I don't just interpret accurately. If required, I can help navigate/facilitate your meeting skillfully and discretely. I can help remove all the barriers which the differences in culture and business custom may present, so that you can concentrate on the all-important negotiations without worries. There are crucial meetings and presentations that your business can't afford not to make the most of.  For these occasions, it makes sense to go to an interpreter who has a lot of experience and knows how high-level meetings work.

Why not leverage my expertise to make your meeting a great success? A good interpreter is a valuable partner on important occasions. 

Consecutive interpreting:

Consecutive interpreting is when a speaker speaks a few sentences and stop to allow his/her interpreter to interpret.

Simultaneous interpreting:

Simultaneous interpreting involves an interpreting booth.  In the booth,  a pair of interpreters listen to the speaker through their head sets and simultaneously interpret into their microphones. Interpreters typically take turns every 15 minutes. The audience members are given a receiver and an earpiece each to listen to the interpretation. 

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the use of remote simultaneous interpreting (RSI) is becoming increasingly popular.

Whispering interpreting:

Whispering is also a form of simultaneous interpreting but without a booth or receivers. Usually, an interpreter and her/his customer sit next to each other and the interpreter whispers her/his interpretation into the customer's ear. Since the interpreter has no direct feed of the speech and also has to whisper, it is the hardest mode of interpretation for interpreters.

When you hire an interpreter, the first thing you should think about is YOU. You should think about how you can benefit from hiring a good interpreter and how to maximize the benefit so that you can boost your business.  

Incidentally, it is not by working your interpreter to death or filling her/his non-interpreting hours with little chores. That would be totally counterproductive and any interpreter worth their salt should politely refuse to be treated like this. This is not because interpreters are all divas but rather because unreasonable demands by the customer would negatively affect our performance. Please always keep your focus on the most important goal: the success of the meeting. 

Once you have secured the service of a capable interpreter, there are many things you can do to help further enhance the interpreter's performance. Some of them are listed below.

Give us prep materials in advance.

 Interpreting is all about preparation. Nothing is more helpful than sending your interpreter in advance "relevant "preparation materials that can actually help her/him understand the topic and agenda of the day. If there are going to be presentations, send the slides to the interpreter even if they are not the final versions. The good news for you is that your interpreter is not (usually) going to charge you for the preparation time like lawyers do. Think about the hours if not days that your interpreter is going to spend poring over the documents you have sent her/him. Those hours are free of charge. But also, please be realistic. If you send her/him a 100-page document at midnight the night before, she/he is not going to read it. Interpreters need to have a good sleep to function well the following day.

Giving the interpreter a briefing before the meeting is also a very good idea. 

Give us regular breaks and water.

We interpreters are rather like horses. We are diligent and can achieve a lot for our customers, and we require some looking-after. Because we are usually the hardest working people in the entire conference room. So even if you are not particularly tired partially because you are just sitting there and listening to the presentations, your interpreter most likely is. A break of 10~20 minutes every 90 minutes or so would do wonders to refresh your hard-working interpreter.  And speaking non-stop makes us very thirsty. Please always always water us without fail. Biscuits are also extremely welcome.

Whilst interpreting, we interpreters need a table to take notes .  Please seat us somewhere we can hear all the participants of the meeting. We can't interpret what we can't hear.  

I remember a particular assignment last year. As soon as I entered the conference room, I was told that there was no seat for the interpreter. I was made to sit on a portable chair behind all the participants and had only my knees to use as my desk to take notes. In the middle of the morning, I somehow got hold of a glass of water and put it down on the floor near me. But the glass was soon confiscated for "safety reasons". Please never ever think that interpreters can do their best when treated thus.  Also, it would be great if you could remember that sounds don't travel well backwards. So, if you seat your interpreter behind everyone's back, she/he can't hear as well as when seated in the same row as everyone else. Interpreters are not like bats or dogs. We don't have super hearing. So, please seat us somewhere we can hear everybody and give us a desk as well.

Remember, that a good and happy interpreter can boost your business and career.  To treat an interpreter well is to treat yourself well. It's all for YOU.