Leadership Series: Yoav Ziv on Becoming a CEO, Managing Global Teams, and the Future of Localization

In October 2024, BLEND entered an exciting new chapter with the appointment of Yoav Ziv as our Chief Executive Officer. A seasoned technology leader with 27 years of experience driving business transformations and leading successful mergers and acquisitions, Yoav’s expertise is transforming how we approach localization at BLEND.

Previously, Yoav held leadership roles at Amdocs, Qualitest, and Checkmarx, where he built high-performing teams of up to 7,000 employees and successfully managed P&Ls ranging from $5 million to $800 million. His experience managing diverse, global teams, and navigating complex business landscapes brings a fresh perspective to our mission of revolutionizing the localization industry.

In this interview series, you’ll get to meet Yoav and learn more about his take on the future of localization and BLEND’s place in the industry.

The Journey to CEO: Lessons from Yoav Ziv’s Career

Get to know Yoav as he reflects on his career path, sharing valuable insights into the roles that prepared him to lead BLEND. Learn about the key moments that shaped his leadership style and the lessons he learned while managing large teams in the tech industry.

When you look at the localization industry, there are a lot of similarities [between] the disruption it now undergoes to disruptions that I’ve seen in other industries.

Why Yoav Joined BLEND

In this next clip, Yoav shares what drew him to join BLEND – most notably, the opportunity BLEND has to stand out while navigating disruptions in the localization industry.

While managing a multi-national team may have its challenges, Yoav has experienced first-hand the advantages of working with a top-tier global team.

The BLEND platform is unique in the market. It allows us to do things that no one else can. And it especially allows us to utilize this platform as a vehicle for growth, exploiting the disruption that the market is launching.

The Localization Revolution: What’s next for BLEND?

As more and more content and localization teams seek to include AI in their translation workflows, content localization processes will become more automated and appeal to businesses looking to scale multilingual content creation quickly.

We are always going to have those projects that need expert linguists from day one.

Almost every industry requires some form of localization services, but which markets stand out? Find out which sectors Yoav sees the most opportunity in.

You don’t have to compromise quality for speed, or speed for quality. You can both, and you can do it in a cost-effective manner, and you can do it in a way that it integrates into your workflow.

Embracing the Future of Localization

Yoav Ziv has stepped into his role at BLEND and joined the localization space at a time of profound change. The rise of artificial intelligence is transforming how businesses approach translation and localization, allowing for faster, more efficient solutions. AI-powered tools, such as machine translation and AI-enhanced quality estimations, are quickly becoming integral parts of localization workflows. These innovations are drastically reducing the time and cost traditionally associated with manual translation processes, making it possible for companies to scale quickly across multiple markets.

In contrast to old-school localization methods, which relied heavily on humans to handle every aspect of the process, today’s industry is embracing a hybrid approach. While human expertise remains essential, especially for industries requiring nuanced, culturally sensitive content—such as legal, medical, and luxury goods—AI tools now play a central role in streamlining translation tasks. Old-school methods, where each piece of content was translated manually from start to finish, simply can’t keep up with the growing demand for real-time, on-demand localization in today’s fast-paced, digital-first world.

This shift doesn’t mean the role of human translators will disappear, but it does signify a transformation in the role of localization managers. They will need to adapt to new technologies, taking on more strategic responsibilities as they oversee AI-driven workflows, ensuring quality control, and driving innovation in global content strategies. The future of localization lies in blending human intelligence with AI, and Yoav is at the forefront of guiding BLEND through this exciting transition.

Want to learn more about how BLEND can help you optimize your content localization workflows and save costs with modern solutions? Reach out to our team today.

This Leadership Series was produced by Matt Strach, featuring Jason Hibberd as cinematographer.

Corinne Sharabi

Corinne is the Social Media and Content Lead at BLEND. She is dedicated to keeping global business professionals up to date on all things localization, translation, language and culture.

Need fast, high-quality translation?

Translate now