Working with Interpreters: Preparing for French–Chinese and French–English Business Interpreting

When you meet companies or public bodies in Côte d'Ivoire (in West Africa, French-speaking, the world's largest cocoa producer), language is often the biggest hurdle. A good interpreter can make the conversation flow as smoothly as if both sides were speaking directly — but half the quality of interpreting depends on how well the client prepares beforehand.

Choose the right mode of interpreting

Mode	How it works	Best suited to
Simultaneous	Interpreters sit in a soundproof booth and interpret almost at the same time as the speaker; the audience listens on headsets	Conferences, large presentations, multilingual events
Consecutive	The speaker says a passage and pauses, then the interpreter renders it	Small business meetings, courtesy visits, site visits
Remote simultaneous	Interpreters work online over the internet	Hybrid events, partly online and partly in person

The International Association of Conference Interpreters (AIIC) points out that simultaneous interpreting requires specialist equipment, including one booth per output language, interpreter consoles and a transmission system; remote interpreting is technically more complex, and the interpreting team should be told about it from the outset.

When direct French–Chinese interpreters are scarce: relay interpreting. If you cannot find interpreters who work directly between French and Chinese, you can use "relay": one team of interpreters renders French into English, and another renders the English into Chinese. AIIC's event examples include a relay set up with a Chinese–English team and an English–Italian team. Relay adds an extra layer of conversion, so speakers need to slow down even more and keep their sentences simple.

Interpreting is teamwork

In AIIC's examples, each language is covered by two interpreters who take turns every 30 minutes; the team usually has a team leader who liaises with the organiser before and after the event. For long meetings, quality is hard to sustain with just one interpreter, so factor this into the budget.

Materials to give interpreters in advance

Slides, speeches and background material: the earlier the better. Booths are often far from the screen, so interpreters need their own copy of the slides; any text in videos or slides that needs interpreting should also come with a script.
Glossary: company names, product models, names and titles of people, French acronyms (such as PCA and DG), technical terms — ideally with Chinese or English equivalents.
Briefing session: when the subject is specialised, arrange for the interpreters and speakers to meet beforehand to clarify technical details.

Under AIIC's Code of Professional Ethics, members must keep information learned in the course of their work strictly confidential and may not use confidential information for personal gain. If the content is especially sensitive, you can still sign a separate non-disclosure agreement.

How speakers can help interpreting be more accurate

Slow down when reading a script: AIIC recommends a pace of about 3 minutes for a 40-line page when reading from a text.
State numbers and names clearly: speakers know their own figures well and tend to rush through them, but listeners and interpreters do not.
Go easy on acronyms, in-jokes and puns: give the full name the first time an acronym appears; jokes and idioms often cannot be translated.
Keep the microphone on throughout: without a microphone, the interpreter cannot hear you.
Speak in segments during consecutive interpreting: pause after each complete idea, and look at your counterpart rather than the interpreter, so the conversation remains an exchange between you and your client.

One line for Asian teams

Treat the interpreter as a member of the meeting team, provide materials early and speak more slowly: every hour you spend on preparation will turn into clearer communication at the meeting table.

References: AIIC Greece-Cyprus: Tips for Event Planners; AIIC: Guidelines for speakers; VKD/BDÜ: Tips for speakers; Cultures Connection: Confidentiality in interpretation – AIIC Code of Ethics (2018)