A match made in heaven
When a linguist meets a computer engineer and they are both passionate about words, communication and foreign cultures, what happens? Incidentally, they get married, and they have two daughters… but above all, they set up a localisation company.
In 1990, Patrick and Françoise Bajon created Version internationale, a “localisation” company. Patrick already had five years’ experience in this emerging translation sector, having translated several interfaces as an engineer within a major American software publisher’s translation centre.
The 90s were the boom years for consumer computing. VI then became actively engaged in translating the interfaces and help material for the many software programs that were taking over the world in various fields, such as office automation, databases, architecture and CAD, etc.
The desire to surround themselves with a strong team
Success and demand quickly prompted Françoise and Patrick to surround themselves with a team of translators, project managers and engineers, all on permanent contracts. They believe that a long-term working relationship is key, which meant providing in-depth training for employees, working to build trust between the company and its employees and offering a premium service to its clients.
Of course, the team members have changed since then, but the same spirit still drives the team: a job well done, listening to clients and customer service, adopting the sector’s latest technological advances and the value of a stable, united team that is working towards the same goal: customer satisfaction.
The strength of our in-house team is the reason many of our clients chose us. It means they will always have a dedicated point of contact who is truly invested in their needs. Some have continued to place their trust in us for more than twenty years now.
VI’s client base has evolved. Over the first fifteen years, VI mainly specialised in IT translation, and it has gradually added strings to its bow. Localisation is still an key part of its work, but it also deals with many other sectors.
Today, VI works for international companies that strive for excellence. It has established lasting relationships with them. But it applies the same dedication to advising and supporting French SMEs who are successfully breaking into foreign markets, as well as foreign SMEs who want to establish themselves in France and Europe. Beyond this entrepreneurial network, VI has also been chosen by international organisations (United Nations agency, NGOs, educational institutions, etc.), who appreciate its ability to calibrate the link between the economic world and its needs and their communication goals to the specific requirements of their mission.