As a remote company at the forefront of translation technology, OnTheGoSystems is embracing AI tools to revolutionize our workflows and drive innovation.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been transforming the workplace for some time now. With the recent release of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, we are witnessing the transformative power of AI in our daily work.
Powered by a large language model, ChatGPT uses artificial intelligence to understand and generate human-like text. Ask it to write a story, tell you about rocket science, or for personal advice – it always has an answer. And while ChatGPT has its limitations, the advancements in AI show us just how crucial it is to stay ahead of the curve.
At OnTheGoSystems, we can’t (and won’t) deny that machines have evolved in their ability to plan, reason, communicate, and learn. Instead, we are choosing to leverage AI’s potential to work faster and better.
OnTheGoSystems’ Teams: Tapping into the Power of AI
In the last months, we’ve noticed that AI tools like ChatGPT have numerous advantages:
Better decision making: With the right prompts, AI is capable of processing vast amounts of data quickly and accurately. In a matter of minutes, AI tools can provide us with the insights we need to make better business decisions.
Enhanced productivity: Some tasks, like creating spreadsheets or writing code, can feel mundane and repetitive. AI tools can be used to automate these tasks, allowing our team members to focus on more strategic objectives.
Improved communication: With our remote team members working from different parts of the world, we are what is known as a globally distributed team. By using AI tools to help us proofread texts and put information into simple words, we can overcome potential communication barriers.
Here’s a deeper look into how we’re using AI tools to improve the way we work across different teams.
Building Innovative Products – Development Team
Our developers have always been committed to building software that meets the needs of our clients. We use a combination of technologies to build our most popular products, WPML and Toolset, and our new software translation tool, PTC (Private Translation Cloud).
Now, our software developers and AI are working hand-in-hand on our existing products and to bring big, meaningful ideas to life.
They also use AI tools to help with everyday tasks, such as:
Writing and reviewing code
Testing and detecting bugs and errors
Analyzing large data volumes to enhance the quality of services such as our WPML machine translations
Of course, it’s important to note that our developers are highly knowledgeable and always check the code ChatGPT produces. This is essential, since AI tools like ChatGPT don’t always get it right.
At the moment, our Head of Engineering, Eduard Martini is busy building a custom ChatGPT interface.
The latest AI tools have transformed our development process, speeding up projects and automating mundane tasks.
For example, we now use ChatGPT to generate release notes by simply feeding it the comments from our commits, and it compiles meaningful summaries in no time. We’ve also built our own ChatGPT UI, making it more accessible and functional.
We’re researching AI tools to improve the quality of WPML’s machine translations. While this is still in its early research phase, we’ve made steady progress and are excited about the potential impact it could have on our services and the industry as a whole.
With the help of new AI tools, I am at least 20% more productive.
OnTheGoSystems is a remote company with team members across 45 countries and 4 continents. For our teams, this is a huge benefit. We can learn from talented people with diverse backgrounds and skill sets.
But for our HR professionals, building a global team comes with its own unique challenges. Our HR team members need to make sure that anyone joining us is a good fit for working remotely. They need to attract diverse talent while also maintaining a strong company culture and ensuring good collaboration among international team members.
Currently, our HR team is using AI to find the right person for each role, create a more engaging hiring experience, and take over time-consuming administrative tasks. Overall, we’ve found that AI tools actually help us keep the “human” in human resources.
While we don’t use AI as extensively as other teams, it does add value to our HR processes.
For example, we provide ChatGPT with job specifications and it helps us craft meaningful job ads. For each role we are recruiting for, it helps us generate the questions we can ask candidates and suggests how to assess technical capabilities for specific roles. We use ChatGPT to do research and proofread texts and emails.
Overall, AI tools like ChatGPT really streamline the recruitment process.
Our content team creates a wide variety of content, including how-to guides, blog posts, tutorials, announcements, and more. This requires not only a high level of product knowledge, but also resources. Putting different types of content together takes time. From our team members, it also requires a fair share of research and a deep understanding of our products.
For the most part, AI tools don’t have the understanding or knowledge needed to produce ready-to-use content. But, they are capable of generating ideas faster than humans can.
Because of this, we use AI to help us produce high-quality content. With the right prompt, tools like ChatGPT provide outlines, headlines, and even first drafts for articles. We then carefully review what ChatGPT generates and add our personal touch to create better, well-rounded content in less time.
