Directorate-General for Translation EUROPEAN COMMISSION Using Cultural Diversity to Build Stronger Companies LISA Executive Roundtable K. - J. Lönnroth Director-General

April 2009 LISA 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

April 2009 LISA Executive Roundtable 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

April 2009 LISA Executive Roundtable Official EU languages

April 2009 LISA Executive Roundtable Evolution of the translation service in the European Commission Increase Languages423X 6 Management4118X 30 Staff252500X 100 Pages translated X 100

April 2009 LISA Executive Roundtable 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

April 2009 LISA Executive Roundtable GLOBAL TRANSLATION MARKET ( Mio USD) ESTIMATE 2006 THE GLOBAL MARKET IS GROWING AT A RATE OF 5% PER YEAR 3150 Translation companies 3115 Mio USD 25% of the worldwide market individual freelance translators 9345 mio USD 75% of the worldwide market

April 2009 LISA Executive Roundtable ESTIMATED BREAK DOWN OF THE LARGEST TRANSLATION COMPANIES 2006 (25% OF THE GLOBAL MARKET, 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 USD) 15 Translation companies 1467 Mio USD 47% 155 translation companies 750 Mio USD 24% 2980 translation companies 898 Mio USD 29%

April 2009 LISA Executive Roundtable ESTIMATED TURNOVER OF THE LANGUAGE INDUSTRY (Mio USD) REGION US EUROPE ASIA Rest of world TOTAL SOURCE: COMMON SENSE ADVISORY INC and F. BOUCAU, TELELINGUA

April 2009 LISA Executive Roundtable

April 2009 LISA Executive Roundtable 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

April 2009 LISA Executive Roundtable 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

April 2009 LISA Executive Roundtable 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

April 2009 LISA Executive Roundtable 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

April 2009 LISA Executive Roundtable 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