We provided translation verification services for a large-scale educational study conducted across 34 countries. While the client coordinated the translations, our team ensured their accuracy, consistency, and cultural relevance.
Overview
The study was conducted by an international organisation dedicated to advancing research and understanding in education worldwide. Accurate translations were essential to maintain consistency, validity, and clarity of study materials across multiple languages.
Our role focused exclusively on translation verification, ensuring that all materials were linguistically correct, accurate, culturally appropriate, and consistent in terminology. The process was carried out entirely through the client’s platform, enabling streamlined tracking, collaboration, and reporting.
Process Steps
1. Preparation and Training
We worked closely with the client from the very beginning to fully understand the goals of the study. We defined clear verification criteria, including handling of adaptations, trend translation consistency, and image localisation.
To ensure alignment across all stakeholders, we organised a comprehensive training programme for verifiers. This included both theoretical guidance and a practical walkthrough of the client’s platform. Preparatory exercises were developed and reviewed in advance of the project start, ensuring that all verifiers understood the objectives, processes, and expectations – particularly in relation to commenting and documentation. Roles and responsibilities were clearly assigned from the beginning to maintain accountability and efficiency.
2. Verification Execution
Our team reviewed translations across 34 languages, primarily European, alongside selected Asian and South American languages. Each translation was assessed for linguistic accuracy, cultural relevance, and consistency.
All corrections and recommendations were documented directly within the platform through structured comments, suggestions, and approvals. This ensured full transparency, traceability, and alignment with project guidelines.
3. Quality Assurance
We actively managed and responded to verifier queries, sharing clarifications across the team to maintain consistency. For languages with multiple verifiers, we ensured alignment in approach and decision-making.
In addition, we conducted systematic quality checks using platform-generated reports to monitor adherence to procedures, consistency of feedback, and proper implementation of corrections.
4. Collaboration and Feedback
Close collaboration with the client was essential throughout the project. We refined instructions as requirements evolved, ensuring alignment through regular communication. All feedback was carefully reviewed and applied consistently across every language.
The challenges
Projects of this scale don’t come without complexity. Coordinating 66 verifiers across 34 countries required careful organisation – particularly as many were new to the process and platform. Tight deadlines added further pressure, alongside variations in translation quality and occasional delays in delivery from some regions.
Our role was not just to identify issues, but to proactively manage them and keep the project moving forward without compromising on quality.
Solutions / Hints & Tips
To address these challenges, we implemented a number of strategies. Assigning two verifiers per language helped maintain momentum and meet deadlines, while split deliveries allowed us to manage workload more effectively and keep the project on track. We leveraged platform reporting tools to support ongoing quality assurance and decision-making.
Comprehensive upfront training ensured alignment from the start, and regular communication – including weekly meetings with the client – enabled us to quickly resolve issues and maintain progress.
Results
- Delivered translation verification across 34 countries, ensuring linguistic accuracy, cultural appropriateness, and consistency across all languages.
- Completed the project within agreed timelines, successfully managing tight deadlines and delays in translation submissions.
- Achieved strong client satisfaction, with positive feedback from the study centre and clear alignment from participating countries on our comments and recommendations.
Planning a multilingual research project? Our translation verification services can help ensure that translated materials are accurate, consistent and culturally appropriate across every target market. We can also support projects requiring localisation and adaptation to maintain equivalence across languages and cultures.
Ready to discuss your project? Contact us today to find out how we can support your multilingual research.
