Supplier Management at KERN

In co-ordination with our project managers, the supplier management team finds and selects the specialist translators most suitable for your project. In addition to our full-time employees, our team also comprises carefully-selected specialist translators, interpreters, proofreaders and terminologists who are under contract to us. Thus, we have a significant pool of competent linguists available who are active in a wide range of language combinations and specialist areas.

Handpicking a group of translators and proofreaders tailored to your sector and specialist area and using these consistently will mean higher levels of uniformity can be achieved between the various texts in terms of both style and terminology. Moreover, our translators have access to an array of terminology databases, specialist dictionaries and glossaries, which allow them to correctly convey the message in your source document to the target audience. Your project manager will select a suitable translator and/or proofreader from this pool for the required language combination and specialist area.

Our translators

KERN’s language specialists translate texts in their fields of expertise from their working languages exclusively into their mother tongue: KERN follows the principle that only a native speaker can convey all the subtleties of the original specialist text in a target language. Similarly, translations are only edited and proofread by native speakers.

Linguistic and technical suitability

All of KERN’s specialist translators have had academic training and/or hold a degree in languages. They are, moreover, often proficient in several foreign languages, meaning that they have a greater combined vocabulary.

In addition to comprehensive linguistic training, our translators often choose to specialise in a specific field or area of expertise. They acquire in-depth knowledge in a specialist area such as chemistry, medicine, IT, automation, finance, mechanical engineering or law through relevant practical or academic training, many years of professional activity or regular visits to specialist events.

Experience and training

High levels of linguistic competency are required of translators for the creation of accurate material in another language. Rapid advances in the fields of technology, science and economics mean new terms are created and terminology lists developed almost every day. Our translators don’t just possess the appropriate professional skills, but are also willing to undertake intensive research. Moreover, they benefit from the constant exchange of experiences with one another.

Translation engineers are always on hand to help our translators with the correct use of translation memory systems and the editing of complex file formats.

Selecting a translator

At KERN AG, potential translators have to fulfil strict application criteria to be accepted into the database.

In addition to submitting all information about their qualifications, experience and references, the potential translators are required to provide the contact details of two referees who we then contact to complete a short questionnaire assessing the translator’s skills and past work. Once these initial criteria are fulfilled to our satisfaction, the translator is asked to prepare a sample translation of a text in one of their areas of specialism. On the basis of this, we determine whether or not to add the translator to our database. Only then is a translator then considered for future assignments.

The translators actually continue to be assessed when working on projects. Comments regarding professional quality, reliability, availability, flexibility and technical proficiency are recorded in the database by our project managers and updated accordingly by the supplier management team. These comments ensure that we always have up-to-date information of the abilities of our translators and also help us always select the most suitable translator for your project.

In addition to their linguistic skills, abilities in translation, suitability or knowledge of specific specialist areas, the following factors are also taken into consideration:

• Experience and training
• General technical abilities
• Willingness to research, access to specialist information
• Willingness to ask questions if the text is unclear
• Availability
• Adherence to deadlines, capacity, flexibility and work speed
• Place of residence or work
• Fair cooperation