Translation management system

A globalization management system (GMS) is a type of software for automating many parts of the human language translation process and maximizing translator efficiency. The ideal of a globalization management system is to automate all repeatable and non-essential work that can be done by software/systems and leaving only the creative work of translation and review to be done by human beings. A globalization management system generally includes at least two types of technology: process management technology to automate the flow of work, and linguistic technology to aid the translator.

In a typical GMS, process management technology is used to monitor source language content for changes and route the content to various translators and reviewers. These translators and reviewers may be located across the globe and typically access the GMS via the Internet.

Globalization management systems are most commonly used today for synchronizing multilingual web sites and translating large volumes of technical documentation.

Although Translation Management Systems (TMS) seems to be the currently favoured term in the localization industry, these solutions are also known as Globalization Management Systems (GMS) or Global Content Management Systems (GCMS). They work with Content management systems (CMS) as separate, but linked programs or as simple add-ons that can answer specific multilingual requirements.

A TMS typically connects to a CMS to manage foreign language content. It tends to address the following categories in different degrees, depending on each offering:

CMS excels at process management while ignoring business management and translation tools, which are strongholds of TMS.

The measurable benefits of using a TMS are similar to those found in a CMS, but with a multilingual twist: the localization workflow is automated, thus reducing management and overhead costs and time for everyone involved; localization costs are reduced, time to market is decreased and translation quality improves; finally, the cooperation between headquarters and national branches increases thanks to more thorough reporting. A typical TMS workflow goes through the following steps:

...
Wikipedia