LQA Specialist (Remote)

Overview

The LQA Specialist is responsible for ensuring and continuously improving the linguistic quality of translation and localization deliverables across language pairs, workflows, and translation partners. This role operates as an independent quality function, with accountability for quality outcomes rather than production volume.

The role is cross-functional, working with Partner Services and Production to define and enforce standards, monitor partner performance, and build scalable quality infrastructure. The role reports directly to the Partner Services Manager.

Given BURG’s client base in healthcare, life sciences, pharmaceutical, and legal sectors, quality standards in this role carry regulatory implications. The LQA Specialist is expected to understand the quality requirements of regulated-industry translation and apply them in all evaluation and documentation work.

Key Responsibilities

1. Quality Assessment & Auditing

• Conduct LQA on translation and localization deliverables using MQM (Multidimensional Quality Metrics) error taxonomy as the standard framework.
• Apply appropriate severity weighting (critical, major, minor) in scoring, with documented rationale for severity assignments.
• Perform periodic quality audits across language pairs and workflow types to verify adherence to client style guides, glossaries, and internal standards.
• Identify recurring error patterns, root causes, and systemic gaps; distinguish translator-level errors from process or asset-level failures.
• Maintain and continuously refine quality scoring models, evaluation rubrics, and threshold definitions.

2. Partner Quality Management & Analysis

• Analyze translation partner performance using structured LQA data, including error rates by category, severity, language pair, and content type.
• Review partner workflows, CAT tool usage (memoQ required; other tools as applicable), MT and LLM adoption practices, and TM/TB adherence.
• Identify quality risks associated with specific partners, language pairs, or content domains and escalate proactively.
• Produce structured partner quality reports with specific, actionable recommendations; track improvement over defined intervals.
• Collaborate with Partner Services on performance conversations, corrective action plans, and partner offboarding decisions where quality thresholds are not met.

3. Partner Enablement and Training

• Design and deliver onboarding programs for new translation partners, covering BURG quality standards, memoQ workflow requirements, TM/TB usage, glossary compliance, and regulated-industry content expectations.
• Create training materials including quality guidelines, error category references (MQM-aligned), style guide summaries, and MT post-editing guidance.
• Monitor adoption and effectiveness of training through follow-up LQA cycles; adjust materials based on error pattern data.
• Support internal Production Dept team with clear quality frameworks, escalation criteria, and decision guidelines.

4. Linguistic Assets Management

• Create, maintain, and audit client-specific glossaries, TBs, and TMs in memoQ.
• Perform regular TM clean-up and penalty model review to reduce fuzzy match errors and false positives.
• Enforce terminology consistency across language pairs and projects; flag and resolve conflicts between glossary entries and TM content.
• Maintain version control and change logs for all linguistic assets; coordinate with PMs on asset deployment in active projects.

5. Quality Strategy & Continuous Improvement

• Develop and implement scalable QA processes and documented best practices aligned with ISO 17100:2015, ISO 18587:2017 and ISO/IEC 42001:2023 and ISO 5060:2024 requirements.
• Design and maintain a structured quality improvement program with defined KPIs, baselines, targets, and measurement intervals.
• Analyze quality metrics and client feedback to identify systemic issues; propose workflow or tooling changes with supporting data.
• Evaluate QA tools (e.g., Xbench, Verifika, memoQ QA module) and recommend adoption or configuration changes where justified.

6. Documentation & Reporting

• Maintain QA documentation including scoring rubrics, audit logs, partner quality histories, and process records required for ISO 17100 conformance.
• Deliver regular reports on quality performance, partner assessments, and initiative outcomes to Production leadership and, as needed, to clients.
• Ensure stakeholder alignment on quality standards, escalation thresholds, and corrective action status.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor’s degree in Linguistics, Translation, Localization, or a related field; equivalent professional experience considered.
• Minimum 3 years of hands-on LQA or localization quality assurance experience at an LSP or in-house localization team.
• Demonstrated proficiency with MQM error taxonomy and severity-weighted scoring; ability to train others in its application.
• Working proficiency in memoQ, including QA settings, TM/TB management, and the memoQ LQA module.
• Experience evaluating MT post-edited content (MTPE QA), including familiarity with MT-specific error patterns distinct from human translation errors.
• Domain experience in at least one of the following regulated content types: clinical/medical, pharmaceutical, medical device, legal, or life sciences documentation.
• Strong analytical skills; ability to derive actionable conclusions from LQA data and communicate them clearly to clients and non-specialist stakeholders.
• Proficiency in English (C2 or native). Active working proficiency in Spanish or another language is required for hands-on linguistic review; Spanish is preferred.

Preferred

• Familiarity with ISO 17100:2015 (minimum), ISO 18587:2017 and ISO/IEC 42001:2023 and ISO 5060:2024 requirements and quality documentation practices within a certified LSP environment. 
• Experience with QA tools such as Xbench, Verifika, or equivalent.
• Exposure to XTRF or comparable TMS for workflow and project data access.
• Knowledge of TAUS DQF or SAE J2450 as supplementary or client-required frameworks.