Post-Editing
Description
In the era of Neural machine translation (NMT), the role of the translator is evolving. Post-Editing transforms the translation workflow from "creation" to "validation and refinement." Instead of translating a source text from scratch, the linguist works with a pre-translated draft generated by AI. Their task is to bridge the gap between raw machine output and human expectations.
Post-Editing is not a one-size-fits-all process. It is typically categorized into two levels based on the desired outcome: Light post-editing (focusing on comprehensibility and correcting major errors) and Full post-editing (ensuring publication quality, stylistic fluency, and cultural appropriateness). The success of Post-Editing depends heavily on the quality of the raw MT output. When engines are trained on domain-specific data, the initial translation is more accurate, allowing the post-editor to focus on nuance rather than basic corrections. This Human + Technology workflow allows organizations to translate vast volumes of content that would be cost-prohibitive using traditional human translation, without sacrificing the safety net of human review.
Example use cases
- Technical: Processing thousands of pages of user manuals, support articles or product specs where consistency is key.
- Communication: Translating internal emails, news updates or crisis communications that must be distributed immediately.
- Retail: Localizing extensive product catalogs where full human translation would delay time-to-market.
- Support: Enabling multilingual chat or ticketing systems where rapid understanding is more important than stylistic perfection.
- Legal: Reviewing massive datasets of foreign-language documents to identify relevant files for litigation.
Key benefits
RWS perspective
At RWS, post-editing is a strategic capability that brings together our linguistic heritage and our AI leadership. We do not view it simply as "fixing" machine output; we view it as Human-in-the-Loop (HITL) collaboration.
Our approach utilizes Language Weaver to generate secure, high-quality neural translations, which are then refined by our global network of subject-matter experts using Trados. We align the level of post-editing (Light or Full) to the content's purpose and audience. This ensures our clients invest their budget where it matters most – applying deep human expertise to creative or regulated content while leveraging automation for efficiency on informational assets.