Mary Carroll, an Australian in Berlin. Is there anything we can learn from an Australian?

Australia is a melting pot of varied ethnicities and cultures. On the whole this has resulted in an open and tolerant attitude towards others and a general acceptance of cultural, personal and linguistic differences. Being an immigrant country, Australia thrives on a firm belief in getting on in life through personal initiative. Tolerance, embracing differences and personal initiative are traits that could be cultivated a little more in Germany.

A propos learning. You started your career in teaching and now you are Managing Director of a subtitling and translation company. Are there synergies?

Definitely. I have always been interested in languages and intercultural communication. Theatre and film were other passions, so it was a small step to set up a translation and subtitling company which specialises in the areas that fascinate me most. My teaching background has been invaluable when organizing training courses in subtitling and translation for the audiovisual media and for our consultant services, especially in the university sector.

It is said that one gathers expert knowledge over a period of 7 to 10 years. You and many members of your staff are language experts. How is this expertise applied in practice?

We have been providing translation and subtitling services for more than 25 years now, initially under the name of Language Consultancy and later as TITELBILD. Needless to say, we have a wealth of experience to fall back on. We are true language specialists in a huge number of fields that cover the business world, marketing, public relations, education and the social sciences and we have carved a niche for ourselves as experts in multilingual translations for audiovisual media and in access services especially for the deaf and hearing-impaired. It is generally accepted that translators improve the longer they are in the profession. Fortunately, at TITELBILD we have an excellent blend of highly experienced and young translators, so expert knowledge is passed on from one generation to the next.

Germany calls itself a knowledge society, which in no way excludes the service industry. Does TITELBILD have any connections with the tertiary education sector and research circles?

We have very strong ties to the university sector both in Germany and abroad. Not only do we offer traineeships and internships to young graduates, we also encourage contacts and exchange of ideas and experience with MA and PhD students researching themes related to translation for audiovisual media, one of our areas of expertise. I see a broad spectrum of fields where we can cooperate with universities for the benefit of both parties. I am on the Steering Committee of the Languages and the Media conference which takes place biannually in Berlin and provides a platform where the media language industry and academics can liase and discuss new and established trends. I am also a member of Transforum, an organization comprising delegates from the German universities which teach translation and interpreting and representatives from various sectors of the business world who provide translation services of one kind or another. We regularly have groups of university students visiting TITELBILD to learn about translation for the audiovisual media and I am often invited to speak at conferences in Germany and abroad on subtitling in particular. Our own subtitling courses are attended by translators and university lecturers who want to learn more about this field. I am also a member of ESIST (European Association for Studies in Screen Translation), the Transmedia Research Group and the BDÜ (German Association of Translators and Interpreters).

You come from Australia, where there is a more established culture of customer service than in Germany. What is important to you as a service provider and as a client? Perhaps you could give us a tip or two on how to win your customer loyalty.

How to win my loyalty as a customer? Simple. Just be yourself. Be friendly, helpful, well-informed, reliable and competent. Keep a cool head when the going gets tough, have a creative approach if I have a complex problem. Watch for what is coming around the corner (laughs). Or am I being too demanding?

I suppose that’s a best-case scenario. Nevertheless, I do believe it is good to have an optimistic and positive approach: try and make the impossible possible, be there for people. Perhaps that explains TITELBILD’s rather long business hours (8.30 am till 8 pm).