banner website

Our Take on AI

20-21 March 2025

When we set out to plan the 2025 edition of TranslateCluj—our 7th so far—we began with a question: what happens if we strip AI of all the hype? Does it maintain its appeal to the early adopters and promoters? Can it still be considered an existential threat to language professionals and human professionals in general? Instead of passively listening to opinions predicting the end of work, could we integrate the new capabilities of AI in our workflow and significantly improve the quality of our services? Or could we simply become better professionals by understanding how machine learning, genAI, LLMs work so that we can differentiate the content we translate or create from the output of the GPTs and NMTs of the world?

As usual, we’ll explore possible answers to these questions with the help of top professionals both from within and outside our industry. During the sessions of the conference, we’ll take a deeper dive into what these new technologies, dubbed as AI, really are, how they work and how language professionals, regardless of their background and skills, can benefit from them. But that’s not all! Because we know that sessions packed with technology topics can be quite dense, we’re sprinkling our conference with lighter topics revolving around translation and work in general. 

Wait, there’s even more! We’re organizing a live-music party and other fun fringe events during the conference days. You surely don’t want to miss out on all the knowledge and fun we’re preparing for you! So let’s meet again in Cluj. 

Executive Workshop by Richard Brooks

22 March 2025

03DayXL8Cluj_DSCF4816_20240323_OE
03DayXL8Cluj_DSCF4845_20240323_OE
03DayXL8Cluj_DSCF4801_20240323_OE

TranslateCluj is excited to team up with Richard Brooks and bring you his very practical and to-the-point strategic growth workshop, trusted by LSP leaders and executives from all over the world. Join Richard on Saturday, 22 March 2025, for a hands-on workshop that will help you move away from commoditisation and develop distinctive market positions that command premium rates! Witnessing Richard's talks and workshops is an experience in itself. Don't miss out on this great opportunity to learn from one of the finest  experts of the Translation Industry.

RB Linkedin

Networking Party and Fringe Events

Building on the success of the Transylvanian Evening we organised in 2024, we're planning a live music party with exquisite food for the 2025 edition of TranslateCluj. Join us once more on the dance floor and show the world how much you like to party! Other informal networking events will be announced as we move along, so definitely keep an eye on our announcements.

adi-goldstein-sQCExwAdBYs-unsplash
IMG_4127
IMG_4316

Speakers & Topics

RB Linkedin

Richard Brooks

Keynote Speaker Profile

Richard Brooks is an experienced business executive and Cranfield School of Management Fellow with extensive global board experience. He specialises in driving B2B value creation and key account management, leveraging expertise in AI, M&A advisory, and innovation to deliver results across international markets.

Richard’s career spans diverse leadership roles, including CEO, senior advisor, and consultant, across industries and continents. He is currently a Visiting Faculty at Cranfield School of Management, where he bridges cutting-edge theory with practical business strategies.

With an MBA from Cranfield and a commitment to continuous learning, Richard brings a unique blend of practical industry insights and academic rigour to his consultancy and teaching. His focus on strategic sales, business growth, and key account management makes him a valuable asset in driving success for organisations.



Harnessing AI for Language Service Providers: Beyond Translation

In this presentation, Richard Brooks will demonstrate how AI is transforming the localisation and translation industry, offering practical strategies to go beyond traditional services. He will explore how generative AI and large language models can streamline workflows, enhance creativity, and open up new revenue opportunities.

Richard will also share actionable insights on leveraging your organisation’s ecosystem, avoiding common pitfalls in AI adoption, and creating value for your customers in a competitive market. Packed with real-world examples and cutting-edge ideas, this talk will equip you to lead the way in the future of work.

Executive Workshop: Developing Winning Growth Strategies for LSPs

Break free from the price-driven race to the bottom and discover how to create genuine value for your customers. In this immersive, full-day workshop, you'll work alongside fellow LSP leaders to design your approach to customer solutions. Using the unique Localization Inspiration Cards and proven innovation frameworks, you'll walk away with a concrete strategy to differentiate your services and capture higher-value opportunities.

Trusted by hundreds of localization professionals worldwide, this workshop has become the go-to strategic planning event for forward-thinking LSPs. From Europe to Asia, from boutique language service providers to industry leaders, participants consistently emerge with breakthrough insights and actionable plans. Through hands-on exercises with the Localization Inspiration Cards, you'll uncover hidden opportunities in your market and develop practical solutions that set your LSP apart.

