Localization Technical Program Manager

Avetta is building the largest global community of hiring clients and suppliers that are Ready to Work. Its unified platform streamlines compliance, prequalification, safety and performance benchmarking in a single, integrated experience. Trusted by 360,000 businesses across more than 120 countries, Avetta blends AI-driven insights and human expertise to close risk gaps and strengthen supplier reliability so projects start on time, risks are managed proactively and operations scale with certainty.

SUMMARY

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. You will make Avetta’s products globally ready by connecting product engineering, localization technology, and release delivery. This hands-on leadership role 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.

You 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. You will establish standards, guide implementation, and help resolve complex technical and process issues. 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.

This is a hybrid role, working three days a week in our beautiful Calgary Office located at 255 5th Ave SW, Suite 1400, Calgary, AB T2P 3G6. Candidates within commutable distance (48 km or closer) are preferred, but those outside of an office area may be considered on a remote basis. 

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND 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.

IDEAL EDUCATION, TRAINING, AND EXPERIENCE:

• 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.
• 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.
• 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. Experience using i18n or localization quality metrics is helpful; dashboarding or data-visualization expertise is not required.
• 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.

At Avetta, we are committed to paying competitively and providing pay transparency to ensure equitable hiring practices and promote trust. The final compensation offered to a candidate will be determined by several factors, including work location, job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training.

Avetta is an equal opportunity employer and values diversity. We encourage individuals from all backgrounds and experiences to apply.

To apply for the Localization Technical Program Manager position, please submit your online application by December 31, 2026, at 11:59 PM PST.

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