Passion. Excellence. You.
About Us
We value relationships, quality standards and efficiency.
SIMONE BARROSO
CEO
Simone Barroso, a valued member of our team since our founding, brings extensive experience and expertise to our organisation. With a B.A. Degree in Language Practice obtained in 2010 and a subsequent B.A. Honours Degree in 2011, Simone has since honed her skills with eleven years of academic interpreting, translation, and editing across diverse disciplines. Her areas of specialisation encompass the arts, humanities, chemical and mechanical engineering, mathematics, physics, and chemistry. Simone's contribution has been instrumental in the growth and evolution of our business, making her an invaluable asset to our team.
ANN-LIZE GREWAR
Language director
Ann-Lize, with a profound passion for literature and fiction, stands out as an exceptional candidate for handling creative texts. Boasting twelve years of experience in the academic interpreting, editing, and translation field, she holds a B.A. Degree in Language and Literature Studies, coupled with an Honours Degree in Translation Studies. Ann-Lize's expertise extends to various domains, including literary texts, economics, accountancy, humanities, business management, and risk management, among others. Her deep understanding and specialized skills make her a reliable and proficient professional, well-suited to deliver outstanding results in these areas.
JOHAN STEYN
Marketing director
Johan Steyn holds a Bachelor's Degree in Communications and brings extensive experience from diverse corporate environments, where he has worked alongside dynamic groups and individuals. Johan's commitment to his work creates a productive and focused atmosphere that contributes to a positive work environment. As a trusted communications professional, Johan excels at understanding and addressing the unique needs of stakeholders, enabling him to foster synergies that enhance stakeholder relations. His expertise extends to engaging with employees, management, and markets, making him an invaluable asset in cultivating strong connections within any organization.
Language Matters is a language and media practice that renders the following services:
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Copy editing, Language editing, Proofreading, Translation, Transcription, Formatting and layout, Marketing, Branding, Web, media and graphic design.
An astonishing amount of work is done within these fields by freelance language and media practitioners, whose skills, training, experience and expertise vary, as do the fees they charge.
The Alliance of Language and Media Practitioners (LAMP) releases an annual rates guide, detailing the standard rates and tariffs that practitioners, who for the most part have vocational and educational training in the field, charge on average for their services. Despite this, rates remain unregulated, as does much of the industry itself. In 2014 the South African Government enacted the Language Practitioners’ Council Bill, thereby making statutory provisions for the official regulation of professional standards and accreditation systems of language practitioners. However, implementation of the Bill has been indefinitely “put on ice” owing to a lack of available government funding. Therefore the onus remains on the professionals who stand in practice to ensure that quality standards and rates are maintained and to promote and secure the profession. Professional bodies such as The South African Translators’ Institute (SATI), The Professional Editors’ Guild (PEG), The Southern African Freelancers’ Association, and The Society for Editors and Proofreaders, have joint endeavours to assure that the professional practices and rates of language practitioners remain on standard.
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To this effect, at Language Matters we proudly render our services to the best of our abilities, boasting a team of dynamic, qualified and experienced professionals who are members of SATI and PEG. Our professionals share over a decade’s experience in a variety of fields and disciplines, including but not limited to the corporate sector, economics, accountancy, engineering, the sciences, education, and communications.
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NEELIX STEYN​
Company Mascot
Neelix, with a Master's Degree in Companionship and years of experience in diverse settings, possesses exceptional skills in uplifting individuals during times of exhaustion resulting from editing, proofreading, and similar tasks. His unwavering companion, Mr. Ball, serves as his ultimate source of inspiration. Neelix's dependency on Mr. Ball is so profound that his absence, especially during vacations, plunges Neelix into despair and hampers his ability to excel in his role of providing companionship. It can be confidently stated that without Mr. Ball, our company's prospects would have suffered greatly, as the absence of a content and joyful Neelix would afflict our team with a deficiency in companionship.
