Effie Emmanouilidou, Athens-based translator and owner of Epsilon Translations — a medical and technical translation company — discusses her beginnings in the industry, the importance of mentors and networking, and today’s tricky but opportune market.

How did you get involved in the translation business?
In Greece, we must decide on our profession during our last year of high school, when we take the final exams to enter university. I have always been indecisive, and that was even more true at that time. With the guidance of my mother and aunt, I decided to study in the Department of English Language and Literature at Ethnikon kai Kapodistriakon Panepistimion Athinon.

I am bilingual (my mother is Puerto Rican-American and my father is Greek), and English is my mother tongue, so I was confident that I would find opportunities in either teaching English or translation. While studying English, I was drawn to linguistics and took several courses in translation. After graduating, I attended a private school for translation and interpreting in Athens, and afterward, I was offered a job at a translation agency that was hiring students who showed promise. That’s how my translation career began.

Could you share your experience working with your first client or on your first project?
My first work experience was as an in-house translator for a translation agency in Athens. I cannot recall what my first project was, but I do remember learning a great deal during the year I spent there. I had the opportunity to work alongside six more experienced translators, which allowed me to receive instant feedback and answers to my questions. I learned more there than I did during my university studies, and I also made a few friends with whom I am still in contact today.

Since you entered the translation business, how has the business landscape changed?
When I started in 2001, Trados was merely a Word plug-in, and we barely had a proper search engine. I remember receiving projects by fax and having an Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) internet connection.

Technology has significantly transformed the business landscape. Now, we can quickly and easily find information or ask for help from colleagues, and social media and business platforms like LinkedIn allow us to market our services and be found by potential clients. The changes have been exponential in recent years, as we all know.

Do you believe it’s a good time to enter the translation business?
I would say it is a tricky time to enter the translation business. However, every era has its challenges and opportunities. For those with the right mindset, who are willing to put in the effort and acquire direct clients, I think it’s a great time. It’s also relatively easy now to find mentors and colleagues willing to help newcomers in the field.

I would also recommend investing in networking, as there are many opportunities for this now, compared to when I started. Professional associations hold conferences and meetings, Women in Localization offers several educational and networking opportunities, and there are informal get-togethers like LocLunch. I must admit that my best agency clients have been a result of a colleague recommending me, so it definitely works!

Where do you see yourself professionally in the next 10 years?
It is always difficult for me to envision that far ahead, perhaps because, in Greece, the business landscape changes every few years with each new government. I hope to have adapted to the new realities of our profession and to be thriving. I am trying to embrace artificial intelligence (AI), as I believe it’s here to stay. However, I want to make it work for me, just like when computer-assisted translation (CAT) tools first appeared on the scene.

What predictions do you have for the future of the translation business?
Our industry is definitely going to change (and has already begun to change). I think the AI hype is like a pendulum; although everything is focused on AI today, it will eventually settle into a more balanced state where AI will be used for certain types of content, and then AI with a translator in the driver’s seat will be able to deliver quality work in less time. I think we will be using it to handle more mundane, repetitive tasks or to enhance our skills rather than replace them.