Meet our Team (VII). Isabel Guijarro, Project Manager

In this interview, we want to introduce you to Isabel Guijarro, one of our Project Managers in Spain, who got experience in other localization companies before joining our team.

What is your origin?

I am from a small village in Málaga, La Cala del Moral

What did you study?

I studied a “Degree in Translation and Interpretation ” at University of Malaga. I also did the first year of PhD in Malaga and then I moved to Madrid and studied a MBA in Software Localization in University of Paris, in Madrid.

Did you always want to become a PM or did it happen be coincidence?

Since very early during my studies I decided that I would prefer to coordinate better than to translate.

How long have you been working for Jensen Localization?

Almost 5 years

Did you start working for Jensen Localization right after finishing school or did you gain experience from other jobs?

I had other jobs. I worked in videogames localization in Dublin and then in Madrid for several years. Always in the videogames industry.

What are the pros and cons about being a PM?

For me, the pros are that you are daily in touch with many people, from all over the world, and that you can change of task every now and then. It is challenging to manage many projects at the same time and remember every detail from all of them. Specially at the beginning, it is a challenging job.

The cons can be exactly the same things when things are not doing good J. It is not easy to be in the middle of a Chinese PM and a Norwegian translator, for example. They both have their own way of working and you need to match both. Being in the middle of different cultures (and adding my own) is challenging.

What tasks do you usually do?

I receive requests from clients, cast resources (based on their experience, price and availability), organize schedules, tools and procedures for each project and control the process.  

What do you do in your spare time? Any hobbies?

I like reading, writing, watching movies, practising sports, hiking, but most of all, being outdoors and travelling.

How many languages do you know?

I have studied English, French and Italian but I don’t practice French and Italian and I am not fluent anymore. I am now studying French again.

What is the most important element to you when working with new clients?

I think that the most important is to make them feel that you have everything under control and they can trust your work.

What advice would you give a new PM working in the same business as you?

I am not good in advices J

Being a PM how important is it to work in teams and communicate with other staff members?

It is very important to work as a team and constantly communicate with all members of the company since we wouldn’t be able to do our work without the support of each single department.

Do you communicate with the staff from the other JL departments?

We always try to be as communicative as possible, but it is true that we are not always perfectly communicated. We are all immerse in our routines and sometimes we don’t find the time to communicate with others.

Do you think machine translation will ever replace JL’s services?

Yes, I even think that, in a long future, machines will replace all kind of person’s jobs.

What types of projects do you prefer working with?

Multilingual big projects with many people involved and requiring a lot of planning and attention. Challenging projects.

We hope you keep coping with challenges at Jensen Localization, Isabel! In our next interview, you will feel we are repeating an interview, but you will meet a person we are sure you have not met before. Keep tuned!