A new instalment of #AskTheExperts, a GALA blog series where we ask translation industry experts inside and outside the GALA community for their insights and advice on managing business processes and digital transformation. Do you have a burning or knotty question? Send it to us and we’ll ask our experts. Today we ask our experts to answer the following question: What are the essential skills that are still needed in the translation and localization industry? And what are the new skills that should be included in a translation/localization curriculum? "This is really close to my heart, not only in terms of talent gap, but also in terms of who should be filling that gap. Talking about the basic skills that in my opinion are really needed, I would like to start listing something that might sound trivial, but it's actually not: A perfect knowledge of the target language. By that, I mean that you should really understand the nuances of the language in questions, which, as we all know, is something really live and ever-changing. This means also to have a deep knowledge of the terminology of the topic you need to translate. Of course you'll also need technical skills: you need to understand how CAT tools work as well as translation & terminology management systems. If we talk about the new skills needed in our industry, i would start with machine translation post-editing, which is, you know, not really new, but should not be taken for granted, as well as the ability to train an engine and to provide feedback to improve it, for instance. I would also add a basic knowledge of the way you can automate processes. Of course, digital skills are really important. For instance, online selling, social selling, using a mix of marketing techniques, everything that is necessary to get a good positioning on the market." If you're interested in collaborating and helping prepare students and young professionals for successful careers in the global language industry, we invite you to sign up for the Global Talent Special Interest Group. This SIG serves as a mutually beneficial ecosystem for industry professionals, academic administrators and instructors, and students to share knowledge, best practices, and the changing industry requirements. For an overview about a career in localization, visit the GALA Knowledge Center.