In-house translation – outside the box

Tag: professional associations

  • Why attend a professional association AGM in person, when it is offered in hybrid form?

    Why attend a professional association AGM in person, when it is offered in hybrid form?

    On Friday evening, I attended the AGM of UNIVERSITAS Austria – Berufsverband für Dolmetschen und Übersetzen – an association that I joined in 2020, just as the pandemic was taking hold. Consequently, this was the first event that I had attended in person. The AGM was held in hybrid form, and previously I had attended events in virtual form – as had been the norm during the pandemic.

    I chose to attend in person to take advantage of a new members’ networking session beforehand and further chances to network afterwards. I know some people might struggle with in presence AGMs – but they are really worth attending in person if you can. If you find physical attendance daunting, arrange to meet someone you know there.

    An AGM is a good networking event

    It was great to talk to other members – catching up with some after a long time and also speaking to others for the first time. It provided me with a good opportunity to catch up with other translators and interpreters. Some I hadn’t seen for several years, and I was able to meet others in person for the first time, although some of whom I knew from posts on LinkedIn – as fellow #litranslators. It was a good opportunity to also have a chance to finally meet various board members in person.

    For me, membership of an association is not a one way street: it is not just about “taking”, but considering and acting upon what I can also “give back” to a profession I have been part of for 24 years. So many professionals work on their own in an industry dominated by BigLang, so solidarity with my fellow professionals is essential. After all, I remain a SPLSU, albeit as part of an organisation with a far higher headcount.

    Events, certification and mentoring

    Universitas certification and mentoring are areas that I hope to be contribute to. Associations are also vital for relevant CPD measures, and Universitas is very receptive in this area. There are some exciting events planned for this year – the association’s platinum (70th) jubilee year.

    As a full-time in-house translator, in a predominantly freelance/self-employed industry, or one with many people for whom translation/interpreting is only a component of their working life (job splitting), it is important to appreciate the issues affecting the profession (and not just the industry).

    Turning a corner

    Attending an AGM in person is also a way to gauge the health of an association – to see at first hand how the work falls on the (few or many) sets of shoulders of the board and its committees. The previous winter had been a tumultuous one – with a series of meetings that at one stage had even had the dissolution of the association on the table.

    The outcome had been to have a paid administrator – an option I supported from personally having been an executive secretary of a non-profit organisation at an earlier stage of my career. It was pleasing to see that the association is turning a corner and making progress to a more stable and professional footing.

    Thanks should again go to Universitas’ board and volunteers dedicating their time to furthering our profession. I’ll definitely be looking forward to attending more in-presence events.

    Why not join?

    If you are a translator in Austria, or even outside of Austria, and have not joined, why not reconsider? Universitas is a nationwide association, with logical ties to the ZTW in Vienna, INTRAWI in Innsbruck and ITAT in Graz. While the lion’s share of members translate into or from the “Big 5 EU languages”, there are many members covering far more languages.

  • Announcement: Personal Update

    Announcement: Personal Update

    I am able to announce that my application for membership of the Chartered Institute of Linguists was successful. I am now a Member of the Chartered Institute of Linguists (MCIL). This allows me to use the postnominal designation MCIL.

    Membership opens up some exciting new CPD avenues for me. I hope that I might be able to attend CIOL events in person in the future. I have downloaded the latest edition of “The Linguist”, which I am looking forward to reading.

    As I mentioned recently in my blog post about membership of professional associations, the human element of association membership is something that I greatly appreciate. My membership of an association also takes into account the contribution I have made in my professional career.

  • Why join professional translators’ associations?

    Why join professional translators’ associations?

    A recent comment on LinkedIn mentioned the demise of ATICOM, a professional translators’ and interpreters’ association in Germany. It had been active for 20 years. Late November is the time of year when membership renewals drop onto doormats, into postboxes or into inboxes. When times are hard, memberships of organisations are top of the list for cutting outgoings.

