What is centralized translation?

Translation plays the most important role in localization, and you should know there are different models for managing translation, each with its own advantages and challenges. Most often, the natural choice is centralized translation. If you’re curious to see why and how it can improve consistency, efficiency, and cost savings, read on.

About centralized translation

Centralized translation is a model where all translation activities within an organization are managed and coordinated through a single, unified system or team. Instead of individual departments or teams handling their own translation needs independently, all translation requests, processes, and resources are consolidated under one central authority. This could involve using a dedicated translation management system (TMS) or having a specialized team responsible for overseeing all translation work.

Centralized translation vs decentralized translation

Before we move forward to the advantages of centralized translation, it’s important to discuss another main model, which is decentralized translation. If we compare the two, it becomes evident why many companies will usually choose to go with the centralized option.

As mentioned, with centralized translation, all translation activities are managed by a single team or system. When it comes to decentralized translation, you get the opposite: individual departments handle their own translation needs. This offers more flexibility compared to the centralized model, but often leads to inconsistencies.

Because you have one central authority overseeing everything, centralized translation ensures uniform terminology, style, and quality across all translated materials. The quality and consistency of decentralized translation can vary since each department may use different vendors, tools, and processes.

Centralized translation is also easier to scale across the organization, as it supports consistent expansion into new languages and markets. Decentralized translation, on the other hand, is a bit more difficult to scale. With this model, scaling can lead to inefficiencies and greater inconsistency as each department manages growth independently.

The advantages of centralized translation

When you manage all translation activities through a single system or team, you can enforce uniform standards for terminology, style, and tone. We always like to mention how this consistency is crucial for maintaining a cohesive brand image. This is something you need to consider when communicating in multiple languages across different markets.

In addition to consistency, centralized translation is often more cost-effective. By consolidating translation efforts, you can achieve economies of scale, such as negotiating better rates with vendors and reducing the duplication of efforts. Plus, centralized translation teams or systems can manage resources more efficiently. This means that tools like translation memories (TM) are fully utilized across the organization.

Another thing that can happen when you use this translation model is that you can enhance quality control and project management. With all translation activities being funneled through a central team, you can implement standardized quality assurance protocols. This way, every translation meets the same high standards.

Not without least, centralized translation might likely improve data security and compliance. When you handle sensitive information through a single, controlled channel, it’s easier to reduce the risk of data breaches. If you’re an organization dealing with confidential or regulated content, this is particularly important.

Tools used in centralized translation

You can’t do centralized translation without a translation management system. TMSs such as POEditor automates and manages the entire translation process, from project initiation to completion. It integrates with other tools and platforms to handle workflows, assign tasks, manage deadlines, and track the progress of translation projects. Furthermore, TMS stores translation memories and glossaries.

Speaking of, TM is a database that stores previously translated text segments for reuse in future projects. When new content is translated, the TM suggests matching or similar segments from past translations, saving time and ensuring consistency. In a centralized system, the TM is shared across the organization so that all departments to access and benefit from the same set of translated materials.

Machine translation (MT) systems automatically translate content using AI-driven algorithms. We should point out that MT is not always as accurate as human translation. However, it is useful for translating large volumes of content quickly or for providing first drafts that can be refined by human translators. In a centralized system, MT can be integrated with a TMS to expedite translations.

Other tools commonly used for managing translation include Quality Assurance (QA) tools, Content Management Systems (CMS), collaboration platforms, vendor management platforms, and reporting and analytics tools. It is worth investing in such tools to create an efficient, scalable, and quality-driven centralized translation.

Choose your translation management system

We don’t want to brag, but POEditor stands out as a top choice for a TMS in centralized translation due to its robust features and user-friendly interface. It’s designed to streamline the translation process, offering comprehensive tools that allow organizations to manage their localization projects efficiently and consistently across all platforms.

One of our key advantages is the powerful TM feature, which stores all previous translations for reuse in future projects. This not only ensures consistency in terminology and style across all translated content but also significantly reduces translation time and costs.

POEditor’s collaborative environment allows multiple translators and reviewers to work simultaneously on a project, with real-time updates and notifications keeping everyone aligned. This feature is beneficial in a centralized system, where maintaining coordination across various teams and languages is very important.

Alas, we offer multiple integrations and translation options that include both machine translation and human translation. So why not start your free trial period to test paid features and see if we’re a match?