SYNTHESIS COURSE 3 RISK MANAGEMENT

PHASES OF RISK MANAGEMENT

Risk management is a process whose phases are closely linked and depend on each
other. In other words, if one phase is understood correctly, the next will have a good
basis for being performed in the right manner.
In the case of translation activities, risk avoiding strategies must be viewed from (a)
the viewpoint of all the participants, and (b) from that of the individual translator.

ORDER OF PRIORITIES
QUESTIONS TO ASK:
How important is this project?
What (resources, data, abilities) do I need to achieve it?
Which are my potential gains and my potential losses?
What strategy do I choose, depending on the specific characteristics of the task?
Who are the people I am working with? What do I know about them?

KEY ELEMENTS IN RISK MANAGEMENT

According to RM theorists, the approach to risks must be carefully prepared, both
at individual and at group level:
What are we protecting (i.e. customer information, confidential documents, etc.),
and why (privacy, ethical issues, etc.)?
What could happen to the above elements? Identification of probable impact of
specific threats.
Assess the risks and apply measures to reduce them to an acceptable level.
Check if the chosen methods are adequate and efficient
Adopt a general procedure of risk management that can be used for all tasks
and all clients (what to check for, what people / organizations to include in a
portfolio, what price quotas to use, what to expect, personal costs of these steps)

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PREVIOUS KNOWLEDGE REFRESHER
Christiane Nord’s New Rhetoric formula can help us pinpoint the answers to the
previous questions:
Who says what, how, when, where, why, to whom, with what effect?
(Christiane Nord, 1997: 31)
Author / Publishing House / LSP
Text / document for translation
Means used for translation (CAT tools / online databases / dictionaries)
Time frame – important (deadlines)
Direct relationship with client / Home / Retranslation
Purpose of translation (Skopostheorie) – important
Target group – adapting translation to cultural needs and expectations
Results for translator / LSPs / End users

Christiane Nord (in Textanalyse und Ubersetzen - translated into English as Text
Analysis in Translation, 1993) proposed a number of factors and constituents – all
fundamental in understanding the complexity of this activity and its purpose:
a) The source-text producer or initiator (the author)
b) The source text sender (e.g. the publishing house commissioning a translation)
c) The source text
d) The source text recipient (the translator)
e) The target text
f) The target text recipient (the readers and critics)

PLANNING PHASE
- What? When? How?
The initial planning includes:
Establishing a strategy;
Establishing goals and objectives;
Planning assessment, handling, and monitoring activities;

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Identifying resources,
Identifying tasks and responsibilities;
Establishing a method to address specific risks;
Deciding on the type of feedback needed.

(a) What? The author writes the text having in mind a specific purpose, a certain
message (the communicative value) and a target audience;
What? The source text sender may have a different purpose than the author’s;
What? What are the expected risks related to the degree of text difficulty?
What? What primary and secondary tools are needed?
What? What do potential readers expect?

(b) When? (Timeframe, deadlines and related risks)

(c) How? (Personal approach to the task)

RISK ASSESSMENT PHASE

Risk assessment refers to the processes of (A) identification and (B) analysis
of the risks associated with the life cycle of the system.
(A) Risk identification options:
• Identifying risk/uncertainty sources and drivers
• Transforming uncertainty into risk
• Quantifying (calculating the weight of) each risk
• Deciding upon the probability of said risks taking place
• Establishing the order of priority among risk variants
(B) Risk analysis:
Risks can be quantified as being HIGH – MODERATE – LOW. Risks which are
considered higher must be addressed first.
The purpose of the risk analysis stage is to isolate the cause of each specific risk, to
determine the potential impact in each case, and to choose the appropriate action
needed to solve it.

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Among other benefits, the risk analysis stage provides a chance to assess any
collateral effects of an inappropriate choice of action.

CHOICE OF A RISK CONTROL METHOD

There is always a degree to which risks are acceptable. Consequently, the main
purpose of risk management (or control) is to maintain any potential risks within
acceptable limits.
However, risks are not passive, and the level of risk may change during a specific
activity. It is difficult to anticipate all potentially negative consequences, irrespective
of the complexity of the chosen strategy.
Avoid risks (if possible)
Transfer (delegate tasks)
Use previous experience (good practices)

RESULTS REPORT AND MONITORING

When an activity (e.g. translation) comes to an end it is easy to review the
various risks which were related to it (those expected to appear and those
which were unexpected and possibly influenced the accuracy of the final product).
As a rule, task coordinators require the presentation of a full report because such
data may be very helpful in future activities. Any monitoring of future activities with
a similar purpose thus becomes easier.
At individual level, writing down such a report with the positive and negative issues
regarding the project can also be of help for future activities.

INDIVIDUAL TASK
Write down a set of guidelines and best practices for terminology management (e.g.
specialized terminology used in a civil engineering glossary). Explain your risk
management strategy with details for each phase, taking into account, among other
things:
- the role of terminology for an effective internal and external communication
- the process of knowledge transfer
- the importance of training
- the risks related to promoting the guidelines and glossary on the internal and
external markets (where, how, when)

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- how can terminology management risks be mitigated
- risks related to the workflow and division of tasks

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