Directorate-General for Translation EUROPEAN COMMISSION Using Cultural Diversity to Build Stronger...

Directorate-General for Translation

EUROPEAN COMMISSION

Using Cultural Diversity to Build Stronger Companies

LISA Executive Roundtable

K. - J. LönnrothDirector-General

- 2 - 6 April 2009LISA Executive Roundtable

The definition of multilingualism

A proficiency of an individual to master more than one language

A situation where more than one language is spoken and written in a given geographical area

A situation where an organisation or institution uses several languages in its internal or external communication


Translation provides the necessary building blocks for these bridges to develop.

Multilingualism is about building bridges, between people and across policies. It has three

dimensions:

Interaction between citizens

Access to institutions, rights

and obligations

Efficient and pragmatic internal language regimes

Multilingualism and translation


Official EU languages 1958 - 2008


Evolution of the translation servicein the European Commission

1958 2008 Increase

Languages 4 23 X 6

Management 4 118 X 30

Staff 25 2500 X 100

Pages translated

17 000 1 800 000 X 100


The European evolutionary phases over the last decades

Postwar reconstruction Decolonisation The development of welfare states Free trade and the single market The end of political cleavage in Europe Globalisation and the supremacy of the market

economy The renaissance of the regional and local

dimension


GLOBAL TRANSLATION MARKET (12 460 Mio USD) ESTIMATE 2006

THE GLOBAL MARKET IS GROWING AT A RATE OF 5% PER YEAR

3150 Translation companies

3115 Mio USD25% of the worldwide

market

200 000 individual freelance translators

9345 mio USD75% of the worldwide market


ESTIMATED BREAK DOWN OF THE LARGEST TRANSLATION COMPANIES 2006

(25% OF THE GLOBAL MARKET, 3 150 COMPANIES)

15 COMPANIES ACCOUNT FOR 1467 Mio USD / 155 COMPANIES ACCOUNT FOR 750 Mio USD (AVERAGE 5Mio USD)

2980 COMPANIES ACCOUNT FOR 898 Mio USD (AVERAGE 301 342 USD)

15 Translation companies

1467 Mio USD

47%

155 translation companies

750 Mio USD

24%

2980 translation companies

898 Mio USD29%


ESTIMATED TURNOVER OF THE LANGUAGE INDUSTRY (Mio USD)

REGION 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

US 4000 4300 4600 4900 5300

EUROPE 25

6900 7200 7600 8000 8400

ASIA 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500

Rest ofworld

500 500 500 600 600

TOTAL 12500 13200 14000 14900 15800

SOURCE: COMMON SENSE ADVISORY INC and F. BOUCAU, TELELINGUA


Multilingualism – myths and reality

Multilingualism in Europe has an ideological and legal underpinning

Multilingualism is a result and a driver of globalisation Multilingualism has entered the central stage of policy

making and business Multilingualism is more an opportunity than a cost Multilingualism is a self-fulfilling prophesy Both the centrifugal and concentric tendencies

strengthen multilingualism Multilingualism broadens and widens the language

profession: Translator – Treditor Multilingualism is a driver for technological change


THE CONTRIBUTION OF THE LANGUAGE INDUSTRY TO THE GLOBAL ECONOMY

LOCALISATION AND CUSTOMER PROXIMITY GLOBALISATION OF LABOUR MARKETS LANGUAGE INDUSTRY AS A MAJOR EMPLOYER OF GROWING IMPORTANCE ENSURING THE UNIVERSALITY OF RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS DISSEMINATION OF KNOWLEDGE, INFORMATION AND IDEAS BRIDGING INTERNAL EFFICIENCY (MONOLINGUALISM) OF COMPANIES AND

EXTERNAL OUTREACH AND MARKET PENETRATION (MULTILINGUALISM) FOSTERING THE DEVELOPMENT OF INNOVATION AND NEW TECNOLOGIES

• DATABASES & TRANSLATION MEMORIES• ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, MACHINE TRANSLATION• MULTILINGUAL COMMUNICATION TOOLS• SEARCH ENGINES• MULTILINGUAL NAVIGATION AND MOBILITY• SOCIAL COHESION OF THE GLOBAL VILLAGE

INTER-CULTURAL DIALOGUE FUNCTIONING OF THE SOCIAL SERVICES THE PARTICIPATIVE SOCIETY HEALTH AND SECURITY JUSTICE AND SECURITY


Multilingualism – a challenge for enterprises

False feeling of security• In our mother tongue we say what we want – in a foreign

language we say what we can

Insufficient internal language proficiency Insufficient attention to local signals and follow-up Lack of confidence in local social dialogue Cuts in the consumer chain Wrong leadership and guidance of local subsidiaries Lack of understanding of local conditions by sales

managers


Elements of succesful local marketing strategies

Existence of an enterprise language strategy Appointment of staff to key positions with

knowledge of the language of the key markets Language skills as a key dimension in the

recruitment strategy The enterprise invests in and/or uses language

professionals


Future trends?

Growth in demand

Expansion of multilingualism

Stronger interaction between technology and the human brain

Further development of the WEB Content Management Systems

Rapid growth of the translation industry

Improvement of tools for productivity and quality control

Further investment in research public/private partnerships

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