Noon – 1:00 PM, U.S. Central Standard Time

After a quick and satisfying lunch at the McDonald’s restaurant located on campus, Osiel orders a cup of Chai Latte from McCafe to drink as she walks along the lake to return to her office.

Globalization Management Issue #6

Successfully performing one’s “regular day job” while building a globalization management function

Required Management Abilities

Multi-tasking and task delegation abilities, supported by a high energy level

Osiel meets for the second time today with her team, this time to review project schedules to uncover and deal with any risks that may prevent on-time, high-quality deliverables.

The evangelism component of a Globalization Manager’s job is almost always in addition to her “regular day job.” Currently, Osiel does most of the consulting herself, along with people management and public relations for the department. She also manages projects, especially at the beginning stages, since she’s the one who sets the strategy and approach. Sometimes, she must even set up the localization process because that’s the part that the people in other departments don’t know how to do. Once an entire localization project has been scoped, scheduled and costed, it is then assigned to one of the Localization Project Managers, who is then responsible for the ongoing, day-to-day project management.

Osiel on What It’s Like to Be an Evangelist

“I’m basically running a race to get to specific milestones by particular times. There is a need to show a certain amount of success within a certain timeframe to get to the next step. In the past, neither business planning nor promotion was considered to be the responsibility of the person in my position.

“Taking on these responsibilities and obligations makes me a lot busier than I am already, but I believe that these things must be done for us to get to the next level. We must reach certain milestones for McDonald’s to be able to progress towards being truly global enterprise-wide.”

1:10 – 1:45 PM

Globalization Management Issue #7

Using a matrix organization to implement a successful globalization strategy

Required Management Abilities

Performance management and organizational development

Current Challenge

How to tie global project knowledge to performance objectives enterprise-wide

Osiel and her manager meet to discuss the possibilities of tying global project knowledge to job performance at McDonald’s. Osiel has already convinced her manager that, in order for people to take globalization seriously, those who are involved in the development/design of products/materials for global rollout need to be held accountable for the localizability of the final deliverables. There will be a lot of work to do, and this change will only be implemented over time, but it will be key to ensuring that globalization becomes part of the fabric of the organization.

Osiel on Tying Global Project Knowledge to Performance Objectives Enterprise-wide

“After I first joined McDonald’s, I started organizing workshops for localization project management and for designing documentation for international audiences. However, I soon realized that if we didn’t have buy-in from the leadership, no one was going to come – everyone is so busy with their day-to-day work.

“It also turns out that the performance review is a very important tool for motivating a person to do something, even if it’s not something s/he wants to do. So, in addition to making these seminars available and obtaining leadership buy-in, there have to be incentives and motivation to make people want to come. So, the question is how to tie this into the competencies of the people who are developing global products/services.”

2:00 – 3:20 PM

Globalization Management Issue #8

Implementing a globalization management system (GMS)

Required Management Abilities

Strategic focus and process improvement

Current Challenge

Locate a GMS solution that fits current workflow and meets business needs

Recognizing the need for a GMS within the McDonald’s system to facilitate and streamline the localization process, Osiel put together a business case about the benefits of GMS and won leadership buy-in. However, it turns out that the real challenge lies in finding a product that fits the criteria defined by Osiel’s team, based on the current workflow and the unique business context at McDonald’s, without requiring extensive customization. Osiel and her team meet to debrief one another on the demos they have reviewed over the past few months for various GMS.

Osiel on Using a GMS as a Tool in McDonald’s “Globalization Makeover”

“McDonald’s needs a GMS in order to create synergies between Language Services on the corporate side and the in-country translation teams at the local level. Some countries have their own translation teams in-house, and some countries use external teams. I believe that it is the responsibility of Language Services to tie all of these different teams together on one platform, rather than all of us continuing to operate independently.

“Most of the folks in-country, even when they do translation, are usually very traditional translators. This means that they generally aren’t familiar with the concept of translation memory (TM) or with language technology such as TRADOS. Another objective for Language Services is to educate these people as to the tools and processes available, and to introduce them to organizations like LISA, so that they become aware that there are tools and processes that can be incorporated into one primary workflow that will benefit all of McDonald’s.

“Once the GMS is implemented, we will be able – at any time – to know what is being localized in Asia, its status and the type of corporate support that may be required. The same thing for Europe and other areas of the world where McDonald’s is present. We will then be able to plan ahead to ensure that the in-country teams have access to the right resources at the right time. Or when the teams need to work with external vendors, we will be able to provide them with the selection criteria, e.g., one that has already adopted the TMX standard so that we can leverage TM resources.

“A GMS is one of the tools that will help McDonald’s get to the next level of being a globally aware enterprise. It will also help us save on localization costs by leveraging TM. The leadership in my department is very supportive of what I have proposed.”

3:30 – 4:30 PM 3:30 – 5:00 PM

Globalization Management Issue #9

The Global Business Process Challenge: Teaching Product/Project Managers how to transform project planning from a U.S.-centric focus (“throwing it over the wall”) to a global focus (implementing a rational business process to incorporate international requirements/feedback up-front).

