Senior Manager, Localization Operations leads localization strategy, operating model design, governance, and scalable program execution in alignment with Language Operations and company goals. This role is responsible for defining and advancing Localization Department initiatives, strengthening operational performance, and ensuring localization programs support company, customer, and department priorities. This position serves as a senior leader within Localization Operations, partnering closely with Operations, Sales, IT, Data Engineering, Quality Management, Vendor Management, and other stakeholders to improve delivery, quality, cost efficiency, scalability, tooling, vendor performance, and operational risk management. The Senior Manager provides leadership through strategic prioritization, executive-ready reporting, business case development, cross-functional alignment, escalation support, and mentorship of direct reports.
Key Responsibilities
• Lead localization strategy, operating model development, governance, and scalable program execution in alignment with Language Operations and company objectives.
• Own Localization Department initiatives, including departmental goals, success metrics, risks, dependencies, and resourcing recommendations.
• Define, validate, and maintain executive-ready analytics and reporting for localization performance, including quality, speed, cost, throughput, scalability, margin drivers, and operational health.
• Assess localization program health across delivery, quality, cost, scalability, tooling, vendor ecosystem, resourcing, and operational risk; prioritize improvement opportunities using data and stakeholder input.
• Develop business cases for major localization improvements, including expected impact, cost, timeline, risks, rollout approach, training needs, and measurement plans.
• Facilitate collaboration across Operations, Sales, IT, Tech, Language Operations, Quality Management, Vendor Management, and other stakeholders by clarifying interfaces, dependencies, ownership, and escalation paths.
• Act as a senior escalation point for complex localization program, stakeholder, vendor, tooling, delivery, quality, and resourcing issues.
• Demonstrate people leadership through mentorship, coaching, expectation management, performance support, and development of direct reports.
• Stay current on industry trends, emerging technologies, and best practices in localization and language operations; recommend and implement improvements as appropriate.
• Support continuous improvement of localization processes, workflows, documentation, reporting standards, and governance practices.
• Perform all other duties as assigned.
Qualifications & Experience
• Bachelor's degree in Localization, Linguistics, Translation, or a related field or equivalent professional experience.
• 5+ years of experience in localization or language services, including at least 3 years in a leadership or people-management role.
• Strong understanding of localization operations, vendor ecosystems, tooling, workflows, quality management, delivery models, and scalability challenges.
• Demonstrated experience leading complex localization programs, operational improvement initiatives, or cross-functional transformation efforts.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to assess operational performance, identify trends, evaluate risks, and recommend data-informed improvements.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, including the ability to engage senior leaders and translate operational data into clear recommendations.
• Proven leadership capabilities, including team development, performance management, and cross-functional influence.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment while maintaining strong judgment, professionalism, and operational discipline.
• Proficiency in one or more foreign languages is a plus.
