How to create a Localization Sphere of Influence (SOI) and why you need one

The other day, I was browsing the Netflix catalog looking for something to entertain me after watching The Squid Game's acclaimed series. Surfing and surfing, I came across a series that I liked a lot; it's about the start-up' world, technology, trials, conspiracy theory ... the truth is that a priori included many of the ingredients that I like in a series. I haven't finished it yet, but I like it. The series is called The Billion Dollar Code. And it tells the story of two Berlin internet pioneers who attempt to prove that Google stole their idea, worth billions (Google Earth).

In the series, there is a character, Brian, who is central to the plot (I won't say too much, no spoilers!). Brian is a celebrity who, back in the mid-'90s, had a considerable influence in Silicon Valley. He knew a lot of people; he had a lot of contacts in the industry. His sphere of influence was vast.

What can we in the Localization industry learn from Brian? We can understand the importance of influence and build our Localization Sphere of Influence (SOI).

Most of our stakeholders understand what a Globalization/Localization team does in broad terms, but very few know how we do it. That's why giving visibility to what we do is so important. Providing visibility to our work is on the doorstep of influencing and opening the door to development opportunities. 

 Why should we consider creating a sphere of influence?

Giving visibility to what we do is essential as it's a vivid indication of the best we have to offer. It will help us differentiate ourselves from our competitors, or in the case of a team, it'll enable us to build trust with our stakeholders.

Whether you are a solo localization professional or a Localization team member, giving visibility to what we do has become more critical than ever. Basically, without visibility on what we do, we will have few growth opportunities.

But apart from growth, one of the main reasons creating a sphere of influence is so appealing to me is that localization teams can move from being considered a service to being considered a strategic partner that actively contributes to the company's bottom line.

With the right message about the importance of Localization and the proper sphere of influence, a professional localization team will have more growth and professional development opportunities.

How can you create your sphere of influence?

1.- Identify the list of stakeholders you consider to be part of your sphere of influence

Without the support of the right people in our organization, it is challenging for our localization strategy to get much traction. It is difficult for our stakeholders to really understand how we contribute to the company's overall objectives. Unfortunately, when this happens, Localization is seen as a service rather than a major player that has a genuine impact on the company's strategic direction.

Localization touches many aspects of the software production chain and connects many stakeholders. There are more stakeholders than we probably think. If you have never stopped to think about it, in that case, this post might be useful (It takes a village to raise a globalized product - Who is responsible for Localization in your company? ) to start building your sphere of influence and thus start identifying the decision-makers when creating a digital product. A good starting point to determine your stakeholders would be to focus on Product Managers and Marketing Managers. According to a study conducted by Nimdzi 66% of the decisions related to needing or not needing Localization are driven by these functions.

Identifying your stakeholders and decision-makers is the first step in creating your sphere of influence.

It is important to remember that your direct manager can help you make your team's work more visible. Make sure your manager is very familiar with the work you do. It is quite rare in our industry, especially on the buyer side, that your manager understands Localization. So make sure you have a Managing UP strategy and that your direct manager is at the forefront of your SOI, as they will be your greatest ally in opening doors across the company. 

One last piece of advice on how to tackle these first steps of your SOI. Find your allies first in your company. The allies are those who are quick to understand the role of your team for one reason or another. Whether it's because they know the importance of Localization in building local engagement or whether they have previous experience dealing with localization teams or activities, they are people we can soon have on our side. We need to find them, pitch them our idea, and get them on board. They are the ones who will help us enormously to sell our concept to the decision-makers.

2.-Identify the goals of the decision-makers

 Once you have identified the most relevant people to work with Localization, the next natural step is to identify their annual goals. Ask for a copy of their OKRs, and once you have them, rack your brains on how your Globalization activities can help them achieve these goals.

Tip: if in the list of goals you see words such as "expansion," "international sales," "growth," "increase consumer base,"... That might signal that there's an opportunity for a Localization team to collaborate with your stakeholder's goals.  

3.- Spread the word and align expectations!

