From Junior Interpreter to Manager  — Meet Eugene, Interpreter at Coupang

Coupang has a company-wide career path that drives a member’s growth from junior to senior, where clear roles and responsibilities are defined for each stage.    

This career path applies to the Coupang interpreters and translators as well.  And many of our in-house interpreters and translators pursue their career growth following this track.  

We interviewed Eugene from MPIT (Marketplace Interpreters and Translators) who started her career at Coupang in 2015 as a Junior Interpreter and now in a Manager role since April this year.  

Hello, Eugene. Please introduce yourself.   

Hi, I'm Eugene from MPIT. I joined Coupang in 2015 as a junior interpreter and have been working here for 9 years. My team primarily supports Marketplace/Rocket Growth organization. I remember that there were only about 30 interpreters/translators across the company when I joined Coupang, and now the MPIT team alone has over 20 members. Since this April, I've taken on a new role of team management as the MPIT-A team manager in addition to my original role in interpretation.   

You must have gone through a lot of changes while working at Coupang for a long time.  

I want to point out two biggest changes I’ve seen: Changes in the interpretation environment and the introduction of CouIST, the automatic interpreter allocation system.   

For starters, after the COVID-19 pandemic, interpreters have more chances to provide contactless services in Zoom meetings as well as working from home. Working from home has improved many hurdles on on-site interpretation services such as devices and seating arrangements. Compared to the on-site interpretation, using the Zoom platform allows interpreters to hear what speakers say more clearly as long as they set up their headsets properly, which is a big advantage.    

Also, CouIST is a system that opened my eyes to the power of automation in interpretation management.    

Previously, we used the Office 365 calendar for scheduling and manually allocated interpreters to each meeting like playing Tetris. CouIST introduction has made it possible for us to handle things that we would have never been able to do manually by using the system to adjust meeting schedules and interpreter assignments. As the system has evolved to keep pace with the growth of the organization, interpreters can focus more on our interpretation tasks.   

What kind of changes have you undergone personally in your career progression from a junior to senior interpreter?   

I think there was no specific point when I felt like, "I'm a senior interpreter now!".   

When I was a junior, I was focused more on doing my job better as an interpreter.  At one point, however, I started to find pain points while doing my job and speak up for improvements. I got to a point where I came up with great ideas and felt it was FUN to actively speak up to make the team work more efficiently. I think this was when I felt the biggest change.     

We want to know more about your junior years at Coupang. Could you share any memorable episodes like mistakes you made or feedback you got?   

I got negative feedback on my translation because the tone and voice I used didn’t fit the style of the document. I was really upset at that time when I heard the feedback although I wasn’t scolded or criticized. Now that I think about it, I feel a little embarrassed and ashamed. Since then, I’ve tried to communicate more closely with our users and checked their feedback often to not miss anything.   

One time, I attended a meeting as an interpreter where heated discussions and debates took place.  I was startled but I took much care of the tone and mood I used while interpreting the conversations to avoid any misunderstandings. After the meeting, one of the participants gave my manager feedback on my performance, “She cares.” This made me realize that if I work hard, everyone knows.   

What made you stay in this company for a long time without experiencing burnout?   

One of the key reasons is that Coupang has a well-established organization and system for interpreters and translators. I believe that the well-structured onboarding process and curriculum of the Coupang language support organization allowed me to grow by learning step by step.   

Another reason is that there is no room for getting bored. Working at Coupang, you can continuously experience various changes in organizations, businesses, and domains — just like working for multiple companies. This has always kept me motivated.    

Now, as a team manager, I'm sure you have a lot on your mind. Could you please describe a person you'd love to work with?   

I’m looking for a team player. Actually, I was under pressure preparing for today's interview. I read the questions in advance and thought about who would be a good fit for our team and organization. That’s when it crossed my mind that there would have been no team if I had been able to do everything by myself. Of course, you need to be competent in your job by learning and growing by yourself, but I think it can’t compare with what you learn from exchanging opinions with a group of people.    

Thank you for your time. Do you have any final comments you’d like to make?  

I’ve been feeling tired lately, but this interview let me reflect on the path I've been on. It gave me a chance to refresh and think about the feedback I’ve received from my customers and colleagues as well as some tasks I’ve been forced out of habit.   

I’ve been thinking about my capabilities as a manager since I've taken on this role in April this year. I want to grow as a manager through open and transparent communication with my team members and colleagues.