ChatGPT and AI tools are proving to be a great help for the Content team. AI can’t replace our skilled writers, but it helps speed up the content creation process. It’s like having a writing assistant that helps us write outlines, headings, social media posts, and even whole drafts for blog posts and tutorials.
Once we’ll be able to train AI tools with our own data, the sky’s the limit.
The support team members for our WPML and Toolset plugins work tirelessly to provide our clients with answers to questions and solutions to issues. To be able to provide only the best user experiences, our supporters need to know our products inside out. They also need to know how to think outside the box and prioritize the tickets that come into the support forum.
Our support team is already using ChatGPT to craft summaries for resolved tickets. The advantages are twofold:
Our clients and other supporters can quickly read the summary and understand the issue at hand
Our supporters have more time to focus on more complex and time-sensitive tasks
Now, we’re looking to use AI to enhance these human interactions. We want to train ChatGPT to help our supporters with quick replies to frequently asked questions. This means developing an AI-powered chatbot.
We’re building an AI-powered support chatbot to provide quick, first-tier support. The chatbot will try to resolve issues and provide clients with the most precise answers. Of course, AI tools are not always 100% accurate. One of the challenges is training the bot to know when to transfer conversations it can’t correctly answer to a human operator.
We’re exploring new approaches, including those from Facebook/Meta, to stay up-to-date and efficient.
We are still in the research phase, but we’re determined to find a solution that meets our expectations
As a company that builds advanced translation technologies, OnTheGoSystems is always looking for ways to take the technology available to us to the next level.
AI tools like ChatGPT play a significant role in this pursuit. While they can’t replace the knowledge and expertise of our team members, they can assist us in getting things done faster.
As we continue to explore new ways to leverage AI, we’re committed to fostering a work environment that embraces change and technological advancements. We’re excited to see how we can use AI to be a valuable asset for our team, our services, and the industry as a whole.
Star of the Month Kathy Banach tells us about her experiences of living in different countries around the world and shares her tips for becoming a better writer.
Kathy, tell us about yourself
I suppose I’m what you’d call a global citizen of the world. I’m originally from New York, where I lived up until my early teen years. I then moved to Lodz, Poland. I finished my schooling there and embarked on a journey into the unknown by moving to Beijing, China. After 7 years in China, I decided it was time to settle down back in Europe. I currently live in a small coastal town close to Alicante, Spain.
I’m an “outdoorsy person”, so for me, the best part of living in Spain is hands down the weather. After years of living in smoggy Beijing, I was absolutely sun-starved. Now, spending time outside in the sunshine is a given! I can work on my terrace and then use my time after work to go on outdoor adventures.
Mount Hua in Huayin, China. The hike was worth the (somewhat smoggy) view
What did you do before joining OTGS?
In China, I worked in Marketing and HR for a localization company. I was involved in a lot of different projects and no two days were ever the same. I wrote job descriptions and HR materials, interviewed candidates, and assisted in event planning and office management matters. I was also heavily involved in creating blog posts, managing social media accounts, and running marketing campaigns.
After moving to Poland, I found myself working in the fashion industry. First for a clothing wholesaler, and later for myself. I owned an online clothing store for a couple of years. It was a great learning experience – so much goes into it! It’s not just about selling nice, good quality products. Visual merchandising, customer service, product descriptions, and fulfillment strategies are just a few of the things your store is also dependent on.
As you can see, all of my experiences have been very different from one another, but they’ve taught me a lot and really helped shape my career path.
The Leshan Giant Buddha in the Sichuan province of China
Could you describe your job at OnTheGoSystems?
I’m a Content Writer, so the short story is: I write.
More specifically, I write about anything and everything. The tasks are always different. Sometimes, I have to create or update technical documentation pages and tutorials, which also means I have to quickly create a test site and check a theme or plugin’s compatibility with WPML. I then have to convey technical and sometimes complex information in a simple, user-friendly way. It’s not as easy as it may sound, because you have to remember you’re not writing for yourself. You always have to keep the needs of your readers, or in this case, users in mind.
I also create marketing content like newsletters, blog posts, and HR articles. This allows me to showcase my creativity, but the goal is always the same – to connect with my audience. A lot of people don’t think about this, but research is an important, if not key part of writing. Before you actually start writing, you first need to understand the topic at hand and know who your target audience is. Only then can you put everything together and produce a quality piece of content.