Required Management Abilities

Evangelization, negotiation, persuasion and presentation skills

Current Challenge

Convincing a reluctant Project Team that the up-front investment in globalization is worth it

Osiel walks across campus to meet with a Project Team, consisting of both internal Project Managers and outside software consultants, which has recently discovered that Osiel’s team exists. Though a bit leery of the extra work that architecting globalization into their original specifications may require, the various team members are painfully aware that simply “throwing something over the wall” to the countries and waiting for problems to be reported is not working. They have asked Osiel to help them understand what will be required of them if they decide to architect globalization into their next project through a presentation on (1) case studies from other groups that have architected globalization into their projects the first time around and (2) numbers to show the last few non-believers in the group why McDonald’s will earn more from “doing it right” than from continuing to “throw it over the wall” to the country organizations.

Osiel always looks forward to trying out a new presentation on groups that are not totally convinced that the up-front investment in time, effort and money in globalization is actually worth it. There is always a lot of “give and take,” but so far at McDonald’s, globalization is making steady headway into the company’s business processes.

The group today is no different. As Osiel delves deeper into what the various team members are not telling her, she realizes that their overriding issue is their tight schedule. “Throwing it over the wall” is the only way that they perceive to make the schedule. Osiel decides to lead the group in a role-play exercise in which they assume that there is no choice – they must meet the revenue goal attainable through “doing it right,” yet not change the schedule.

It takes awhile, but eventually the Project Team comes to realize how they can reprioritize a few non-globalization-related features, farm out a piece of the code to one of the in-country offices of the outside software consultants, and even come in ahead of schedule. There are risks, but they are entirely manageable, since they are being recognized and documented up-front.

The session has lasted much longer than anticipated, but Osiel leaves, feeling that this represents a big win. This group is composed of some well-respected Project Managers and software developers who are always extremely vocal. She now expects the message about the expertise of her group to spread more quickly to other groups, thus increasing the number of requests for their help.

Osiel on the Implications of “Throwing It Over the Wall”

“As is the case with many global companies, Project Managers at corporate headquarters often focus most of their effort and resources on development. Then the product/service is handed off to the countries for implementation, with any internationalization/localization problems theirs to solve.

“The common problem with a decentralized approach for globalization adopted by any global company is that the people at headquarters consider that their responsibility ends when they develop something in English and deliver it. They don’t recognize or understand the issues faced by the countries or how they struggle to localize the English version. They don’t experience enough pain to learn what they need to do during the development process to make it easier for localization.

“The implication of this very decentralized approach is that there is a big gap between the people who develop something for the countries, and for the people who must use it. Since corporate headquarters does not provide funding for localization , many hidden costs are overlooked, e.g., how much the countries are spending on their individual localization projections, or the duplication between different countries.

“Language Services is now bridging this gap in two ways. We are clearly communicating at the corporate level the costs of a decentralized vs. a centralized approach to internationalization and localization. And perhaps more importantly, we are consulting with as many project teams as possible to educate them as to how McDonald’s will come out ahead if they work in concert with the countries, rather than just throwing their projects over the wall. The latter may certainly appear to be convenient in the short-term, but always ends up being more costly and time-consuming in the long run.”

5:10 – 6:00 PM

Globalization Management Issue #10

Developing a globalization strategy for the organization and managing the localization budgets

Required Management Abilities

Business management, strategic planning and leadership skills

Current Challenge

Undertaking the director role in setting directions for globalization/internationalization/localization, in addition to her responsibilities of managing people and projects

After a full day of back-to-back meetings, Osiel finally sits down at her desk to work on localization strategies and funding proposals for the localization initiatives she has proposed for her department for 2005. Even though Osiel’s main responsibilities as a manager of a localization team is people and program management, she is also expected to develop globalization strategies for the organization – her team is the only business unit within McDonald’s with this expertise.

Osiel’s team has always been overseen by a director with a strong operational background in the McDonald’s system, instead of by a director with GILT (globalization / internationalization / localization / translation) expertise. In the past, Osiel’s predecessors focused primarily on the delivery of translation and interpretation services. Recognizing the importance of taking the leadership role to set globalization strategies to influence and improve localization processes, Osiel has taken it upon herself to develop and implement a globalization strategy. This is in addition to her already busy schedule managing her team and overseeing the various localization projects enterprise-wide.

Osiel on What It’s Like to Be a Global Corporation’s Globalization Evangelist

“McDonald’s is a great company to work for. I am thrilled to have the opportunity to make a difference to a global giant like McDonald’s with my expertise in globalization. What I enjoy most about working here is the room I am given by my senior management to improve on the existing globalization processes. My job is both challenging and satisfying.

“The next milestone of my journey here at McDonald’s will be achieved when my department is viewed as a true Center of Excellence on globalization/internationalization/localization within the McDonald’s system, AND there is a seat reserved in the board room for a globalization director who is respected for her specialized expertise in how to help our business grow globally through best practices in globalization/internationalization/localization.”

6:30 PM, Monday evening

Osiel arrives home, tired but extremely satisfied after a long day of championing globalization.

Jia-Shin Chiu Osiel is Manager of Language Services for Worldwide Training, Learning & Development at McDonald’s Hamburger University in Oak Brook, Illinois in the U.S.