Localization World - About Us

Localization World is a conference and networking organization dedicated to the language and localization industries. International product and marketing managers from high-tech, automotive, medical, financial and other manufacturing and service industries come to Localization World to meet language service and technology providers and to network with their peers in other companies and industries.

Mission
Localization World aims at providing a network for the exchange of high-value information in the language and translation services and technologies market. For the success of this mission, it is critical that the demand and supply of information meet each other in an unprejudiced and objective environment. Localization World follows two essential strategies to support its mission:

Localization World helps companies to accelerate their international business by providing easy access to the right information, knowledge and resources to aid them when crossing language and cultural barriers.

The Language Business
The language business is a small but rapidly growing industry sector spread around all developed markets in the world. The need to localize products first emerged in the high-tech sector in the 1980s, but it has now expanded into other vertical industries such as the automotive, communications, medical and financial service industries. Almost no sector is excluded from the drive towards e-business and internationalization. Language business is embedded in multiple markets, each with its own specific terminology and culture. Convergence, the dominant trend in the current economy, alludes to the melting of Internet and chip technology into practically every product that consumers need and use everyday. The language business faces the challenge of facilitating fluid cross-lingual communication in an increasingly collaborative and technological world.

Networking
The language business, dispersed as it is, requires networking. Networking is essential for managers from all geographical markets and multiple vertical sectors to find the appropriate resources, to learn from other perspectives and practices, to set standards, to educate, to research tools and technology and to benchmark. Localization World offers a transparent structure to ensure that these requirements can be met.

Networking Service
Localization World offers a Web-based networking service which guides conference attendees to finding each other on the basis of common points of interest. Through a fine-tuned structure of interest categories, participants in Localization World can identify peer groups and excellent matches for the expertise and tools on offer or required. To avoid unsolicited promotion, the "match making" is anonymous until the recipient decides to accept an information or meeting request.

Roundtable Meetings
Localization World organizes roundtable meetings for participants with a common interest — for instance, for medical device manufacturers or for users of globalization management software. Roundtable meetings are often held as closed sessions, open for "customers only," for "users only" or for "members only." Roundtable meetings may be aimed at advancing a standard or at creating new interest groups.

Point-Counterpoint Sessions
The point-counterpoint sessions at Localization World conferences provide for an open exchange of different perspectives. Challenged by a moderator, three or four panelists debate their viewpoints on a particular issue. Presentations are brief, thus leaving enough time for a thorough discussion and audience involvement.

Praxis Sessions
The praxis sessions at Localization World present hands-on solutions and techniques to specific well-defined problems. The case stories presented in this category are designed for practitioners. The praxis sessions ideally include user and provider perspectives.

Perspectives Sessions
The perspectives sessions at Localization World are shorter, less technical and more visionary presentations. The perspectives sessions are individual presentations in an absolutely neutral setting. Presenters are selected purely on the basis of their contribution to breaking new ground and offering new perspectives in the language business.

Workshops
Localization World offers a selection of workshops where language professionals can educate themselves in new techniques and new territories, such as terminology management, quality metrics, translation automation and Web services. Workshops are offered as full-day or half-day programs on preconference days or as one-hour sessions during the conference.

Tracks
Localization World incorporates various industry and common interest tracks such as automotive, Asian, medical and software localization tracks. Special focus on industry-specific localization and language requirements helps companies to benchmark and zoom in on specific market requirements. Tracks add special features to the Localization World conferences and do not change the fundamental focus on all localization and language business-related topics at all conferences.

Scheduled Conferences
Localization World conferences take place every spring in Europe and every fall in North America. Starting in 2006, Localization World will organize an annual conference every winter in Asia.

More Information

For sponsors
Localization World offers a very attractive sponsoring program to companies interested in gaining a broader market exposure in the rapidly growing language business sector. Brand recognition is offered through Web site promotion and on-site signage as well as through social programs. For more information, please contact: info@localizationworld.com

For speakers
For each conference Localization World publishes calls for papers highlighting a special theme and industry tracks. Speakers are invited to respond to these calls for papers and submit proposals for presentations in the format as published on the conference Web site. Presentations must follow strict guidelines as specified for the various formats — praxis, perspectives, point-counterpoint and workshops. All presentations must be submitted in advance and will be screened by the Program Committee. Speakers at Localization World conferences are offered free registration for one of the conference days.

For exhibitors
Localization World conferences are held in conjunction with exhibitions by language service, language technology and consultancy companies. For more information on exhibition space at Localization World conferences, please contact: info@localizationworld.com

For roundtable meetings
Localization World organizes exclusive roundtable meetings for common interest groups at each conference. These meetings can focus on specific vertical industry needs, on specific technologies, on benchmarking or on standards initiatives. Roundtable meetings can be set up as closed sessions. For more information on roundtable meetings, please contact: info@localizationworld.com

Advisory and Program Committees
Localization World is supported by high profile professionals in the language business from various geographical and industrial markets. The following members have helped to build very successful conferences in 2003 and 2004

For information on the current advisory committee supporting upcoming conference events, please check the Localization World Web site.

Industry professionals interested in helping to build future conferences, please send an E-mail.

About the Conference
The Localization World management team is Ulrich Henes (Localization Institute), Donna Parrish (MultiLingual Computing, Inc.) and Jaap van der Meer.

Localization World is produced in cooperation with the Globalization and Localization Association (GALA.)