First of all, happy International Translation Day 2015!
Just a quick message to let you know that no, my face has not changed (it is just getting older), but I now hold a Master in Translation, which kept me busy this last year or so and should allow me to deliver even better quality work to my clients.
I should be able to publish again new insightful blog posts on a regular basis.
Write to you soon!
Let me know in the comments below!
Nearly a third of LSPs in the UK have a financial score indicating a moderate to high risk.
What does it mean for the translation industry in the UK?
As an LSP, do you assess the financial health of your competitors?
As a translator, do you assess the financial health of an agency before working with it? If yes, how do you do it? Would you accept to work with an agency with a poor financial score?
Let me know in the comments below!
Why is the French Open, named after Roland Garros, a French pioneering aviator, so special? First of all, it is the only Grand Slam tournament played in a non-English-speaking country. As such, it is the only one to be translated, with three official languages: French, English and Spanish.
Besides, it is also the only Grand Slam tournament played on clay, and learning to play on this surface seems to be as big a challenge as learning another language for tennis players, especially for native English speakers. No wonder that the only American man to win this title more than once in the last 50 years, Jim Courier, learnt to speak French.
Nowadays, rare are the American players, men or women alike, able to speak another language. Serena Williams is an exception: she can speak Spanish and some Italian. Moreover, she has been working on her French and is the lucky owner of an apartment in Paris, where she trains at the Mouratoglou Academy.
Andy Murray, the only British player in the ATP Top 100, is not able to converse in different languages, although he lived in Spain for two years.
Spanish, just like English, is another major language. Consequently, Spaniards have less incentive to learn a second language. If we have a look at the Top 5, Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer are not really known for their language skills, even though Nadal showed some signs of improvement during his speech after his 2014 French Open victory.
On the other hand, two Swiss players are among the Top 5: Roger Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka. Federer can give his post-match press conferences in English, French, and Swiss German, and has some knowledge of Swedish and Italian. Wawrinka is also a polyglot, as he speaks five languages: French, German, English, Czech, and Italian. Switzerland is a multilingual country, which makes it definitely easier for its citizens to acquire language skills.
Last but not least, Novak Djokovic, the world number 1, speaks Serbian, English, German, Italian, and French, and considers himself as a language lover. Coming from Serbia, he has been well aware that Serbian is a minor language, which also encouraged him to learn new languages. He has made fast progress especially on his French since moving to Monaco, and he recently won the crowd over when he delivered a speech in French.
According to Djokovic, there is a Serbian saying which states that the more languages you know, [the] more is your worth as a person. But how much is your company worth on the international scene in terms of linguistic skills?
Just as Roland Garros became the first man to fly a plane over the Mediterranean Sea a century ago, I believe your company could fly over its competition by speaking the language of its audience.
Let me know in the comments below!
Here is the full list of the top 100 importers in France in 2012 (or the top 75 unique groups, including a joint-venture between Ineos Group Ltd and PetroChina), with the following criteria: rank, COMPANY, parent company, industry, HQ location.
