Measuring and improving the translation process with KPIs

Written by Adela Tudorache on July 10, 2013. Posted in Articles, KPI

Translation activities are hard to measure. Especially business translations, as they are more complex and require a specific terminology. There are some unique measures that can be used within your business to help you make your decisions, grade your performance and reward your teams. In three words: Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).

Within a business, translation covers more areas and, therefore, translation KPIs are an unique measurement challenge, as you have to measure the translation activities as well as the results of the translation efforts. The KPIs have to be measurable, understandable and actionable.

The development of KPIs is very important, if not even mandatory for a long-term success. Without keeping track of KPIs, the company risks a serious decline in translation value, a poor return on investment and a gradual descent towards the lowest quality translation provider. All these factors combined would eventually lead to the impossibility of attaining your objectives, i.e. reaching a global audience with a professional representation of your brand and business services.

Here are some examples of translation KPIs that could be of use for your business:

# New customers acquired in global markets.
$ Profit generated from translation activities.
% Translation ROI
# Time between scoping and starting translation projects.
# Time to complete translation projects.
% Translation project milestones missed.
$ Translation cost per word.
$ Profit per translation project.

It is important to bear in mind the fact that it’s essential to measure the efficiency of the translation process. Actually, in order to be successful, you must be efficient regardless of the business. And for that, KPIs must be correlated to Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound objectives and to the entire organizational strategy.

References: