LICENSED TO LIE?
I was really sad to read in this week’s papers that immigrants are to be banned from taking the UK driving test in their native language because of mounting evidence that ‘rogue’ interpreters are helping them cheat their way to a licence. Nearly 800 people have had their licences revoked after interpreters had been found to be coaching learners during their test
This is very disappointing for all the genuine people who are trying to make a living in the UK and need to get a driving licence. But what it does show is the vital importance of professionalism when it comes to translating and interpreting.
Working as we do in the language sector, we sometimes forget how much impact we have on people’s lives, and this was the theme of thebigword’s amazing conference last week. Our staff from all over the world heard how – every day of the year – we help babies be born safely, work with border agencies to stop criminals entering our countries, help emergency services save lives, and give people access to housing and work.
It struck me at the conference, as all our multilingual, multicultural staff got together, how important communication is in our information age. However addicted we all are to our smartphones and iPads, there is no substitute for talking to each other.
By not communicating effectively we can harm our personal relationships with our friends and family. Within a business, not understanding what your customers and competitors are saying can lead to chaos, and lots of missed opportunities.
Don’t forget that people may sell to you in your language but they buy in their own. By communicating in the customer’s language, you’re already half way to a sale.
I have also been to an interesting dinner celebrating the success of entrepreneurs and top managers, which I will tell you more about in next week’s blog, so have a great weekend, and keep warm...
Larry
This is very disappointing for all the genuine people who are trying to make a living in the UK and need to get a driving licence. But what it does show is the vital importance of professionalism when it comes to translating and interpreting.
Working as we do in the language sector, we sometimes forget how much impact we have on people’s lives, and this was the theme of thebigword’s amazing conference last week. Our staff from all over the world heard how – every day of the year – we help babies be born safely, work with border agencies to stop criminals entering our countries, help emergency services save lives, and give people access to housing and work.
It struck me at the conference, as all our multilingual, multicultural staff got together, how important communication is in our information age. However addicted we all are to our smartphones and iPads, there is no substitute for talking to each other.
By not communicating effectively we can harm our personal relationships with our friends and family. Within a business, not understanding what your customers and competitors are saying can lead to chaos, and lots of missed opportunities.
Don’t forget that people may sell to you in your language but they buy in their own. By communicating in the customer’s language, you’re already half way to a sale.
I have also been to an interesting dinner celebrating the success of entrepreneurs and top managers, which I will tell you more about in next week’s blog, so have a great weekend, and keep warm...
Larry