Do you have a schedule you follow?
I start each day by checking my emails and setting my priorities. Of course, these often change after our daily morning meeting, but at least I have an idea of what I absolutely need to finish this week vs. what can wait in the queue for another week or two.
Each day is different though – last-minute and urgent requests do occasionally come up. When that happens, you have to be ready to switch gears. Thankfully, I enjoy the challenge and the opportunity to learn new things.
Out for a stroll while visiting my brother in Apeldoorn, The Netherlands
In your experience, what are the best things and most challenging things about working remotely?
Personally, I find myself more productive when working remotely. In my previous in-house office jobs, I’d always have coworkers stopping by my office for a chat. I like getting to know people so I can’t say I didn’t enjoy the experience, but I did end up needing to stay overtime one too many times!
Remotely, I can manage my time better. Sure, there are still meetings to attend and channels on MatterMost where you can stop by for a chat, but it’s easier to focus without your standard office distractions.
On the other hand, this means you have to actually put in the work to maintain social interactions. The thin line between work and home can become blurred, so I find it necessary to get out of the house after clocking out. A walk on the beach, a bike ride, or dinner and drinks with friends – it doesn’t really matter, so long as there’s some form of in-person interactions.
Any hopes and plans for the future (personal or professional)?
With normality on the horizon, I’m looking forward to traveling again! I love visiting new places and seeking out hidden spots. There’s nothing quite like the off-the-beaten path experience and getting to know each place I go to through the eyes of the local people. I’ve met some amazing people along the way and made enough memories to last a lifetime.
On a professional level, I’d like to take some UX/UI design courses. Writing high quality content is important, but so is making it look good.
Singapore – we were going to the Botanical Gardens, but somehow ended up at an interactive Pokemon exhibition
After only four months at OntheGoSystems, Dean Jones has already been recognized by coworkers as being proactive, a quick learner, and a great addition to the Partnerships team.
Tell us a bit about yourself, Dean. Where are you from and what is your family like?
I was born in Cape Town, South Africa, and have been living here for my whole life.
My father was born in Johannesburg and my mother in Cape Town. Since my father is Jewish (his mother was born in Lithuania), my family followed mostly Jewish practices and I did all my schooling at a Jewish school in Cape Town.
My mother’s side is Christian, so I still managed to get a taste of some other traditions. I have never been particularly conservative with my approach to traditions and religion, but rather like to use it as a way to bring the family together during important times of the year.
Brother takes a family selfie after Sunday lunch. I often cycle to my parents on the weekend.
How do you like to spend your time outside of work?
My main hobby is music. I started playing guitar when I was still in school and have also been collecting music since then.
I am also involved in the electronic and club music scene here in South Africa and internationally. I run my own independent record label, produce my own music and host events when the circumstances allow for it.
Outside of this, I really enjoy keeping active and being outdoors. At the moment I have a weekly routine of boxing, yoga and cycling or hiking. For me, this is super important for many aspects of life whether it be creativity, stress management or just general wellbeing!
Spinning a few records at a local station called Hamshack Radio
What were you doing before joining OntheGoSystems?
Prior to working at OTGS, I was working with a friend of mine who started a tutoring company for local university and high school students. I had some freelance experience in graphic design and WordPress website design and he needed someone to help him take the business online – which became even more challenging when Covid hit.
I was there for around 3 years and got involved in many aspects of the business from design and web to general business management and marketing. We were a very small team but always managed to make things work under any circumstance!
It was a great challenge for me and forced me to really step out of my comfort zone. The company is still active today, and I am proud to say I was a big part of its growth and journey.
How did you hear about OTGS? When did you join?
As I was approaching the 3-year mark at the abovementioned company, I began to feel like I needed a bit of change. Although I wasn’t actively job-seeking, I always kept my eyes open for anything that looked interesting and in line with my skill set.
Since Olivia O’Prey was already a friend on Facebook (through a mutual connection we had when she spent time in Cape Town), one day when I was scrolling through my feed I noticed the job she posted regarding an opening in the Partnerships Team at OTGS. I thought I would take a look at it, and to my excitement, it seemed to be exactly what I was looking for. I had also already used WPML for freelance projects, so this piqued my interest even more.
