Getting to BS EN Peter Bennett

Timeline 2 nd November First heard about BS EN at an ATC event in Westminster. Decided during meeting that we’d aim to be the first company to get it. 15 th November - Recruited a new member of staff and made certification their sole objective. 22 nd Feb Were audited and awarded standard by Bureau Veritas.

Results - “The BS factor” From the moment we were certified, customers began defecting to us from other agencies citing BS EN as the main reason. We are delighted that QUALITY as opposed to PRICE is now always the first thing which customers ask us about. Within just 2 weeks of achieving BS EN 15038, staff started to enjoy visibly reduced wrinkles, our whites became whiter and the office is full of April freshness. Of course, this really is all just BS!

What really happened Going through the certification process helped us tighten up our internal processes which can never be a bad thing. We realised that in some ways we actually exceeded the requirements already – we just needed to document them. The consultant we used (Chris Cox of GeoLang) and our auditor from Bureau Vertitas (Jamie Hunt) were very helpful.

BS EN Overall Impressions Classic piece of “Euro fudge” which actually means nothing whatsoever in terms of assuring translation quality. –Translators do not have to be ‘mother tongue’. The cop-out term ‘mastery’ of the language is used instead. –Translators must hold a degree in translation OR 5 years’ experience. Door is open to pure academics and rookies. More valuable in terms of marketing spin than in substance but in this business any differentiator is welcome. Will only be really valuable if effective awareness raising campaign is undertaken – looking forward to support (dollars?) from ATC in this area. Faces competition from EU European Standard.