Global enterprises are localising training for success
A recent report from RWS reveals that learning and development (L&D) professionals increasingly recognise the benefits of localising training content. According to the study, nearly three-quarters of global enterprises translate content for their employees, with half planning to localise even more content within the next year to enhance learning experiences and improve job performance.
The report, titled ‘Learning across Borders,’ surveyed over 300 L&D directors from large enterprises across the US, Europe, and Australasia. It highlights various strategies enterprises employ to integrate localisation into their eLearning initiatives. Despite a strong willingness to localise, many enterprises find incorporating local cultural nuances to be their biggest challenge.
To address this 57% use a combination of language specialists and machine translation to maintain accuracy and cultural relevance in their training materials.
The primary motivations for localising training content include achieving better training outcomes through more personalised learning, which business leaders believe provides a competitive edge. The research also identified several key findings:
Enterprises predominantly measure the return on investment (ROI) of their training programmes by improvements in employee performance (70%) and learner satisfaction (61%). Course completion rates are another significant metric, used by 51% of respondents.
A notable 30% of enterprises measure training outcomes by country, region, or language, emphasising the importance of localisation in delivering effective training.
The main drivers for localisation are the need to improve international training outcomes (51%) and to personalise learning for employees (48%). Other significant reasons include gaining a competitive advantage (40%) and supporting international business expansion (36%).
Enterprises prefer a balanced approach to training delivery. Approximately 40% of organisations opt for a mix of in-person and virtual training, while a smaller percentage lean towards mostly or fully in-person or virtual formats. English remains the common source language, with Spanish, German, and French being the top target languages for localisation.
The report also delves into the challenges enterprises face in localising content. Beyond cultural nuances, other significant obstacles include lack of in-house capacity (39%) and insufficient resources or expertise (36%). However, lack of leadership support and budget constraints are less frequently cited as major issues.
North American organisations, in particular, are more likely to outsource their localisation efforts due to perceived challenges in in-house capacity. In contrast, European and Australasian enterprises prefer utilising internal resources. The preference for human involvement in localisation processes is evident, with many organisations combining human and machine translation to ensure quality and cultural accuracy.
The research underscores the importance of strategic localisation planning. For instance, North American companies are more likely to develop training content in multiple languages from the outset, which helps accommodate diverse linguistic and cultural needs more effectively.
Amanda Newton, President of Global Content Services at RWS, noted:
“It’s encouraging to see how seriously enterprises are taking localisation. The research paints a positive picture of enterprises actively aligning their practices to ensure that training remains engaging, informative and effective. This can only be a good thing for worldwide learners.”
