Ainoa Elguezabal Uzkanga

Christian, Concerned citizen, Entrepreneur, Environmentalist, Parent

I am a professional freelance translator for the English-Spanish pair of languages with extensive experience in the corporate field. Native Spanish speaker, born in Venezuela and living in Spain with two Bachelor Degrees in Modern Languages (English translation), a Bachelor Degree in Business Administration and a Master Degree in Management. I worked for Motorola in the Human Resources area for 18 years. During this time, I kept moving to increasingly complex roles until I left the company in 2011 as the Regional Rewards Director for the Latina America Region. During my 18 year career working in a regional role for an American multinational company, I acquired both the expertise in areas such as Business Administration, Human Capital Management, Organizational Development, Leadership, among others, and also the full domain of the the terminology in my pair of languages. Having two bachelor degrees in modern languages, one of them with focus on business, was a plus in my regional role in a completely bilingual work environment. As part of my job, I continuously translated all types of material into Spanish (main Latin America variants): manager and employee handbooks, HR policies and procedures, benefit plans, compliance documents, training material, corporate communications, etc. Translations covered a large variety of areas: merit review, performance management, long and short term incentives, sales plans, equity, learning and development, leadership, engagement and retention, change management, recognition programs, etc. While most of my relevant work as a translator has been as a translator "in house" in Motorola with expertise in the areas of business administration, organization and management and human capital management, my experience as a translator dates back to the nineties when I got my first translation degree. At that time I worked as a freelance translator for several clients in Venezuela. Once I left Motorola in 2011, I decided to resume my profession taking advantage of my vast experience and exposure gained in the corporate field. Since then, I have worked as a freelance translator mostly in my areas of expertise but also in others like managerial economics, behavioral sciences, sociology, organizational behavior, software, IT and marketing.

I´passionated about reading and learning on topics related to organizations seen as behavioral systems and the impact of human behavior on organizational performance.

It's never too late to get back on track. I am passionate about languages, that is why my first university degree was Modern Languages. Life took me on other paths, full of challenges and experiences that led me to get to know many countries and cultures. I grew professionally in the human resources area and became regional manager of the Latin America function at Motorola. I left the company in 2011 for personal reasons and two years ago I came with my family to Spain due to the difficult situation in my country, Venezuela. It is not easy to leave your country especially when it is a decision that does not depend on you. I try to see the positive side of this experience and the need to start from scratch. Now I can get back on track and do what I really like, but now with a vast professional experience and an expanded world view, which will certainly make me a better translator.

Behavioral Sciences, Business, Change Management, Human Capital Management, Leadership, Marketing, Organizations, Sociology