SGEN Internationalization (i18n) Strategy

What is this for?

This document defines SGEN's approach to language coverage, translation quality, surface prioritization, and maintenance cadence for non-English markets. It is the anchor reference for Phase 1 of the global market readiness program — all other localization decisions derive from it.

Use this document to understand which surfaces get localized, in which languages, at what quality bar, and on what maintenance schedule.

Decision authority: James (product) + Jerome (docs + marketing). Changes to this document require explicit sign-off from both.

Scope

This reference covers:

• The three-tier language model (Tier 1 / Tier 2 / Tier 3) and what each tier includes.
• Which SGEN surfaces are localized at each tier and the rationale for scope limits.
• Translation method requirements and quality bars per tier.
• Maintenance SLAs for keeping localized pages current with the EN-US source.
• URL structure and language-switcher placement decisions.
• RTL language scope (out of scope for Phase 1-3).
• Cultural review requirements.
• Voice consistency rules across locales.

This document does not cover execution timelines, vendor contracts, or the per-doc translation brief — those live in the companion planning docs.

Where to find it

This document lives at docs.sgen.com/localization/i18n-strategy. It is the single source of truth for SGEN's localization approach. Per-locale translation briefs and vendor contracts reference this document; they do not duplicate it.

Reference

The key decision tables in this document:

Examples

• A German operator visits the pricing page. The pricing page is in Tier 2 surface coverage. A German (/de/) version of the pricing page ships within the 14-day SLA from the EN-US source update. The operator sees pricing in their locale.
• A Japanese operator visits the changelog. The changelog is English-only per the surface coverage table — changelog is high-velocity and excluded from all tiers. The Japanese operator reads the EN-US changelog.
• A French-speaking operator visits a customer doc that is not in the top-30 Tier 2 selection. The language switcher does not show French for that page (only shows localized versions that exist). The operator reads EN-US.

URL pattern examples by locale:EN-US (default) docs.sgen.com/trust/soc2-statusEN-GB docs.sgen.com/en-gb/trust/soc2-statusGerman docs.sgen.com/de/trust/soc2-statusFrench docs.sgen.com/fr/trust/soc2-statusSpanish docs.sgen.com/es/trust/soc2-statusItalian docs.sgen.com/it/trust/soc2-statusDutch docs.sgen.com/nl/trust/soc2-statusPT-BR docs.sgen.com/pt-br/trust/soc2-statusJapanese docs.sgen.com/ja/trust/soc2-statusKorean docs.sgen.com/ko/trust/soc2-status

See also

• GDPR Posture — EU data protection obligations (affects compliance page localization priority)
• SOC 2 Type II Status — trust doc in Tier 2/3 localization scope
• ISO/IEC 27001 Status — trust doc in Tier 2/3 localization scope
• Global Market Readiness Plan — parent planning doc (internal)

Why this document exists

SGEN is expanding beyond the US market. Europe is the first target — EU + UK within 60 days. Localization is not translation: it is voice consistency, regulatory language accuracy, and buyer trust in markets where English-as-default carries varying levels of acceptance.

This strategy defines the line between what SGEN localizes, how well, and in what order.

Language tiers

SGEN operates a three-tier language model. Tier determines translation scope, quality bar, and maintenance priority.

Tier 1 is the source. All other tiers derive from Tier 1. EN-US is the authoring language for every doc, page, and asset. EN-GB is a copy-level adaptation (spelling, idiom, specific UK regulatory terms) — not a structural fork.

Tier 2 covers the five largest EU B2B SaaS markets by SGEN's current opportunity sizing. These markets have the highest tolerance for English-first SaaS in B2B contexts but require localized compliance, legal, and pricing pages at minimum.

Tier 3 covers high-growth LATAM and APAC markets. Full localization is deferred to Phase 3 — pending conversion data from Tier 1 and Tier 2 markets validating the spend.

Surface coverage per tier

Not all surfaces require localization at every tier. This table defines what ships in each language at each tier.

Rationale for scope limits: Changelog, developer docs, and blog posts are high-velocity surfaces. Keeping them English-only prevents a permanent maintenance backlog in translation workflows. Tier 2 buyers in B2B SaaS contexts consistently read English-language technical documentation.

Translation method and quality bar

SGEN does not rely on machine translation for customer-facing content.

Machine translation (MT) is a fallback only. MT output may be used for internal drafts or speed-to-market under time pressure, but it is not acceptable as the published state of any customer-facing page without full human review. This applies regardless of MT quality signals.

Vendor selection:

Maintenance cadence

EN-US is always updated first. Translated versions follow.

If a Tier 2 or Tier 3 page is out-of-date relative to the EN-US source, the page must display a visible notice: "This page was last updated [date]. The EN-US version is the most current." The notice is removed when translation is brought current.

Staleness is not acceptable on legal and security pages. If a Tier 2 legal doc cannot be updated within 14 days of the EN-US change, the translated version should be replaced with the EN-US version until the translation is ready.

Language switcher placement and URL structure

URL prefix strategy

Localized pages use a URL prefix, not a subdomain or separate domain.

URL prefix approach keeps EN-US as the canonical base, makes hreflang implementation straightforward, and avoids subdomain DNS complexity.

Language switcher placement

The language switcher appears in two locations:

1. Top navigation bar — persistent across all pages, visible to all visitors
2. Footer — secondary placement for users who scroll past the header

The switcher shows the current language name in the current language (e.g., "Deutsch" not "German", "Français" not "French"). It lists only Tier 2 and Tier 3 languages that have a localized version of the current page — not the full language list regardless of coverage.

Right-to-left (RTL) languages

RTL language support (Arabic, Hebrew, Farsi) is out of scope for v1 (Phases 1-3). RTL requires layout-level changes to the docs platform beyond translation. This decision will be revisited when MENA region enters the target market list.

Cultural review

Translation accuracy is not the same as cultural appropriateness. SGEN's localization process includes a cultural review step for every Tier 2 and Tier 3 language.

Cultural review covers:

• Tone and formality level (e.g., German B2B copy is typically more formal than English; French less so than German)
• Idioms that do not translate (SGEN brand voice §10 sentence starters require equivalent culturally-appropriate formulas, not literal translation)
• Legal and regulatory term accuracy (DSGVO is the German term for GDPR — a translator who writes "GDPR" in a German doc is not being thorough)
• Numbers, dates, and currency format (EU uses . as thousands separator and , as decimal; UK uses , as thousands separator)

Cultural reviewer requirement: Every Tier 2 and Tier 3 language must have at least one designated native-speaker cultural reviewer — either on staff or contracted through the translation vendor. Reviewer names and affiliations are documented in the translation vendor brief.

Voice consistency across locales

SGEN brand voice does not get diluted in translation. §10 writing formulas apply to every locale:

• Customer doc formula: [Action] → [Outcome] → [Context if needed]
• No hype language, no hedging, no "" / "just" / "" equivalents in the target language
• Translators receive a voice brief with the §10 formulas, the forbidden territory list (§07), and 3 worked examples per doc type

The voice brief is maintained by Jerome and versioned with each translation vendor engagement. When the brand voice canonical updates, the translator brief updates within 14 days.

Open decisions — flagged for James + Jerome

The following items are unresolved and block Phase 2 or Phase 3 execution:

Last reviewed: 2026-05-22. Next review: 2026-08-22 or after Phase 2 vendor selection, whichever is earlier.