KUDO is one of the key players in Remote Simultaneous Interpreting and a platform that I regularly use for my RSI assignments.
For those who aren’t as familiar with RSI, it’s a great solution for international training courses, webinars, presentations, board meetings and more with a global attendee list. The attendees can listen to the presentation in their own language via the remote interpreter, whilst simultaneously following along with the speaker. You, your attendees and the interpreter can be anywhere in the world.
What is KUDO?
I first started using KUDO in 2018 and have had consistently positive experiences of using the platform.
KUDO describes itself as a ¨language-as-a-service¨ platform for multilingual web conferencing and live events. Businesses use it to expand their global audience by offering content in their audience’s mother-tongue through a remote interpreter.
KUDO has a roster of 6500 interpreters (and climbing) that are on call 24/7 in case of an emergency across 80 countries with more than 70 languages available. Interpreters are certified through its Interpreter’s Journey course.
Take a look at this video by Ewandro Magalhaes, Chief Language Officer at KUDO, to find out more about the platform:
Ewandro Magalhaes recently said during an Instagram Live, hosted by Mike Lemay, that it was a platform built for conference interpreting, and on that I’d definitely agree, but it has many more capabilities beyond that too. It recently launched an integration with Microsoft Teams, which has been a revelation over the last few months.
Why become a KUDO certified interpreter?
What sets KUDO apart from its competitors is the ability to become an official ‘KUDO certified’ interpreter by taking its Interpreter Journey course, which isn’t something I have seen any other platforms offer as officially yet. It’s clear that it’s a platform built by interpreters for interpreters.
According to KUDO, there are a number of tasks an interpreter must complete or be assessed in, in order to complete the Interpreter’s Journey course:
- Screened online and trained in the use of KUDO
- Trained under the supervision of a former Chief Interpreter in the UN system
- Rely on AI-driven terminology and workflow assistance
- Have preemptive NDAs signed and kept on file
- Available on short notice
There are seven chapters to work through, covering all aspects of the platform onboarding with a final quiz at the end.
I personally found the experience very straightforward and was able to complete it very quickly. There are definitely benefits for interpreters to become KUDO certified, as clients know you have the experience, expertise and can be trusted to do a good job. For interpreters looking to get assignments through KUDO, it’s a no-brainer.
Final thought: Is KUDO worth investing in?
KUDO is an easy-to-use and cost-effective solution for RSI assignments and I highly rate it as an RSI platform. If you’ve not had had a chance to try out KUDO as an interpreter, it’s well worth a look.
To find out more about KUDO, a good place to start is some of its online videos and tutorials.
What is your experience of using KUDO? Have you got any tips or tricks to share? Let me know in the comments below.