The timing was perfect, and the job spec felt right up my alley. Within a few days, things seamlessly came together and, as they say, the rest is history… At the end of July, I finished my 4th month at the company!
What exactly do you do for your job?
Working on the Partnerships team is quite multifaceted and requires a strong ability to multi-task and understand fundamentals in a variety of interconnected areas:
Creating and maintaining relationships with WordPress theme and plugin authors
This is a critical part of making sure that WPML remains users’ translation plugin of choice. So long as we can be compatible with the majority of themes and plugins in the WordPress ecosystem we can be fairly confident that our product will remain one of the most popular choices for users.
In order to do so, we need to make sure that we have good communication with authors – especially when it comes to resolving technical issues. I am often in contact with the Compatibility and Support teams to make sure we are addressing key technical issues that need to be resolved. This requires a good understanding of how to prioritize tasks and how to get the best results and cooperation from authors.
Identifying marketing opportunities
General strategy: Olivia and I are always thinking of the ‘bigger picture’ when it comes to marketing our products. Sometimes this requires a strategic approach (particularly for long-term goals and projects), whilst other times it requires thinking spontaneously (i.e. when communicating with authors and affiliates).
Working with affiliates: I manage all of our affiliate queries and also make sure the program is running efficiently – which means checking referrals every month, onboarding new affiliates, and engaging in projects to improve the general success of the program.
Working directly with customers: Occasionally, I deal directly with customers who reach out via email and I also keep an eye on relevant social media channels to make sure comments and messages are being handled accordingly.
Coordinating ongoing compatibility with popular themes and plugins
Creating tasks for the Compatibility Support team: Whenever a theme or plugin needs to be tested by our team, I create detailed tickets for them and make sure the author is always kept up to date as progress is being made. Sometimes this stems from a Go Global application, whilst other times it simply comes directly from an author or internal report.
Keeping the website and docs up to date: Since we have compatibility listings on our website, I make sure that these entries are kept up to date in accordance with testing, re-testing and errata. Occasionally authors need assistance with documentation or we want to create blog posts that highlight specific items. In such cases, I will usually be involved in doing the groundwork which the Content Team eventually finalizes and publishes.
Assisting theme and plugin authors: In between all of this, I am always liaising with authors to ensure that their expectations are being managed and that they also cooperate as we require.
I think this is everything… But the role is fluid by nature, so if you ask me again in a few months, my description might be a bit different! That being said, this is one of the things that excites me about the role – I enjoy dynamism!
Hiking Skeleton Gorge in Cape Town
What qualifications are needed to do your job well?
I am not sure there is a specific ‘qualification’ I could think of. The only related formal training I’ve had was from an HTML/CSS course I did some years ago. Besides that, I have a degree in Fine Art and am predominantly self-taught when it comes to everything else.
So I would say for this role, it’s about having a mind that enjoys a good balance between creativity and analysis. My experience with web and small-business management has helped with aspects of the role, but I think my ability to think creatively, communicate well and handle deadlines is what’s helped the most.
It’s definitely more about having the right mindset and energy rather than the right ‘qualification’ in my opinion.
Which teams or team members do you work closely with?
Compatibility Support for testing tasks, Content for proofing and content creation and System Support for general website-related stuff. And my manager Olivia, of course!
What’s the most challenging part of your job, and how do you overcome it?
In my role, there are many moving parts that need to be handled with care. Often tasks overlap or there are weeks when everything seems to happen at once. It’s very easy to get scatterbrain and lose focus on what’s most important.
I am getting better and better at finding ways to subdivide my tasks and make sure I prioritize them correctly. I have multiple lists and tables in different places as this helps me visualize things better.
There is also a loose kind of ‘weekly routine’ that I like to follow to maintain a bit of structure and flow to my work.
Finally, I like to run my task schedules by Olivia as it’s great to have a reliable second set of eyes!
What’s a typical day like for you working remotely?
It’s hard to say exactly since I feel like it changes almost daily! But in general, it’s inbox first. If there are any emails I can action straight away I will do so before the day really kicks off.
Once I have cleared the inbox a bit, I will take a look at my various task lists and see what is most suitable to work on for that given day. Sometimes it’s one bigger/long-term project that requires a large portion of the day; other times it’s a case of just getting a bunch of smaller tasks out of the way.
In between this, there are usually meetings (scheduled and/or unscheduled) and other ad hoc bits that come in that need to be slotting into my task list.
