Harmony Translates in Foreign Languages

“Open up your hearts”, as Elton John sang, could be the theme song for The Australian Way,  a new app to help migrants “find an island in the sea” (Elton John, Harmony)  which was launched on Harmony Day, 21 March 2019. Its purpose is to help users find a job, keep safe and lay down foundations for the future.

Employment is the key to unlocking future security for all of us – no less new arrivals to our island, who not only have to battle in a new language, but also learn new ways to work, a new culture and, indeed, a new way of finding a job.

The Australian Way bridges the gap using a tried and true approach – story telling – to get these important messages across. With the support of the Federal Government, it was launched by Senator Jane Hume who described it as “a terrific idea and one that will help 100,000 refugees and migrants gain their independence”.

Margaret Harrison, Managing Director of Our HR Company, with a long background in training and Human Resources, has spent almost a decade developing this program and arriving at a very appealing product telling stories in different ways, providing extra reinforcement in the form of quizzes and FAQs, dealing with how to prepare a resume and how to get on in the workplace, and making it easy for new arrivals to find the information and to access it in their own time reinforcing these important skills.

So, you ask, how can these new arrivals with little English find their way around the App and its contents?  Via Translation! Chin Communications was engaged to deliver the translations in four key languages representing recent tranches of arrivals: Assyrian (from Iraq and Syria mainly), Chin-Hakha (Burma), Dari (Afghanistan) and Arabic. As well as written translations of the stories and the app platform, stories were also recorded in voice by voiceover artists in these languages.

It is a first in Australia and congratulations to Margaret and her team including Laura Liu who led the project for Chin Communications and was described as ‘amazing’ for her attention to detail, fast response, and delivery to meet tight deadlines; her appreciation of Elton John, however, is yet to come!

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