1 TOTAL RAFFINAGE MARKETING, Total, Oil & Gas, France.
2 GRT GAZ, GDF Suez, Oil & Gas, France.
3 AIRBUS OPERATIONS, Airbus Group, Aeronautics, Netherlands | France.
4 ESSO SOCIETE ANONYME FRANCAISE, Exxon Mobil Corp., Oil & Gas, USA.
5 PEUGEOT CITROEN AUTOMOBILE SA, PSA Peugeot Citroën, Automobile, France.
6 PETROINEOS MANUFACTURING FRANCE SAS, JV Ineos Group Limited | PetroChina, Oil & Gas, Switzerland | China.
7 RENAULT SAS, Groupe Renault, Automobile, France.
8 AIRBUS SAS, Airbus Group, Aeronautics, Netherlands | France.
9 VOLKSWAGEN GROUP FRANCE, Volkswagen Group, Automobile, Germany.
10 SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS France, Samsung, Electronics, South Korea.
11 GDF SUEZ, GDF Suez, Oil & Gas, France.
12 GLAXOSMITHKLINE TRADING SERVICES LTD, GSK, Med & Pharma, UK.
13 LITASCO, LITASCO Group, Oil & Gas, Switzerland.
14 MERCEDES-BENZ FRANCE, Daimler AG, Automobile, Germany.
15 LIDL, Lidl Stiftung & Co. KG, Retail, Germany.
16 SOC D IMPORTATION LECLERC, Groupe E. Leclerc, Oil & Gas, France.
17 SOCIETE DES PETROLES SHELL, Shell, Oil & Gas, Netherlands.
18 SANOFI WINTHROP INDUSTRIE, Sanofi S.A., Med & Pharma, France.
19 MANUF FRANC PNEUMATIQ MICHELIN, Groupe Michelin, Tire Manufacturing, France.
20 ARCELORMITTAL ATLANTIQUE ET LORRAINE, ArcelorMittal S.A., Steel Manufacturing, Luxembourg.
21 SNECMA, Safran S.A., Aeronautics, France.
22 BMW FRANCE, Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, Automobile, Germany.
23 ELECTRICITE DE FRANCE, Électricité de France S.A., Energy, France.
24 HEWLETT-PACKARD FRANCE, Hewlett-Packard Company, Electronics, USA.
25 BP FRANCE, BP, Oil & Gas, UK.
26 SOCIETE D AFFRETEMENT ET DE TRANSIT, SwissPost, Logistics, Switzerland.
27 ALTADIS DISTRIBUTION FRANCE, Imperial Tobacco, Logistics, UK.
28 EXXONMOBIL CHEMICAL FRANCE, Exxon Mobil Corp., Oil & Gas, USA.
29 DECATHLON, Oxylane, Retail, France.
30 FMC AUTOMOBILES, The Ford Motor Company, Automobile, USA.
31 TOTSA TOTAL OIL TRADING SA, Total, Oil & Gas, France.
32 LILLY FRANCE, Lilly, Med & Pharma, USA.
33 SOCIETE AIR FRANCE, Air France-KLM Group, Aeronautics, France.
34 PFIZER, Pfizer, Inc., Med & Pharma, USA.
35 IKEA SUPPLY AG, IKEA, Retail, Netherlands.
36 RLG EUROPE BV, Compagnie Financière Richemont SA, Luxury Goods, Switzerland.
37 RENAULT TRUCKS, Volvo Group, Automobile, Sweden.
38 RUBIS TERMINAL, RUBIS Group, Oil & Gas, France.
39 AUTOMOBILES CITROEN, PSA Peugeot Citroën, Automobile, France.
40 PFIZER PGM, Pfizer, Inc., Med & Pharma, USA.
41 ROCHE, Roche Holding AG, Med & Pharma, Switzerland.
42 NOVARTIS PHARMA SAS, Novartis International AG, Med & Pharma, Switzerland.
43 COMURHEX-SOC CONVER URANI METAL HEXAFL, Areva, Energy, France.
44 NISSAN INTERNATIONAL, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., Automobile, Japan.
45 PFIZER EXPORT COMPANY, Pfizer, Inc., Med & Pharma, USA.
46 MSD INTERNATIONAL SERVICES BV, Merck & Co., Inc., Med & Pharma, USA.
47 SHELL EXPLORATION AND PRODUCTION, Shell, Oil & Gas, Netherlands.
48 STMICROELECTRONICS INTERNATIONAL NV, STMicroelectronics, Electronics, Switzerland.
49 PROCTER & GAMBLE INTERNATION OPERATION, Procter & Gamble Co., Consumer Goods, USA.
50 NEXANS FRANCE, Nexans S.A., Cable Manufacturing, France.
51 ARCELORMITTAL MEDITERRANEE, ArcelorMittal S.A., Steel Manufacturing, Luxembourg.
52 SCHNEIDER ELECTRIC INDUSTRIES SAS, Schneider Electric, Energy, France.
53 SA DE LA RAFFINERIE DES ANTILLES, JV Total | Rubis | Esso | Texaco, Oil & Gas, France.
54 PRATT AND WHITNEY, United Technologies Corp., Aeronautics, USA.
55 FRANCE TELECOM, Orange S.A., Telecom, France.
56 DASSAULT AVIATION, Dassault Group, Aeronautics, France.
57 GLAXOSMITHKLINE BIOLOGICALS SA, GSK, Med & Pharma, UK.
58 JOHN DEERE SAS, Deere & Company, Agricultural and Construction Equipment, USA.
59 INTERNATIONAL AERO ENGINES, JV United Technologies Corp. | Japanese Aero Engine Corporation | MTU Aero Engines, Aeronautics, USA.
