Business Models

Effective globalization can be carried out with a variety of business models. Over time, as products and processes have required ever-increasing levels of technical sophistication, most organizations that require localization have moved to one of various outsourcing models to obtain localization. Internationalization and other globalization tasks that have an impact on the basic design and engineering of products tend to be dealt with in-house, although consultants and localization suppliers may assist with these efforts.

The primary business models for localization that organizations may consider are the following (links lead to a more in-depth discussion of each model and its advantages and disadvantages):

• Localization through distributors. Product localization is handled by local partners in exchange for a portion of proceeds in a market.
• In-house localization. Organizations hire in-house localizers to handle their localization needs.
• Outsourcing to single-language vendors (SLVs). Localization projects are managed in-house with the actual translation done by service providers on a per-language basis.
• Outsourcing to multiple-language vendors (MLVs). Localization projects, including most management aspects, are outsourced to a service provider that handles multiple languages.
• Hybrid models. Hybrid models include aspects of more that one of the other models and are often chosen by larger organizations to meet specific needs.

Each of these models is optimized to meet a certain set of business requirements. An understanding of these models will help product developers and content creators find the model that best meets their needs and delivers the quality and services they expect.