WhP will be present at the GALA Conference in Monaco on March 26-28 and presenting a lecture on Vendor Management:

'Simply the Best: Finding the Top Vendors'

Janaina Wittner and Laurene Ballet (WhP International SAS) explore the critical steps of the vendor selection process and learn how to “get the best” from translators in this practical session offering concrete advice on vendor selection and retention. Learn how linguistic quality controls provide benefits to all stakeholder including vendors, localization companies, and end clients. Engage in the discussion as we examine a roadmap to healthy, enduring vendor relationships.

“GALA 2012: The Language of Business. The Business of Language.”

Seattle, Washington, USA (1 September 2011) –The Globalization and Localization Association announces that its next conference for global content delivery professionals, “GALA 2012: The Language of Business. The Business of Language.” will be held 26 – 28 March 2012 at Le Méridien Beach Plaza in Monte Carlo, Monaco.

Each year GALA assembles a talented team of language and localization professionals from the vendor and buyer side of global content delivery to develop the programming for the annual event. Led by Robert Etches, CEO of EICOM in Denmark, the participants of this year’s program committee are as follows:

- Robert Etches, CEO, EICOM
- Wayne Bourland, Director, Global Localization Team, Dell
- Bob Donaldson, Principal, Carson Strategy Group
- Joseph Gomes, Managing Director, Viva Translations
- Kim Harris, Managing Director, text & form

GALA 2012 will bring the global content delivery community together for informative and energizing interactions. The attendees represent a wide selection of professionals including owners of language service providers, sales and marketing managers, project managers and localization/globalization managers from all facets of the language and localization industry. In 2011, 65 percent of GALA conference attendees were top executives.

The programming of GALA 2012 will provide attendees with the opportunity to collectively share, discuss and debate the latest advancements in localization, translation and global content delivery. New in 2012, the conference will include an “agile conferencing” track where small groups of professionals in such disciplines as marketing, sales and vendor management will collaborate to tackle specific issues. The association’s famed speed networking also will be offered with a new twist, as will its CEO Forum (pre-conference day). More details on the program will be available soon.

Feedback from the GALA 2011 conference, which was held this past March in Cascais, Portugal, was overwhelmingly positive. In a survey conducted after the conference, 97 percent of participants reported that they were satisfied or extremely satisfied with the conference. Eighty-eight percent said they learned new concepts or strategies and 79 percent reported making contacts at GALA 2011 that may generate new business for them. As summed up by Fabiano Cid of CCaps in Brazil: “The event exceeded my expectations and I will definitely include it in my calendar for 2012.”

For 2012, the conference moves to the beautiful French Riviera which is known not only for its relaxed lifestyle, but also for its business centers. Sophia Antipolis, just 40 kilometers away, is the technology hub of France where many multinational companies maintain offices. The conference hotel is the only hotel in Monaco with a private beach, and the GALA meeting space is situated steps from the beach. It also is within walking distance of Monaco’s renowned tourist attractions. Affordable room rates will be available to participants. Transportation to and from the venue is simple from the Nice airport.

“We are creating a conference that will be refreshingly different, offered in an attractive destination with new programming concepts like “agile conferencing” for participants to enjoy alongside our comfortably familiar program elements like small group discussions,” said Laura Brandon, Managing Director of GALA. “It is our desire that attendees leave inspired, recharged and educated to lead global content delivery internally at their enterprises and throughout the global business industry.”