60 CFM INTERNATIONAL, JV GE | Snecma, Aeronautics, USA.
61 GENERAL MOTORS FRANCE, General Motors Company, Automobile, USA.
62 POLIMERI EUROPA FRANCE, Eni S.p.A., Oil & Gas, Italy.
63 TOYOTA MOTOR EUROPE, Toyota Motor Corporation, Automobile, Japan.
64 RTE RESEAU DE TRANSPORT D ELECTRICITE, Électricité de France S.A., Energy, France.
65 FIAT FRANCE, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV, Automobile, Netherlands | UK.
66 ASTRAZENECA, AstraZeneca plc, Med & Pharma, UK.
67 ARCELORMITTAL FLAT CARBON EUROPE SA, ArcelorMittal S.A., Steel Manufacturing, Luxembourg.
68 CNH FRANCE, CNH Industrial N.V., Agricultural and Construction Equipment, UK.
69 BP OIL INTERNATIONAL LIMITED, BP, Oil & Gas, UK.
70 UNILEVER SUPPLY CHAIN COMPANY AG, Unilever, Consumer Goods, UK | Netherlands.
71 BAYER SAS, Bayer, Chemicals, Germany.
72 SOC SHELL INT. TRADING AND SHIPPING CI, Shell, Oil & Gas, Netherlands.
73 DELL PRODUCTS, Dell Inc., Electronics, USA.
74 APERAM STAINLESS FRANCE, Aperam, Steel Manufacturing, Luxembourg.
75 GE MEDICAL SYSTEMS, General Electric, Med & Pharma, USA.
76 ELI LILLY EXPORT SA, Lilly, Med & Pharma, USA.
77 ROBERT BOSCH FRANCE, Robert Bosch GmbH, Electronics, Germany.
78 BRICO DEPOT, Kingfisher, Retail, UK.
79 PHILIPS FRANCE, Koninklijke Philips N.V., Healthcare, Consumer Lifestyle & Lighting, Netherlands.
80 SOC FR DU RADIOTELEPHONE – SFR, Groupe SFR, Telecom, France.
81 TECH DATA FRANCE, Tech Data Corp., Electronics, USA.
82 TOYOTA FRANCE, Toyota Motor Corporation, Automobile, Japan.
83 DYNEFF S.A.S., The Rompetrol Group, Oil & Gas, Netherlands.
84 FREESCALE SEMI CONDUCTOR EME ETA SA, Freescale Semiconductor, Inc., Electronics, USA.
85 ASTRIUM SAS, Airbus Group, Aeronautics, Netherlands | France.
86 CARREFOUR HYPERMARCHES, Carrefour S.A., Retail, France.
87 CARGILL FRANCE, Cargill, Food, Agriculture, Financial and Industrial Products & Services, USA.
88 SANOFI CHIMIE, Sanofi S.A., Med & Pharma, France.
89 GOODRICH AEROSPACE EUROPE, United Technologies Corp., Aeronautics, USA.
90 LEROY MERLIN France, Groupe ADEO, Retail, France.
91 CONSTELLIUM FRANCE, Constellium, Aluminium Manufacturing, Netherlands.
92 DAIMLER AG, Daimler AG, Automobile, Germany.
93 NESTLE FRANCE, Nestlé S.A., Consumer Goods, Switzerland.
94 AUCHAN France, Groupe Auchan, Retail, France.
95 DIESTER INDUSTRIE, Sofiprotéol, Chemicals, France.
96 SABENA TECHNICS PAINTING, TAT Group, Aeronautics, France.
97 COCA-COLA ENTREPRISE, The Coca-Cola Company, Beverage, USA.
98 TOTAL GAS AND POWER LTD, Total, Oil & Gas, France.
99 TOYOTA MOTOR MANUFACTURING France, Toyota Motor Corporation, Automobile, Japan.
100 KIABI EUROPE, Kiabi, Retail, France.
Let me know in the comments below!
With £2.2bn generated by overseas TV rights, the English Premier League (EPL) is a clear international success. However, EPL clubs still need to implement relevant localisation strategies, in order to reach a wider audience and maximise the corresponding economic benefits.
Following two previous posts about US trade in then , this article deals with the state-by-state breakdown of US exports to France. It is the third instalment of “French Connection”, a series exploring English to French flows in terms of trade, finance and people.
Following a previous blog post about the insufficient English skills of French executives, I have decided to cross the Channel this time around, in order to explore the French skills of our beloved neighbours. Unfortunately, in spite of 20 years of Chunnel, the UK still has to bridge the French gap.
Don’t make me say what I didn’t write. I’m not saying the Spurs are world champions (USA is the current FIBA world champion). I agree with Gregg Popovich: “there are no world champions in the NBA”.
Following their recent victory over Miami, San Antonio is the NBA champion. However, in sharp contrast with the 100% American Heat, the Spurs are true global champions, with a roster including a league-record 60% of players born outside the continental United States.
France was the 10th market for U.S. trade in services with $18.5bn in 2012, which represented 60% of the trade in goods during the same period.
While several initiatives should further improve market access in the EU, such as a potential TTIP, the Trade in Services Agreement (TiSA), and the new Services Trade Restrictiveness Index (STRI) recently launched by OECD, companies of all sizes should benefit from major opportunities in an increasingly interconnected world.
If you plan to enter into the French market, or even if you already have a presence there, you should be prepared to reach your audience in French, in order to increase the impact of your message and improve the efficiency of your cross-border operations.
Indeed, nearly 46% of French executives have insufficient English skills. Further reports confirm the weak linguistic skills of the French workforce and the population as a whole.
Jérôme OsselaerGET IN TOUCH
+33 673 516 025
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