If you’re relocating your business, plan everything meticulously in advance down to the last detail, advises Neil Payne.
Moving his translation company Kwintessential from London to Somerset went so smoothly that he took his first order on the afternoon he moved into the new premises.
Payne, 33, started the business in 2003 in a one-bedroom flat in London’s Hounslow, after working as a language teacher travelling around the Middle East and studying Arabic. His wife Nicola, 36, (pictured with Payne at right) worked for an international oil company, and out of their joint experience came the idea for the business.
“We saw there was a need within international business for a one-stop shop which helped people work across cultural and linguistic barriers,” he says. “We would provide the translation services, cultural awareness training and manage multi-lingual websites.” Read more > Kwintessential
“Business needs good people and Somerset attracts very good people who also want to enjoy its quality of life”
Deborah Meaden, Dragons’ Den investor and entrepreneur
We get a lot of questions as to why Kwintessential are based in Somerset. We were born in Croydon in 2003. In 2005 a strategic decision was made by the company to move away from the bright lights of London to the more tranquil surroundings of Somerset in the South West of England. Since that time the company has grown and now boasts offices in London, Monterey (California), Buenos Aires (Argentina) and Cape Town (South Africa). The point being that a business can grow and expand without being located in a big city.
Why Somerset?
Somerset has proven to be a great home for the company offering a number of benefits including:
* Lower costs (rent, services, etc)
* Higher calibre employees
* Less competition from the translation market
* A significant number of multinationals and global market-leaders in Somerset
* Access to key regions of the UK through transport links
* Two international airports
* Excellent IT and broadband connectivity
* A cleaner, relaxed and less-stressful way of life
* A fantastic commute to work every morning! (Fields, sheep and cows rather than crammed into the 7.45 to London Victoria!)
Kwintessential are proud to announce that following an assessment by an independent body, the company has been awarded ISO 9001 certification. The certification has only been achieved by some 5% of UK businesses and this prestigious award is supported by the Government and recognised internationally.
“We have always been proud of the service we offer. We are dedicated to offering all our clients a smooth, hassle-free and simple experience and having good systems and procedures in place is the foundation for doing so. We have long strived to ensure we have the most optimum processes in place for all our work – whether translation, interpreters, cultural awareness training or multilingualwebsite design – and now with the award of the ISO 9001 certification, this has been confirmed by outside experts,” stated Nikki Johnson.
The winner of a unique business challenge to attract more overseas visitors to the West of England (Gloucestershire, the Cotswolds, Forest of Dean, Bristol, Bath and Somerset) has been announced on 13 January by South West Tourism in conjunction with Kwintessential, a regional language specialist.
Allium, the celebrated Cotswold Restaurant based in Fairford, Gloucestershire has won a multi-lingual website design package worth £500 to help it attract more Japanese visitors to the award winning restaurant and historic town.
Launched in early December the competition aimed to encourage businesses to improve their marketing advantage and global reach by allowing potential overseas customers to research holiday and business information on the South West in their own language.
Tourism operators were asked to say what they are doing already to attract foreign visitors and/or why they feel they would benefit most from a website translation. Allium husband and wife team James and Erica Graham alongside co-director Patsy Graham have owned the restaurant and adjoining delicatessen since 2004. In 2008, Allium was awarded South West Restaurant of the Year by The Good Food Guide.
Patsy Graham said: “This is great news coming at the start of 2009. We know that the Cotswolds is the number one area outside of London for Japanese visitors and we want them to be able to access information about us online. We have attended a Japanese visitors’ course to learn about etiquette and a little language. The prize translation of the website is going to be the final piece in the puzzle!”
Neil Payne, Kwintessential managing director said: “We are pleased to draw attention to growth opportunities in using language and cultural understanding to attract overseas visitors to the South West. Multi- lingual website translations reach customers in their own language and improve search engine optimisation in chosen markets. We are delighted to help the Allium Restaurant draw more Japanese customers to Fairford and the Cotswolds.”
The strategic importance of looking to overseas markets is emphasised by Malcolm Bell, South West Tourism Director. “Now is the time to be investing in marketing to attract overseas visitors. The Cotswolds is a popular destination for Japanese visitors. Reaching new customers in their own language both at the planning stage and on the move makes commercial sense and promises competitive edge.”
The presentation was hosted by Exeter Airport in their Corporate Aviation Lounge.
As the credit crunch continues to bite with vengeance, business across the globe are assessing how to use 2009 in order to be prepared for a possible up-turn in 2010. For many the answer will lie in working more internationally. However, a survey released today shows that businesses not only need to pay attention to costs, business processes and the like but also to the cultural awareness of their personnel.
Most analysts and business leaders acknowledge that 2009 will be a difficult year. With the flow of credit at an all time low and government policies needing months in order to take any affect, people and businesses are gearing up for a rocky year. However, businesses worldwide are approaching the downturn with a strategic response and analysing how to consolidate market positions in order to take advantage of the awaited up-turn. One strategy being implemented is to look abroad.
