Translating SAP software to 40+ languages with intelligence and efficiency

Intro & Challenge

Together with two other designers, I launched Design GO at SAP—an as-a-service design initiative supporting internal teams. One of our first clients was the Language Platform, a brand-new team of 20+ software engineers building a complex product from scratch without a single designer on board.

With only a few sessions helping the team to ideate and wireframe an MVP solution, it was clear that they needed an embedded design partner. I was in love with the challenge, and they saw the value design would bring, so the manager and project director made me an offer and I joined their team to work full time on that.

Leonardo has the ability to quickly pick up the mindset and purpose behind each project and enrich the team with his valuable and critical inputs all along the way. I really admire how he always gets to balance creative and logical thinking, because this is really precious for any project.

Translation editor

The main product of the whole platform was a translation editor—a tool that would later be used by internal translators and third-party agencies to translate SAP software into 40+ languages.

Although I was the only designer, the whole team and stakeholders were incredibly engaged in the design process. We interviewed internal translators and visited third-party translation agencies to understand how they worked and what were their pain points. We tested and validated with users using wireframes and high-fidelity screens, and released features gradually based on value versus effort.

What started as a simple tool that created a translation based on text input “ended” as a complex editor that suggested translations based on previous translated words, sentences, and other languages. We went even further with context matches, statistics, performance, and more.

His ability to capture the essence of a vision and to provide insights that bring that vision to life in concrete ways was cherished by everyone who worked with him, which, in addition to his good relationship with all his colleagues and his genuine care for the human side of people, made his presence a welcome sight at all times. I felt like I was always learning something new when he would bring his ideas to the table. Whenever I think of Leo, I think of a creative, competent, and reliable professional, who not only improved the quality of the product but also raised the bar of the entire team with regards to awareness about good design practices.

Results and key learnings

This project became one of the most rewarding experiences in my career—not just because of the product we shipped, but because of how deeply integrated design became in a highly technical, engineering-driven environment. By working closely with engineers and stakeholders, we delivered a tool that helped scale translation efforts across SAP. Along the way, I learned how much impact a single designer can have within a large team or complex product—especially when you meet teams where they are, build trust, and invite them into the design process.