Mastering language tech migration: Lessons from Kayak and Pega

Language operations tend to grow in complexity long before anyone actually acknowledges it. As an organization scales, launches accelerate, content volumes increase, and issues begin to compound.

Without constant oversight, teams can find themselves managing a patchwork of aging connectors, workarounds that have somehow become standard practice.  A dozen manual steps replace what should be a single, streamlined automation. At that point, the question is no longer whether improvement is needed, but whether incremental optimization is still enough.

In our recent webinar, leaders from Kayak and Pega joined Phrase to share what happens when that moment arrives and organizations decide to rethink their language technology stack.

The conversation moves beyond feature comparisons and implementation checklists. Instead, it focuses on how migration exposes structural inefficiencies, forces teams to reexamine workflows, and creates an opportunity to realign localization operations with broader business goals.

As we discovered in this session, language tech migration is often viewed internally as disruptive, resource-heavy, and operationally risky. As Phrase Customer Success Manager, and moderator Miruna-Oana Parchirie-Fagarasan put it:

“We are tempted to think disruption. We are tempted to think heavy resources, complexity… But we want you to look at it from a strategic point of view.”

In this article, we’ve gathered the key insights and ideas that quickly stemmed from that seemingly simple framing. 

Migration as an opportunity to redesign how work happens

It’s fair to say that teams rarely migrate systems because they enjoy switching platforms. They migrate because the existing setup begins to limit growth. If manual bottlenecks persist then automation remains underutilized, and integrations require maintenance rather than delivering leverage. Over time, localization teams find themselves spending more energy sustaining operations than improving them.

Phrase Enterprise Solutions Architect Jano Husarcik explaines:

“You are not just changing your localization tools… you are actually transforming the way you operate and how you are achieving your goal.”

For both Kayak and Pega, the decision to migrate was rooted in a desire to modernize workflows and increase scalability. The technical drivers were clear, but so were the strategic ones. Content demands were rising, AI capabilities were expanding, and internal stakeholders expected faster turnaround without proportional increases in cost or headcount.

The framework presented during the webinar emphasized a disciplined starting point. Teams were encouraged to assess their current processes carefully before designing the future state. That assessment included mapping existing workflows, reviewing legacy translation memories, analyzing integration dependencies, and clarifying business objectives.

“The plan needs to be aligned with your actual business goals.”

When migration begins with that alignment, it becomes a structured redesign exercise rather than a system replacement project.

The human dimension often determines the success of the project

While technical complexity is usually the focus of migration discussions, the experiences shared by Kayak and Pega highlighted a different reality. Adoption challenges frequently outweigh configuration challenges.

Andrea Guisado Munoz, Senior Director of Localization at Kayak, reflected on one of the most underestimated elements of their migration:

“We underestimated change management… even a button, like some small action being done in a different way, had a big impact on the team.”

From a purely operational standpoint, a redesigned interface may represent an improvement. From a human standpoint, however, any shift in daily routines requires adjustment. Teams accustomed to one environment must relearn navigation, task sequencing, and workflow logic.

Pega’s Digital marketing Manager, Marion Michalowicz described this distinction succinctly:

“The tooling can be migrated in weeks, right? But the people and habits, that takes longer.”

Training, expectation setting, and continuous communication became critical components of the migration plan. In large organizations, where localization interacts with marketing, product, engineering, and external vendors, even minor adjustments can ripple outward.

Organizations that treat change management as an integral workstream, rather than an afterthought, experience smoother transitions and faster stabilization.

Workflow mapping separates replication from improvement

One of the most instructive themes from the discussion is the role of workflow mapping. Migration creates a rare pause in which teams can step back and examine how requests flow from source to delivery. That pause can either reinforce existing structures or prompt meaningful redesign.

At Pega, the team chose to reconsider their processes rather than simply transfer them.

“We didn’t stick too much to what we already had in terms of processes… we really had to think from scratch.” – Andreas Wolff, Localization Manager, Pega

This meant evaluating which manual steps were still necessary, where automation could be introduced, and how integrations could reduce friction between departments. Instead of replicating legacy workflows, they redesigned them around the capabilities of the new platform.

Marion emphasizes the practical importance of documenting workflows and using them to build realistic test scenarios:

“Mapping helps you decide what to keep, what’s legacy, what should retire… It becomes the backbone of your test scenarios.”

These scenarios surfaced issues before launch, allowing technical teams to resolve them while adjustments were still manageable.

By contrast, Andrea acknowledged that in Kayak’s early phase, the team transferred a workflow more directly than they might have in hindsight:

“We migrated one workflow from one platform to the other… and we underestimated workflow mapping.”

Migration offers leverage, but only when teams allow themselves to rethink how work should function in the new environment.

Tangible improvements build internal confidence

Large operational changes can generate skepticism, particularly when they require cross-functional coordination. Demonstrable improvements help counterbalance that uncertainty.

At Pega, marketing operations experienced measurable gains after implementation:

“We decreased the time to market by 75%. We could handle 80% more projects without additional headcount.” – Marion Michalowicz, Digital Marketing Manager, Pega

Those metrics reframed the migration internally. Rather than being viewed solely as a system transition, it became associated with increased capacity and faster execution.

Kayak experienced similar momentum when new integrations were introduced. Connecting the Figma plugin not only improved process efficiency but also enabled collaboration with teams that had previously operated outside the localization workflow.

“When we connected the Figma plugin… we actually started collaborating with teams we didn’t work with before.” – Andrea Guisado Munoz Senior Director, Localization, KAYAK

Automation and AI capabilities further accelerated throughput while maintaining quality standards.

“The ability to speed up those numbers without lowering the quality… that was a big win for us.”

These early outcomes strengthened stakeholder confidence and reinforced the value of the transition.

Return on investment extends beyond direct cost reduction

When the discussion turned to ROI, the panel resisted narrowing the conversation to cost-per-word calculations. While cost efficiency is relevant, scalability and operational leverage often provide more meaningful impact.

Andrea described how output expansion became a defining metric:

“If in the same time you can do double the amount of content… for more or less the same price, that’s actually what has worked for us.”

Marion echoed this sentiment when describing their ability to increase project volume without expanding headcount:

“We could handle 80% more projects without additional headcount.”

In practical terms, this meant that automation absorbed routine tasks, integrations reduced manual coordination, and internal teams could focus on higher-value activities. Over time, these efficiencies compound, strengthening both operational resilience and growth readiness.

Launch marks the beginning of a new phase

One of the most useful mindset shifts shared during the session is the recognition that migration does not conclude on go-live day.

Marion explains how reframing launch helped her team navigate the transition:

“The launch date is not the finish line. It’s the end of phase one… and the beginning of phase two.”

Phase two involves iterative optimization, responding to user feedback, fine-tuning automation levels, and identifying additional integration opportunities. As business needs evolve, workflows must evolve alongside them.

Jano reinforces this broader operational principle:

“You are never done with the process. You are constantly trying to improve it.”

Approached with this mindset, migration becomes part of a longer-term operational evolution rather than a discrete event.

What this means for teams planning migration

The experiences shared by Kayak and Pega suggest that successful migration depends less on technical configuration alone and more on disciplined preparation, thoughtful redesign, and sustained communication.

Alignment with business objectives should guide early planning decisions. Workflow mapping deserves deliberate attention. Change management requires structure and transparency. Early operational improvements help build momentum. And ROI should be evaluated across scalability, efficiency, and collaboration rather than through cost metrics alone.

For organizations reconsidering their language technology stack, migration represents a moment of structural clarity. When approached deliberately, it creates the conditions for more automated, more integrated, and more scalable global content operations.