    Having worked for a membership-based association, I understand the impact of losing members. After all, it was always a struggle to attract new members, and membership retention was sometimes exhausting. Personal relationships and contacts always helped to convince them to extend their membership. In the corporate world, people move on increasingly frequently. Often with it they leave memberships behind, and don’t convince their previous employer to remain a corporate member.

    I’m a member of numerous associations – from an economics association, a cricket club and a football supporters’ club. I have also starting joining translators’ and interpreters’ associations as my commitment to the profession. Most countries may have one or more translators’ associations. They might also have regional or sub-regional chapters, depending on the pool size in a city, region or country.

    Translation associations can come across as the reserve of the self-employed. This is unsurprising given market dynamic and the paucity of in-house translation jobs. So why have I only started joining them since going in house?

    Why didn’t I join when I was a freelancer?

    There were a number of reasons (or maybe excuses). My biggest issue was that my profile didn’t really fit (possibly latent imposter syndrome?). Many members seemed to cover multiple language combinations or pairs, whereas I only offered German-English. Another issue were my very specialist niches. Frequently the membership of such organisations generally had broader area of specialisation, or members were translators and interpreters.

    Other associations set the bar very high in terms of the entry procedure. Some require peer references and a durable professional relationship to the referee. For newcomers who are still studying or lack the required experience, there are reduced membership fees, or probationary period. Some stipulated postgraduate studies as a co-requisite, whereas my experience is more practical. One exuded an air of being a glorified alumni association. I prefer a mastery-based approach – I attained mastery via the “10,000 hours route”.

    I might have joined associations sooner had agencies demanded membership as a commitment towards CPD. But many agencies don’t and prefer to “keep you mean”. A lot are not members of associations themselves – and in some cases were dismissive. Possibly another case why many translators “love the profession, but hate the industry“. From some translators I follow on LinkedIn, an MITI is held in high esteem with UK-based agencies. Over here I get the impression that agencies seem uninterested in memberships.

    Speaking at a BDÜ Conference in Bonn in November 2019 was a pivotal experience – with so much to take on board – not least speaking in the former Bundestag to a auditorium full of hundreds of people. I’ll admit that conference was inspirational and gave me a taste of what translators’ association events can be. And there were so many new contacts made at the event.

    Why spend money if you don’t need to?

    Since going in-house, and after nearly ten years as a SPLSU translators’ associations have taken on another importance. I value the opportunity to connect with other translators outside working groups and networks I am in through my job. When I outsource, I do ask translators whether they are members. I look through directories of members to find professional translators. I tell them this is how I found them (tip to freelancers: ensure you have an up-to-date website).

    Expense can be a factor of course – more often than not, the membership is around EUR 150-200 a year. There are often discounts for events (typically counting as CPD). For work, I often struggle to find translation-related CPD that is reasonably priced. Two such examples are:

    Membership is also a commitment to the purpose of an association. Last winter, I attended numerous meetings about the transformation of one association. I have committed to remaining a member despite the substantial increase in membership fees. In times gone by, I would have actively volunteered, but I have learned gradually to say no.

    So many choices, so little time!

    It makes sense to weigh up the options you need for yourself. Currently, I can’t commit sufficient time to the ITI, which has excellent networking possibilities. For this reason, I have applied to join the CIOL, based on their offering of webinars, which I can use for CPD. Many offer CPD for resilience and wellbeing – we can all do with some self-love. I also look at associations that accept submissions from non-members for conferences – I am very keen to present in person. Naturally, you don’t get accepted to speak everywhere: as we say in German “Man kann nicht auf alle Hochzeiten tanzen!“

    There is also another cerebral reason for joining associations: even their newsletters are an interesting read. They provoke you to also think about the profession, rather than just the act of translation, new working practices, and of course technology. The human element can be a great way to make new acquaintances – particularly if you work alone as a translator.

    Remember, if cost is the deterrent, many may let you attend an event as a guest. Give it a go – you have nothing to lose!