Your workshop leader, Richard Brooks, brings 30 years of hands-on experience in the localization industry to the table. As a university lecturer, strategic consultant, and LSP veteran, Richard combines academic insight with practical expertise in strategic development, value creation, and M&A. This unique blend of real-world experience and theoretical knowledge has helped LSPs worldwide break free from commoditisation and develop distinctive market positions that command premium rates.



marta_bartnicka_dolby (1)

Marta Bartnicka

Speaker Profile

­For over 20 years in IBM Translation Center, Marta Bartnicka has gathered experience in translation and localization, verification, localization testing, projects management, terminology, and implementation of machine translations. 

Since 2017, Marta provides authored workshops on the application of MT for LSPs and freelance translators.

She publishes news from the world of MT on her site https://machinetranslation.pl/  and practical advice for localizing user interfaces & documentation on co-authored https://localization.pl/

Marta is also co-author of "Programmers and translators. Introduction to software localization" (in Polish, with Dr. Agenor Hofmann-Delbor, published by Helion).

Since 2019 she works at Dolby, in the Publishing Engineering department, which supports the technical side of content creation, publishing and delivery, as well as deploying Generative AI.

She teaches in the Technical Communication course at Vistula Academy.

M.Sc. in Computer Science (Scientific and Technical Information Systems, Wrocław University of Science and Technology). Hobbies: cross-country skiing, daughters, gardening, hiking.



Workshop (included in the conference): Reality Check: Evaluate and Improve MT/AI Effectiveness for Translation Tasks

The 2h workshop (with hands-on exercises) covers two main topics:

1. Assess how much MT/AI helps Translator do their job

  • Choose the best tool for a translation task
  • Evaluate the time and effort needed to correct MT/AI outputs for quality results

2. Enhance the available MT/AI for the Translator's use case

  • Enhance MT/AI by adding custom terminology or integrating translation memory
  • Use MT/AI as a digital assistant

Depending on the project, Translators either have to use the MT/AI that the Client has chosen, or can select

MT/AI themselves (unless the contract explicitly prohibits using it). The workshop covers all situations and

shows how to determine whether MT/AI adds any value for the task, which MT/AI is the best for a given

language pair and subject matter, and how to get the most of it.

An important part of the workshop are hands-on exercises in a CAT tool and in a web browser, so please bring

your laptops. Equally important is a discussion on post-editing rates and understanding the limits of human

and machine collaboration in translation.

Radu_ORGHIDAN

Radu Orghidan

Speaker Profile

Radu Orghidan serves as the Global SVP of Data & AI Strategy at Endava, driving high-impact initiatives that align AI innovation with business growth within the AI Pod and Go-To-Market team.

With over two decades of expertise in research, innovation, and strategic leadership, Radu has consistently pioneered AI-driven solutions that transform industries and elevate human capabilities. His PhD in Computer Vision from the University of Girona and Executive MBA from the University of Hull equip him with a unique blend of technical prowess and business acumen, positioning him to architect AI strategies that fuel organisational transformation and sustained value creation. 

Fluent in five languages and having lived on three continents, Radu brings a global perspective to his work. He is also passionate about technology, innovation, skiing,




Presentation: Using AI for Lead Generation

Learn how Artificial Intelligence (AI) can radically transform your translation or language service business. We will go beyond machine translation. By using large language models and intelligent agent systems, you can automate tasks, find new clients and improve the quality of your services.

In this presentation, you’ll learn how to approach three essential challenges:

  • ⁠ ⁠Identifying and attracting new leads by generating custom lists and messages
  • ⁠ ⁠Automating administrative and project management tasks to save precious time—that you can spend on an extra coffee, and why not, learning a new language
  • ⁠ ⁠Improving the quality and consistency of translations by effective glossary and term base management

You’ll learn practical and readily available techniques, which will give you a competitive edge in a technology-dominated market.

Don’t miss out on the opportunity to protect and grow your business. While you hesitate, your competition might already take advantage of these technologies to attract the clients you target.

Let’s take the step towards the future of translation services together!

Dina 2

Dina Climatiano

Speaker Profile

Dina Climatiano is a Moscow-born, Israeli freelance translator and editor based in Bucharest. She focuses on marketing, literary and academic texts, as well as localization. She primarily translates from Romanian to English translations and edits English texts, but sometimes shakes the dust off her other languages, Hebrew and Russian. 

As a bilingual immigrant in Israel, languages and translation have always been a part of everyday life. After graduating high school, she served in the IDF as an intelligence analyst and occasional translator. She studied music education in Tel Aviv. Upon moving to Romania, she decided to immerse herself in the Romanian language by earning an MA in literary translation from the University of Bucharest, which then turned into a vocation.