I should also add that I love to eat food and drink tea… so this usually happens a number of times in between all of the above!
When the weather is nice, I also like to catch some rays by working outside. I almost always work from my house, so it’s nice to have a change of scenery every now and then.
Catching some sun while I work and my housemates cat keeps me company
Are you involved with WordCamps or any similar opportunities?
Not at the moment, but it’s something I would like to get involved in – especially when we can travel properly again and actually meet in person!
In your experience, what are the best and most challenging things about working remotely?
The thing I enjoy the most is that I don’t have to compromise too much on my lifestyle. I can cook healthy food, enjoy the sun and listen to music as loud as I want – all whilst getting my job done! Usually one would have to sacrifice (at least some of) these things. I also love that I don’t have to sit in traffic!
However, these perks come with great responsibility. It is very easy to get distracted since no one is looking over your shoulder. If you aren’t disciplined, you can start to let your tasks slide – so it’s always important to check in with yourself to make sure you are being truly efficient with your time.
The only other challenge is that sometimes it can get a bit lonely. When you are in an office or shared workspace, there is a nice social dynamic that gives you extra energy – but when you spend most of your day alone, sometimes you lack a bit of that extra oomph when you need it.
In my experience, though, I would say the pros far outweigh the cons of remote work!
What are your hopes and plans for the future?
I am itching to travel again! Hopefully next year I can spend some extensive time in Europe. And to add to the previous question, I feel like this is when you truly feel the perks of remote work! I think I will be able to grow even more as an individual and as an employee when I get the chance to do this again, so I really look forward to it.
I get a lot of inspiration from being in other places, and I think this will give me a great burst of creative energy that will positively impact my personal and professional life!
This month, we are highlighting Dario, who joined OnTheGoSystems in April 2014 as an in-development tester. He is now a Documentation Team leader for WPML and Toolset.
Dario, what was your exact position when you started?
I started in 2014 as the first in-development tester on the company. I guess I did well as we hired more testers after that. :) I was a tester for our Toolset plugins but through testing, I got to know WPML a lot as well.
Enjoying the winter
What do you do now?
I’m now the Documentation Manager and I lead the company’s small but awesome team of Technical Writing specialists.
Dario speaking at WCEU Paris 2017 (photo by Vincenzo Carrubba)
How did you grow into this role? What led up to it?
Back then, we didn’t have anyone doing just documentation and I said, of course, I’d like to do that (privately, I was writing short stories for as long as I remember). I also got into usability testing in this way. They were things outside testing that we needed someone to do and I actually like doing them. :)
As I took more and more documentation work, it became obvious that I’m pretty good at writing documentation. I also became pretty good at producing videos and other skills required for documenting (and marketing) a product.
So, one day, Amir, our CEO, asked me if I would like to take over the responsibility for our whole documentation. I knew it will be a huge challenge but I also felt that I can do this really well so it was a no-brainer actually. :)
Summer at the island of Cres
What really helped you get to this position?
As a person, I am really curious (ask anyone) and I like doing different things. So, when I started as a tester, there was an opportunity to do other things besides testing. This is a great thing about OnTheGoSystems because if you’re keen on doing something more, you just need to show initiative when the opportunity arises.
When it comes to skills, I would say that what was crucial was my English proficiency (I’m not a native speaker), excellent communication skills (in general, not just written but also in direct contact with people), and my organizational skills. Other than that, it’s also hard work as in, caring about what you do and not just clocking hours every day – this is the foundation of doing a good job.
Adventures in adrenaline park
Are you content in your role now? What motivates you?
I am very happy in my role and there is always something new. For example, our little documentation team grew to 3 members (myself included) in 2020 and now I have more team-leading responsibilities, making sure everyone feels content and things are running smoothly.
We have great products and I really want people to use them, that’s my client-facing motivation. I know how someone can find any tool challenging and I want to help them.
And on a personal level, the whole team and the company motivates me. I honestly like everyone I work with closely here and they’re all super smart and hard-working but still humble and generous. So, working with such people motivates me because I want my part (documentation) to be at least on par with the amazing work others are doing. Not as a competition but as synergy.
A forest walk with the family
In short, what advice would you give someone who wants to grow within the company?
Don’t be afraid of challenges and new responsibilities. Stay curious and learn more about things you like doing and are good at.
