or foe?
Somewhere in between! When it鈥檚 bad, it鈥檚 very bad. When it鈥檚 good, it can be a little bit confusing. It can speed up your work, but you have to be careful.

What do you specialise in?
I do like doing medical work and building up the glossaries for that to make sure I get the benefit from them. I enjoy working on texts on environmental subjects, renewable energy and so on. As a lead translator, you need to be able to go through everyone鈥檚 work in every domain, of course!

What motivates you in your work?
If possible, trying to make the translation read better than the source text. I can鈥檛 always do that, but that鈥檚 the ideal.

If you could do any other job for a week, what would it be?
滨迟鈥檚 not really a job that exists, but I鈥檇 like to go around correcting mistakes in English! I鈥檇 just like to wave a magic wand and make all the spelling mistakes and errors right. That鈥檚 more a vocation than a job!

If you could wake up and be fluent in a new language, what would it be?
Probably Finnish 鈥� just because it is so difficult. I took some courses in Finnish linguistics and literature and the fundamentals of Finnish language while I was an exchange student in Sweden, but I never learned to speak it.

Do you have any language-related pet peeves?
So many! They鈥檙e usually grammar-based. I confess I am a bit of a grammar snob. I think maybe people saying things being Scandinavian when they really should say Nordic! The Scandinavian peninsula doesn鈥檛 cover Finland or Iceland.

Apart from that, apostrophes are the most obvious one in English. I think the rules are rather easy, so it annoys me that people still get it wrong. I can only hope that the English language skills taught in school are better now than they were when I was at school. Latin classes helped me with grammar more than the English classes 鈥� shout-out to Miss Mills!

What鈥檚 your favourite word?
I generally like place names; my current favourite is in Leeds because it comes from Old Norse. It basically means 鈥榮ite of a church鈥�, which means that is a bit tautological as a name!

What鈥檚 the one thing about you that surprises people?
I don鈥檛 drink tea. Just because I鈥檓 English and that鈥檚 the one thing everyone assumes about English people!

Otherwise, I鈥檓 pretty much what you see is what you get, to be honest. People might be surprised to learn that apart from sci-fi and gardening, I also enjoy motor racing 鈥� Formula One.

I also walk around picking up litter and bringing it home, kind of like without the jogging part. I want to set up a new group for litter picking in my neighbourhood.

How do you unwind at the end of a long day?
Reading and when it鈥檚 a bit warmer I might go out for a walk or go to the pictures. I like my sci-fi!

Describe Sandberg in three words.
Expanding, inclusive, committed.

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