Looking beyond national borders offers many advantages in terms of reducing costs, finding new revenue streams and increasing market coverage. However, although going global seems an attractive proposition businesses must be aware of potential pitfalls. Apart from red-tape, local business conditions and the complexities of setting up operations, cultural awareness is critical for personnel working in foreign countries.
A survey released to today by the cross-cultural communications consultancy Kwintessential reveals at a whopping 88% of their internationally-savvy respondents agreed that cultural awareness training would have been of benefit to them prior to doing business in a foreign country. The results clearly demonstrate that businesses and their decision makers are not considering the impact sending their personnel into different cultural climates can have on the success of their operations. It could be assumed that a “we all do business the same” mentality guides such decisions.
The survey asked visitors to the Kwintessential website: “If you have worked abroad before, do you think cultural training would have helped you?” The question was posed in a manner that would only elicit responses from people who had actually been abroad for work in the past, and now using hindsight understood whether or not cultural differences had an impact on their trip.
Cultural awareness (or intercultural) training at a personal level is about helping people understand how their own values, assumptions, perceptions and ways of working can be challenged when working in another culture. Cultures differ in many ways whether it is in communication styles, how trust is built, how meetings are conducted and how people are motivated. By helping people understand themselves better as well as appreciating the culture(s) they are about to work in/with the result is greater synergy, better success rates and stronger relationships.
Cultural awareness training is a simple, cost effective and long term solution and something businesses should invest in for 2009. As part of a properly prepared international business strategy the provision of such training to staff can reap excellent rewards.
“Now is the time to invest in a business and invest in its people. Looking internationally is vital now and we all need to make sure that cultural awareness is at the top of our list as this is what can really give you a competitive advantage as well as improve chances of success,” commented Neil Payne, the company’s Director.
The South West must meet global export challenges head on with improved world class communications using effective language and cultural awareness skills, warned two West Country experts at the International Trade Forum in Bristol today.
The prestigious event this week sought answers for increased business opportunities worldwide, notably China.
The event’s Question Time panel led by broadcaster Peter Sissons included Professor Peter Gold of the Regional Language Network South West (RLN SW) based at the University of the West of England. RLN SW helps businesses in the region overcome language and cultural barriers.
Effective intercultural communications are seen as a must to open doors to export opportunities for South West businesses wishing to succeed in overseas markets.
Tourism businesses in the South West are being challenged by South West Tourism to attract more overseas customers to the region in 2009 through using multi-lingual websites.
South West Tourism has teamed up with Kwintessential, a leading regional provider of cross cultural solutions, to launch an innovative competition giving three businesses the chance to win a multi-lingual website design package worth £500 for the New Year.
In these uncertain times businesses can seek to improve their marketing advantage and global reach by allowing prospective overseas customers to research in their own language every aspect of a holiday or business visit to the South West
All types of private sector tourism businesses; accommodation, attractions, cafes, restaurants & inns, tourism retail and transport operators are eligible for entry and there will be one winner from each of the eligible areas (the West of England [Gloucestershire, the Cotswolds, Forest of Dean, Bristol, Bath and Somerset], Dorset and Wiltshire and Devon and Cornwall).
Malcolm Bell, South West Tourism Chief Executive of South West Tourism, cites the strategic importance of firms thinking about their global business development.
“In these challenging times, tourism operators should look to growth opportunities. This competition highlights the need to assist potential overseas customers in researching and planning their holidays in their own language both before and during the trip. Visitors from abroad tend to book earlier so the message is timely for next year along with the favourable euro exchange rate.”
Neil Payne, Kwintessential managing director said:
“We are delighted to bring our experience and expertise from working with exporting companies to tourism. For operators wishing to attract overseas visitors, a multi-lingual website reaches potential customers in their own language, improves search engine optimisation in chosen markets and demonstrates language and cultural understanding.”
The online entry form is available at: http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/competition/.
Entrants simply describe what they are doing already to attract foreign visitors and/or why they feel they would benefit most from a website translation. The three winners will receive 1,000 words professionally translated into two languages of choice, advice on key messages across five web pages and micro website pages integrated and linked to their own website home page. Deadline for entries is 3rd December.
Notes to editors:
Kwintessential is the South West’s leading provider of cross cultural solutions for today’s businesses and organisations supplying bespoke intercultural training, translation and interpretation services.
The company was set up in 2003 by Neil Payne to fill a gap in the market for tailored cross cultural solutions to help firms competently negotiate the “cross cultural” business to business minefield and provide cost effective training, translation and interpreting services. As a well respected expert in language and cross cultural issues, Neil is regarded as an authoritative voice on topical cultural and language issues affecting business.
South West Tourism is the official regional tourist board, working to encourage the development of tourism in Bath, Bristol, Bournemouth/Poole, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Gloucestershire (including Cotswolds & Forest of Dean destinations) and Wiltshire.
