Localization Manager

Hello,

My name is Shannon, and I am a Recruiter with The Fountain Group. We are a national staffing firm and are currently seeking a ——– Localization Manager for a prominent client of ours. This position is located in –100% Remote (PST hours). Details for the position are as follows:

Job Description:

Duration: 1 year

We are seeking an experienced Localization Manager to lead an enterprise translation and localization program supporting Commercial, Medical, and Government Affairs teams within a pharmaceutical environment.

This individual will own the localization process end-to-end, including translation workflows, vendor management, quality oversight, documentation, budget management, process improvements, and technology enablement.

The ideal candidate will have strong enterprise translation/localization experience and demonstrated leadership in managing complex translation programs and external language service providers. Experience supporting pharmaceutical or other highly regulated environments is strongly preferred.

100% REQUIRED

These are the core requirements we would expect a candidate to have:

• Strong enterprise translation/localization program management experience
• Must understand the translation process from end to end.
• Experience managing translation workflows, vendors, quality, and deliverables.
• Translation process expertise
• Demonstrated ability to manage and improve translation processes.
• Experience establishing or improving workflows, processes, documentation, and operational standards.
• Vendor / Language Service Provider management
• Experience managing external translation vendors or Language Service Providers (LSPs).
• Ability to address vendor quality issues, missed deadlines, SLAs, and performance concerns.
• Leadership experience
• This is a team-lead/program-lead level position, not simply a day-to-day translation coordinator.
• Must demonstrate ownership, decision-making, problem-solving, and responsibility for broader program operations.
• Ability to work with translation technology
• Knowledge of CAT tools, localization file formats, and/or Translation Management Systems (TMS).
• Experience with enterprise translation/localization technology.
• Strong communication and stakeholder management
• Ability to work with internal stakeholders, vendors, and senior leadership.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to support Pacific Time hours
• The position is fully remote, but candidates must be able to support Pacific Time business hours.

Key Responsibilities

Translation & Localization Program Management

• Own the localization lifecycle from intake and scoping through final delivery and quality control.
• Manage multilingual content across digital, print, web, social, email, campaigns, and other enterprise content.
• Ensure translation workflows are efficient, scalable, documented, and compliant.

Vendor Management

• Manage relationships with Language Service Providers and external translation vendors.
• Monitor vendor performance, quality, timelines, and SLAs.
• Resolve vendor performance issues and implement corrective actions when deadlines or quality standards are not met.
• Conduct vendor evaluations and support contract and budget management.

Process Improvement

• Identify gaps and inefficiencies within existing translation workflows.
• Implement process enhancements that improve quality, speed, consistency, and cost efficiency.
• Develop documentation, best practices, and standardized operating procedures.

Quality & Linguistic Asset Management

• Establish and maintain translation quality frameworks.
• Manage linguistic assets, terminology, translation memories, and termbases.
• Ensure translated content meets quality, brand, and regulatory requirements.

Technology & Innovation

• Partner with technology and product teams to improve localization workflows.
• Evaluate and implement translation technology and automation.
• Support the evolution of AI-assisted and machine translation capabilities while maintaining appropriate human review and quality controls.

Budget & Program Governance

• Support program budgeting and financial oversight.
• Track KPIs related to translation quality, cost, turnaround time, vendor performance, and overall program health.
• Provide reporting and recommendations to leadership.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner with Marketing, Medical Affairs, Government Affairs, Legal/Regulatory teams, and external agencies.
• Support localization requirements for product launches and ongoing pharmaceutical content.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Linguistics, Translation/Localization, Communications, Marketing, or equivalent professional experience.
• 8+ years of enterprise localization/translation program management experience.
• Strong understanding of translation workflows, localization operations, and quality management.
• Experience with enterprise Translation Management Systems (TMS) and localization technologies.
• Experience managing translation vendors / LSPs.
• Demonstrated leadership and process improvement experience.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to operate effectively in complex, ambiguous environments.

Preferred Qualifications

• Pharmaceutical, biotechnology, healthcare, or other highly regulated industry experience.
• Experience working under FDA/regulatory requirements.
• Experience with Veeva.
• Experience with Jira and/or Workfront.
• Experience with Adobe Creative Cloud, including InDesign, Illustrator, or Photoshop.
• Multimedia localization experience, including video subtitling and voiceover.
• Experience with AI/ML, machine translation, or LLM-assisted translation workflows.
• Experience building a Localization Center of Excellence.
• Professional Spanish proficiency or experience with US Spanish localization.
• Multilingual experience.

If you are interested in hearing more about the position please respond to this posting with your resume attached!

#LI-DNI