Chapter 5 Conclusions and Suggestions
5. 1 Study Results
5. 1. 1 The Freelance Interpreter
Freelance interpreters, by definition, are people who provide interpretation services as the final product of economic activities they are engaged in and are not regarded as an
employee of a certain organization or company when they are providing interpretation services.
5. 1. 2 The Balanced Scorecard
The Balanced Scorecard was originally proposed as an approach for both
manufacturing and service oriented businesses to performance measurement that combined traditional financial measures with non-financial measures to provide managers with richer and more relevant information about organizational performance, particularly with regard to key strategic goals (Kaplan & Norton, 1992). Over time, the BSC has developed to form the centerpiece of a strategic communication and performance measurement framework that
helps management teams articulate, communicate and monitor the implementation of strategy.
Designed to translate strategies into actions, the BSC put great emphasis on the linkage between performance evaluation and strategy. Its long term goal of achieving the entity’s vision by successful implementation of the core strategy, elevated its status from a performance evaluation model to that of a strategic management system.
5. 1. 3 Research findings
The following characteristics of a freelance interpreter were derived from interviews and direct observations.
Financial characteristics
- Freelance interpreters can belong to either stage of maturity, though the distinction between the “sustain” phase and the “harvest” phase isn’t clear.
- The total amount of interpretation cases is more heavily influenced by the general environment of Taiwan than by the freelance interpreters themselves.
- Price of service displays little fluctuation
- Freelance interpreters have sources of income other than interpreting
Customer relation characteristics
- The current target market for freelance interpreters in Taiwan is the Taiwan market - The most common market segments that interpretation cases fall in would be economics/finance and technology
- Freelance interpreters are likely to have long term clients that prefer to work with him/her - Clients usually prefer interpreters that have prior experience in their field of knowledge - Startup freelance interpreters usually gain access to cases through referral by intermediaries like PCOs (Professional Conference Organizer), equipment rental companies, or more
established interpreters
- Advertisements are not of much use
- Freelance interpreters usually wait for the clients to notify them of interpretation assignments
- The major SI and CI sources are different
- Quality of interpretation services is not easily measured by clients
Internal business process characteristics
- Simultaneous interpretation cases require at least two or three interpreters working in the same booth to ensure quality of interpretation
- Cooperation and competition between freelance interpreters - Unpredictability of performance beforehand
- Time is considered to be a measuring unit and resource
- Freelance interpreters often have partners they are used to working with
- Materials given by the organizer related to the upcoming interpretation service are the most important reference material for pre-meeting preparation
Learning and growth characteristics
- Interpretation is a skill that needs to be honed
- Internet connection a must for pre-meeting preparations
- Financial gains from interpretation services provided are translated directly into personal income
Based on the characteristics listed above, the researcher has derived the following scorecard:
-Financial perspective
-- income growth/sustained existence as an interpreter -- increase in interpretation assignments
-- increased payment collections
(Possible measures: interpretation related income; interpretation assignments;
payments collected)
-Customer perspective -- client satisfaction
-- long term client established
-- increased probability of interpretation assignments -- positive interactions with intermediaries
(Possible measures: client reaction and feedback; amount of assignments received from the same client; number of client referrals; frequency of communication with intermediaries)
- Internal Business Process perspective
-- positive interactions with other interpreters -- requiring feedback from clients
-- periodical provision/update of CV
-- effective glossary building and preparation -- successful referrals
(Possible measures: ratio of successful referrals based on client feedback; time saved due to cooperative behavior; implementation ratio of client feedback; intervals between CV updates; quantity and quality of glossaries shared/updated)
- Learning and Growth perspective -- domain knowledge enrichment -- high speed data access
-- refined interpretation skills
(Possible measures: self-evaluation after interpretation services are provided; news awareness; number of identified and accessible specialists)
5. 2 Limitations of study
The nature and purpose of this research is to explore the possible usage of management tools to aid the freelance interpreter in his/her career. Limitations of this study falls mainly in the lack of time and skill on the researcher’s side. Although strategic objectives were defined for the Balanced Scorecard, the implementation test wasn’t able to be carried out. The specific measures used would also require further deliberation and refinement to suit the individual freelance interpreter.
It must be acknowledged that different individuals will likely incline towards different BSC perspectives. The model proposed in this study is only meant to suggest a generic connection between propositions that can be built upon in future studies.
The difference between organizations and single-person-companies are also not
explicitly discussed in this study due to resource constraints. This study therefore employs the basic Balanced Scorecard concept as the focus of analysis. Other variants of the BSC like the non-profit organization model may be discussed in future studies.
5. 3 Suggestions for future researches
- Possible multi-case studies could be carried out on freelance interpreters willing to try out the scorecard. The objectives and measures can then be refined to further reflect the
individual interpreter.
- The BSC is meant to elicit innovative ideas regarding business processes. Discussions thus oriented can be carried out in future studies. The concept of intellectual capital and its management, as well as customer relation strategies for the freelance interpreter may be included in further discussions.
- The internal business approach focuses on creating added value between freelance interpreters through cooperation strategies. The exchange of glossaries could serve as a basis
for further cooperation based on increased communications. The possibility of networking through newsletters or on-line forums may be explored, as well as the formation of a basis for professional associations through this method.