We already know who we want to have in our sphere of influence. We have also stopped to analyze their goals and think about how we contribute to them. It is time to spread the word and align expectations. We need alignment. Once we have defined the list of key stakeholders we want to have on our side, it is time to explain how our Localization activities help the different teams to launch global products.

 In tackling this third step, we must work to have solid and convincing answers to questions such as

1. - What are the objectives of the teams you support? 

2. - How does your Localization strategy fit into the strategy of the teams you support? 

3. - How do you contribute to the overall objectives of the company?

4. - How much profit can be attributed to international markets, and what % does it represent of the company's overall total?

5. - How does your Localization improve customer experience and drive customer retention? 

It's surprising, but more often than not, many people in an organization don't give much thought to how content seen by millions of people worldwide is produced, nor how a Loc team contributes to growth. The idea that digital content is translated via Google Translate or similar services is more widespread than we would like to believe. That's why working on convincing answers to the questions listed above is an excellent strategy.

In this third phase of developing our SOI, we must carry out initiatives to ensure that what we do is well understood. Create newsletters, organize lunch and learn sessions, offer to speak at internal events and even external events (without compromising the confidentiality, of course), take advantage of every opportunity and communication channel to explain what you do.

This phase of the SOI is all about ensuring that our network doesn't forget about our existence!

And a necessary action for our team, for our work not to be forgotten, is to have our localization pitch ready.

A localization pitch explains what your team does, what it delivers, or produces in five or six words or a couple of sentences.

For example, 'Our team delivers Globalization solutions to make the world playful' ☺️

In this phase of alignment, it is imperative to spend time and explain the concept that the Localization activities we carry out are more of a revenue accelerator than a revenue generator. This is a debate and an eternal discussion in our industry. Much has been written and talked about whether Localization is a cost center or an enablement center. I think it is the latter that it is a revenue accelerator. But you have to explain it well, and you'll want to be very transparent about how your team's budget is being spent-and especially how it's driving revenue downstream.

4. Take yourself as seriously as other teams do.

Sometimes the mindset of serving others that often accompanies Localizaiton's internal teams can work against us. To minimize this potential problem, a good idea is to take yourself seriously. "Take yourself seriously..." is an idea coined by the Venga Global team, and I think it's a brilliant concept as it encourages us to move away from a "service" mentality to an organised structure with road maps and clear definitions of what we do (and do not) do.

5.- Have a plan designed so that the sphere does not close down

Once you have identified your stakeholders, their goals, how you contribute to their goals, it is time to develop a plan to ensure that interest in your work does not wane. We can employ several different methods to address this "no closure" phase of our SOI, my favorite of which is the Quarterly Business Review. Internal and external QBRs are excellent tools to communicate quarterly progress, obstacles, plans, share data analytics etc... Do not hesitate to carry out any initiative that allows you to keep the relationship "hot,", as, after all, that is the ultimate goal of this 5th and final step of our SOI.

A good idea to keep the sphere open is to compile all the efficiencies we achieve when implementing our localization strategy. For example, are you using MT, and you can support users in real-time thanks to that? If so, say so. Are you using a TMS that allows you to benefit from launching frequent content to your global customers thanks to Continuous Localization? If so, say so. Or maybe you noticed that the number of page views of your product in Malaysia has increased by 27% since you started Localizing in Malay? Then say so! Now is the time to share the efficiency as it will make our SOI virtually immune to closure.

Summary 

Good communication, clarity on how your work helps other teams, and resilience are three skills that will help you build your SOI. As a localization professional, you already know the importance of speaking to your potential local clients in their language. But we can't stop there; we must strive to convey how incredible our team and our localization activities are. Giving visibility to the work we do and building a network of contacts will always be relevant. As your SOI grows, remember always to be present, actively listen to what is important to your stakeholders, and connect what you do with what they need.

Through the relationships you cultivate and your regular, transparent communications, you now have an SOI. That SOI will be very useful in spreading the word about your value and help you identify new opportunities. 

I wish you the best of luck in this journey of creating your SOI!

@yolocalizo

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