Localization Technical Program Manager

Avetta, LLC

13d•$115,000 - $149,000•Hybrid

About The Position

Avetta is seeking a highly skilled Localization Technical Program Manager to set technical direction and serve as an embedded partner across Product, Engineering, UX/UI, Localization, and Localization Testing. This role will make Avetta’s products globally ready by connecting product engineering, localization technology, and release delivery. It is a hands-on leadership role that combines internationalization (i18n) engineering, localization-systems ownership, and technical program leadership to ensure Avetta’s products are designed for global markets and its localization workflows are reliable, scalable, and integrated throughout the product development lifecycle. The individual will lead technical delivery across product i18n and the localization technology ecosystem, from early design through release. This includes ownership of Phrase/TMS configuration, APIs and integrations, Avetta’s central platform for AI-enabled translation, workflow automation, release readiness, and technical enablement for the localization team. The role requires a highly specialized combination of deep i18n knowledge and hands-on localization systems expertise. Targeted i18n and localization quality metrics may be used to identify issues and guide improvements, but analytics and reporting are not the primary focus of the role. If residing within commutable distance to one of our offices, a hybrid schedule would be required (3 days in office, 2 days work from home). Candidates within commutable distance are preferred, but those outside of an office area may be considered on a remote basis.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, a related technical field, or equivalent practical experience.
A minimum of 5 years of experience in internationalization engineering, localization engineering, localization technology, or a closely related discipline.
Deep knowledge of i18n fundamentals, including string externalization, locale-aware behavior, pluralization, date/number/currency formatting, RTL support, Unicode, and placeholder or markup protection.
Hands-on expertise configuring and administering Phrase or comparable TMS, including translation memories, termbases, workflow automation, quality controls, permissions, and troubleshooting.
Experience building or supporting localization APIs and integrations; familiarity with formats and technologies such as JSON, XML, XLIFF, ICU MessageFormat, REST APIs, webhooks, source control, and CI/CD is strongly preferred.
Experience designing AI-enabled products and workflows, including LLM and Machine Translation integrations, prompt design, API-based orchestration, evaluation methods, and human-in-the-loop quality controls.
Strong technical program management, problem-solving, and communication skills, with experience working in Agile software development and release environments across Product, Engineering, UX/UI, and testing teams.
Ability to provide timely support during releases and maintain substantial working hours overlap with Avetta's core Product and Engineering teams.
Hands-on experience using AI-assisted development tools to prototype solutions, develop workflow automations, document technical designs, or accelerate implementation is strongly preferred.
Ability to contribute through APIs or scripting is beneficial; production software development is not required.

Nice To Haves

Fluency in a second language is preferred. In addition to English, preferred languages may include, but are not limited to, German, Japanese, Korean, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, or other languages that support global collaboration and cross-cultural communication.
Experience using i18n or localization quality metrics is helpful; dashboarding or data-visualization expertise is not required.

Responsibilities

Design and implement i18n solutions within the software development lifecycle, including string externalization, resource-file architecture, Unicode and encoding support, and scalable patterns for locale-aware product behavior.
Define and review locale behavior across products, including pluralization, grammatical variants, date, time, number, and currency formats, time zones, sorting, and other regional conventions.
Ensure product readiness for right-to-left (RTL) languages and protect variables, placeholders, markups, and other non-translatable elements throughout content and translation workflows.
Partner with Localization Testing to support pseudo-localization, functional validation, defect triage, and release readiness.
Own and administer Phrase or a comparable Translation Management System (TMS), including project and workflow configuration, translation memories, termbases, quality settings, permissions, automation, and lifecycle governance.
Design, maintain, and troubleshoot TMS/API workflows and integrations with product repositories, content systems, and delivery pipelines. Serve as the technical escalation point for localization systems and process issues.
Serve as the technical product owner for Avetta's central platform for AI-enabled translation, defining its roadmap, architecture, capabilities, and integration strategy across TMS and localization workflows. Translate localization needs into technical requirements, user stories, and scalable solutions in partnership with Product and Engineering.
Identify and support opportunities to streamline and automate localization workflows, including translation, review, and delivery. Lead automation of the localization defect and bug-triage process, applying AI where appropriate across these workflows.
Lead localization technical programs from planning through release, managing scope, dependencies, risks, priorities, and regional requirements while coordinating Product, Engineering, UX/UI, Localization, and Localization Testing.
Embed localization requirements and best practices early in product discovery, design, and development. Provide hands-on guidance during implementation and respond quickly to release critical issues.
Help localization team members resolve technical and process issues; create practical documentation and enablement. Pull and interpret targeted i18n, localization quality, or workflow-health metrics when needed to diagnose trends and guide improvements.