We’re a little over one month into a new year, and we thought that now would be a good time to take stock of where we are now, as well as where we and the translation industry are going in 2015 and beyond.
To begin with, 2014 was a year of unprecedented growth and achievement for Avantpage. With the economy on the upswing, our organization followed suit, literally doubling our client base and translating a total of 7,741,320 words in 2014. According to recent data mined from our annual customer survey, 97% of our clients indicated that they are either satisfied or very satisfied with our deliverables –– as quality and customer service remain at the forefront.
The past year also saw Avantpage interacting more directly with clients under the guidance of our new Senior Director of Client Services, David Serra. “I’ve always felt that face-to-face, direct and honest communication plays a huge role in client/vendor relations,” Serra commented. “For me, taking the time to call or meet in-person is invaluable for understanding and mitigating client concerns, especially as we embrace and utilize new technologies.”
Some of Serra’s initiatives for Avantpage included increasing Avantpage’s presence at conferences held throughout the year; promoting client collaboration through enhanced communication; increasing face-to-face client interaction; and providing greater understanding of our services, processes and technologies through demos, information sheets and other materials, as well as one-on-one communication with existing customers. Highlights include CEO Luis Miguel’s visit to LocWorld in Vancouver, B.C., the world’s premier event for localization professionals, where he met with vendors of new technology tools to see what new products and features are available to better serve our clients.
To further connect with clients, Avantpage boosted participation in social media during 2014, establishing a presence on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook, as well as our company blog. In our blog postings, we continued to keep readers informed about industry trends, organization happenings and information.
2015 marks the grand opening of Avantpage’s new Seattle offices, providing a brick-and-mortar Pacific Northwest presence and enabling us to be closer to our clients in that area. Our Seattle location places us squarely in the center of the PNW technology growth sector, enabling us to keep a finger on the pulse of innovations, trends and industry changes. Also in 2015, industry veteran Lori Ann Reinhall joins Avantpage as Quality Manager, where she will enhance recruitment efforts and oversee the quality control process. With over twenty years of experience, she will work together with Serra and Director of Client Services Vera Hooijdonk and support the project management team at large.
This year, Avantpage is committed to delivering even greater value to our clients through the release of AvantFlow 2.0, allocation of more time to one-on-one personal service, and our expansion into the emerging “Cloud.” Powered by cutting-edge XTRF™ technology, the company’s signature translation management system AvantFlow 2.0 now offers clients a fully secure virtual workspace for 24/7 service with live-time project-tracking and invoicing capacity – all at no extra cost. Through these initiatives, Avantpage is moving ahead as both a translation services provider and translations solutions provider, as we take on more of a “trusted advisor” role with our clients and refine our needs-based approach to language services.
According to Avantpage CEO Luis Miguel, “From manpower to technology, we now have the pieces in place to move forward in the direction I’ve always envisioned for my organization … These are exciting times, and I can’t wait to see what the future brings – both for Avantpage and for the translation industry as a whole.”
