Secrets of a successful language services agency founder

We’re celebrating 35 years of Atlas Translations, so we thought we ought to ask founder Clare Suttie for her secrets! Read on to find out how she’s navigated 35 years in successful language services and translation.

What’s the secret to 35 successful years as a founder?

I don’t think there is a secret really. It’s lots of small decisions, made consistently over a very long time! We’ve always tried to do the right thing, even when it’s the harder option. Look after our clients, look after our suppliers, look after our team, and keep improving. If you get enough of those little decisions right, year after year, they eventually become 35 years. We’re also not afraid of change. Atlas Translations today is very different from the company I started in 1991, but our values haven’t changed.

What’s one thing you’ve believed in all along?

That business is about people. Languages are spoken by people, translated by people and used by people. Technology is fantastic, and we embrace it, but relationships are what clients remember. We’ve always believed in answering the phone, asking questions, getting to know our clients and genuinely caring about the outcome. We don’t just translate words; we help people communicate with confidence. 25% of our enquiries start on the phone – so contrary to what you might think, people are still making those calls! 

What’s changed in language services, and what’s stayed the same?

Almost everything has changed!  We’ve gone from fax machines, inserting accents manually, and posted documents to AI, machine translation and real-time interpreting. The technology has moved at an incredible pace. What hasn’t changed is that communication still matters. Businesses still need accuracy. Patients still need to understand medical information. Courts still need precise legal translations. Companies still need to protect their reputation. Technology has changed how we work, but not why quality matters.

Atlas Translations founder Clare Suttie and her team

What’s the next milestone for Atlas, and for you personally?

For Atlas, it’s becoming the UK’s most helpful language services company. Not necessarily the biggest – but the one people think of because we’re knowledgeable, approachable and genuinely useful. We’re investing heavily in our website, resources and specialist expertise so clients can find answers as well as services. 

Personally? I’d like to keep building a business that proves you can be commercially successful without losing your humanity. Whether that’s our four-day working week, supporting charities, paying suppliers fairly or embracing new technology responsibly, I want Atlas to keep showing that there is another way to do business.

What advice would you give to fellow founders?

Don’t spend all your time chasing growth. Build something worth growing. Listen more than you talk. Be kind, but don’t avoid difficult decisions. Keep learning. Don’t be afraid to change your mind when the evidence changes. And remember that your reputation is built every single day, often in moments that nobody else notices. People remember how you made them feel long after they’ve paid the invoice.

Also, don’t forget to enjoy it.

Thirty-five years sounds like a long time – and it is! But I still genuinely enjoy work. I still love solving clients’ problems, meeting brilliant linguists, learning about new industries and seeing what language can achieve. If I can still be curious after 35 years, I think I’m doing something right.

We’d agree with you, Clare! Get to know the rest of the Atlas team here, and get in touch if you need top-quality language services.