Her background in music and her experience as a “twice immigrant” mean that the skills she relies on most are listening and forming meaningful connections. She takes pride in working closely with her clients and colleagues to understand their needs and challenges, exchange ideas, craft tailored solutions and produce quality texts. 

Dina is also a weightlifter, divemaster, amateur chef, huge nerd, and last but not least – proud cat mom. All of those, believe it or not, come in handy in her work. 






Presentation: TBA

TBA



Jerzy photo

Jerzy Czopik

Speaker Profile

Born in Cracow, Jerzy studied mechanical engineering until moving to Germany in 1986. Living in Dortmund from then he finished his  engineering studies in Germany. In 1990 he started to translate, and in 1991 began his specialization in technical translation. In 1992 he became a sworn translator and interpreter for German and Polish.

Jerzy is a self-taught user of CAT tools, and after many years of experience is now a trainer for SDL software. He also runs a webinar series called “Ask Dr. Studio” for the BDÜ (the German federal association of translators and interpreters). In April 2018 he
became the vice president of the BDÜ.

Jerzy is also auditor for LICS (Language Industry Certification System, awarding ISO 17100 certificates). Since 2010 together with his wife he owns an EN 15038 / ISO 17100 certificate.

Presentation: Using AI and MT in Trados Studio

AI and MT are here to stay. Will they replace us? Let us take a look on translations done using AI (ChatGPT 3.5) and MT (DeepL) in Trados Studio and discuss their quality. I will prepare a short text in German to be translated into English. Afterwards we can take the results and try to translate back into German (or other language). This way we can see how useful these tools can be for us.



Adela Preda

Adela Preda

Speaker Profile

Adela Preda holds a degree in Philosophy from the University of Bucharest, enriched by a scholarship year in Dijon, France. With a professional journey spanning over 15 years in communication and marketing, Adela has built an impressive career, progressing from Junior PR roles to senior positions such as Creative Strategist, Head of Digital and Communication Director. Their international experience includes working in Malta, where they managed substantial digital communication budgets, and Lisbon, where she co-founded an online B2B digital advertising agency.

In recent years, Adela has shifted focus towards business consulting, creative workshops, occasional freelancing, and mentoring, with an emphasis on neutral communication, emotional resilience, organizational harmony and sustainability. Known for their flexibility and ability to navigate life’s challenges, Adela brings a profound understanding of how to manage moments of change and transformation, both professionally and personally.



Workshop (included in the conference): Plan Ai or Plan B?

In this workshop, participants will explore how embracing flexibility can become the key to navigating change in an ever-evolving world.

Drawing on over 15 years of marketing experience, the session will focus on adapting to shifts in technology, integrating AI into daily work, and building emotional resilience while fostering a growth mindset. Participants will learn how to transform anxiety and uncertainty into clarity, starting from self-confidence and leveraging the values and assets they’ve acquired so far, while discovering how transferable skills can empower translators to explore new opportunities. Through real-life stories and interactive exercises, they’ll learn how to turn change into an exciting opportunity.



Pricing

Register now to take advantage of our discounted Early Bird Prices. The Early Bird offer expires on 20 December 2024. After this date, the Conference Access fee will go up to 1550 RON or 320 EUR, with the Bundle fee climbing to 4100 RON or 830 EUR. No Early Bird discounts apply to Richard Brooks' Executive Workshop and to the Networking Party.

We can offer customised team packages. If you're considering signing up at least three attendees to our event, please get in touch with an email to team@translatecluj.com. We're happy to discuss options with you.

EXECUTIVE WORKSHOP
22 MARCH

2450 RON
or 500 EUR
  • Full Access to Richard Brooks' Workshop
  • Coffee-breaks
  • Lunch

CONFERENCE
20-21 MARCH

1550 RON
or 320 EUR
  • Full Access to Conference Sessions
  • Coffee-breaks
  • Lunch & Networking

BUNDLE
20-22 MARCH

4100 RON
or 830 EUR
  • Full Access to Conference Sessions
  • Full Access to Workshop
  • Access to Networking Party

NETWORKING PARTY
20 MARCH

400 RON
or 85 EUR
  • Dinner
  • Drinks
  • Live-music Band

Venue

detail2-right

Get to the venue

BUS (FROM AIRPORT)

Lines M41, M41L > 24, 30, 24 B

BOLT / TAXI

Bolt is the leading mobility app operating in Cluj. Alternatively, you can grab a taxi.

CLJCPDI_gallery_kingguest
LIV19-Logos-2.5x2.5-DT-02-02-250x250

The DoubleTree by Hilton

This five-star hotel is an iconic landmark of Cluj, and was the host of TranslateCluj 2020, the previous edition of our conference.

HOTEL