Neil in action at the recent International Horseback Archery Championships in Sokcho, Korea
A leading expert in language and cross cultural issues, Neil Payne of Kwintessential, is translating his skills in a new international arena by representing the UK in the first ever European Championship of Horse Archers taking place next week in Germany.
The event brings together horse archery enthusiasts from all over Europe and as far a field as Korea, Japan and Mongolia to compete, share information, network and build a strong international brand for the sport, the history of which goes back to Mongolian steppes and early warfare.
Somerset based Kwintessential is a main sponsor of the European Open Championship of Horse Archers with Neil Payne, managing director, acting as advisor for intercultural affairs.
Neil, chairman of the British Horseback Archery Association is a keen horseback archer and recently returned from participating in the 2008 World Championships in South Korea. He is thrilled that Horse Archery is being recognised now on a competitive European stage.
Neil explains: “The European Open Championship is a real cross cultural event and I have been able to offer mine and Kwintessential’s specialisation in intercultural awareness training and translation to ensure clear communications in the organisation leading up to and during the Championship.
“Horseback archery is a highly exciting and thrilling participative and visual sport.I am delighted to be actively involved both on and off the field to help ensure this first Championship is a resounding success.”
Horseback Archery is widely regarded an art, rather than a skill or merely a sport. Whereas horseback archers in Asian countries, e.g. Koreans, Mongolians and Japanese, have guarded their initial tradition well over centuries, Horseback Archery in Europe is a melting-pot of various techniques and styles, mainly influenced by the heritage of the ancient Hungarian tribes, the Turks, the Scythians, the Sarmathians and the Huns. 70 competitors are expected in Hummelhof, near Bamberg in Germany on the 6th & 7th September, to compete in the 2008 European Open Championship of Horse Archers.
Kwintessential is the South West’sleading provider of cross cultural solutions for today’s businesses and organisations supplying bespoke intercultural training, translation and interpretation services. The company was set up in 2003 by Neil Payne to fill a gap in the market for tailored cross cultural solutions to help firms competently negotiate the “cross cultural” business to business minefield and provide cost effective training, translation and interpreting services.As a well respected expert in language and cross cultural issues, Neil is regarded as an authoritative voice on topical cultural and language issues affecting business.
The dollar is falling, but globalization presses on – with an increased demand for translation. These key facts explain why a new report from business globalization research and consulting firm Common Sense Advisory (www.commonsenseadvisory.com) reveals that, in spite of the changing rankings of players in the global economy, pricing within the US$12 billion-plus translation services industry has remained relatively stable in recent years. For most languages, prices fluctuated by only 10 percent up or down over a four-year period. Common Sense Advisory based these findings on a detailed online survey, which was completed by nearly 300 language service providers (translation firms) about their pricing structures, processes, and customer bases. The firm’s 112-page report, entitled, “The Price of Translation,” includes pricing data in average prices for the 10 languages with the greatest global economic impact (for example, French and Chinese), as well as 23 “next-wave languages” used in rapidly developing markets or in countries that are important to the global supply chain (for example, Arabic and languages of India.
Other key findings include:
• The dollar has fallen out of favor. The research found that more than half of survey respondents currently invoice for translation jobs in Euros, and 49.1 percent indicated that foreign clients pay more than local clients. With an increased reliance on euros for pricing, companies that pay in dollars can expect their translation bills to go up.
• Spanish dropped in price more than any other language. In total, the company reviewed 74 language combinations. One pairing, English to Spanish for Latin America and Spanish to English, dropped in average price far more than any of the other pairs for translation in both directions.
• Automation benefits buyers. Businesses can obtain substantial cost savings by working with translation providers that partially automate the translation process. The research found that most providers discount the normal price by 65 percent when converting previously translated text.
• Seven languages are poised for major growth. The firm anticipates a significant growth of content in the six hyper-languages of the web (English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Japanese), as well as Chinese.
Common Sense Advisory’s research and consulting clients include global companies from the information technology, medical device, telecommunications, consumer goods, and travel industries. “We regularly help companies with revenue growth and cost reduction in a global business environment; advising them on local best practices, including translation and localization services,” said Tahar Bouhafs, the company’s Chief Executive Officer. “With some 5,000 vendors across the globe offering translation services, ranging from mom-and-pop operations to enterprises with more than 4,000 employees, buyers of language services want to know how and where to get the best deal or the highest value. Suppliers want to find out whether their prices are competitive against a nearly unlimited number of mostly unknown rivals. That’s what this industry research report explains.”
The full report is available to subscribers of Common Sense Advisory’s research. Visit http://www.commonsenseadvisory.com. Analysts are available for interviews and briefings by contacting Melissa Gillespie at melissa@commonsenseadvisory.com.
Trivantis, a leading global provider of tools and services that enable its customers to create and manage eLearning content and multimedia communications, today announced the availability of multilingual versions of CourseMill 5.0, its leading Learning Management System (LMS) and Lectora 2008.
The solutions are now available in the following languages: CourseMill 5.0 in Dutch, French, German, Italian and Spanish
Lectora 2008 in French, German, Spanish and Swedish.
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