97 Things Every Project Manager Should Know

(^6) 97 Things Every Project Manager Should Know

A Word Can Make You Miss Your Deadline

Pavel Simsa, PMP
Bellevue, Washington, U.S.

WhICh WoRD CAn MAKE yoU MISS yoUR DEADlInE? The answer is “any
word.” When you are developing a product that will be released in languages
other than English, you are adding numerous new risks and constraints to
your project.

Some are technical and obvious. For example, if your product will be released
in Japanese, it has to support the appropriate fonts. If it doesn’t, the Japanese
version won’t work, even if the English one works perfectly. But font compati-
bility is not under your control. You and your team need to be aware of transla-
tion quirks and consider them before coding. Make sure that the development
practices follow international standards that will eliminate such issues.

However, the mere need for alternate language versions also constrains what
decisions you can make and when. Typically, localization (Japanese, Swedish,
German, etc.) happens in parallel with English development, with a certain
lag. It can be a few days, weeks, or even months. However, at some point the
translation of the foreign version has to “catch up” with the English version.

You need to make sure during testing and reviews that:

•    What is in the English version can be properly translated

•    What is translated truly corresponds to the English version

•    The translated product works flawlessly

Here’s the catch. These three things may be tested after the English version
is finished and signed off on. During the testing and reviewing of a localized
version, you will always find at least one challenging issue that can’t be solved
except through a change to the English product.