What Qualities to Look for When Hiring a Transcriptionist?

If you are running a transcription business, there’s always a challenge for you to hire transcriptionists who have the necessary skills and competence to do the job right for you. But with a discerning eye, you can definitely get on board transcriptionists that will invariably be able to meet your requirements and fulfill clients’ expectations. Here are a few invaluable tips from some transcription company owners regarding this for you:

1. Skilled In Proofreading and Editing, Apart from Typing

   Chloe Brittain, owner of Opal Transcription, says,

   “Professional audio transcription isn't just a typing job -- it's more of an editorial role. Therefore, I look for freelancers who aren't just typists, but are also skilled proofreaders and editors. Nowadays, it seems like strong punctuation and grammar skills are rare, so a well-written cover letter really stands out from the rest. On the other hand, if a cover letter is full of punctuation errors and inconsistent capitalization, it doesn't matter how many words per minute the applicant can type or even how many years of experience they have.”

2. See If They Can Multi-Task, Have Speed and Accuracy, and Meet Deadlines

   Nedelina Payaneva, a marketing specialist at Asian Absolute, says that her company hires transcriptionists only if they have multi-tasking abilities, have speed and accuracy, and are great at meeting deadlines. 

   On the ability to multi-task, she says,

   “Doing two things at the same time may not be everybody’s cup of tea, but a transcriptionist has to listen to the audio file and type what she hears accurately. The ability to review the transcript and check carefully for grammatical or other errors is also very important otherwise the client will be unable to understand the transcript at all.”

   Regarding a transcriptionist’s speed and accuracy, she has this to say,

   “Good reliable customer service depends entirely on how fast a transcriptionist can transcribe an audio file. In addition, one also has to have good language skills, understand punctuation and grammatical errors as well as have the ability to understand different accents. The speed with which the document is typed, knowledge about the subject matter as well as sound computer skills, are a few of the most important traits required for a good transcriptionist.”

   On meeting deadlines, she underscores its importance this way,

   “This is really important in the transcription world. The quickest way to lose your client is to miss a deadline. It's just poor form. The transcriptionist is someone who enjoys the challenge of working under deadlines.”

3. See if They Are Good at Listening, Research Work, Creativity, Grammar Skills, and Have Patience

   According to Damola Akinrinmade from Day Translations, his company looks for the following qualities in a transcriptionist:

   • Attentive Listening
   • Good research skills
   • Proper punctuation
   • Critical thinking
   • Proper diction
   • Patience

   He further says that “Depending on the niche (medical, legal etc.), there will be more skills required to demonstrate understanding of that particular industry.”

4. Test Rigorously and Confirm If They Are Located in the US

   Beth Worthy, the President of GMR Transcription Services Inc., says,

   “When hiring a transcriptionist, we solely base our decision on the quality of their transcription test and confirm they are located in the US.”

    

Hiring transcriptionists having the requisite skills and experience to help grow your business isn’t easy, but also not impossible to achieve. If you can judge them and then decide on sound parameters, then it becomes a win-win situation for both you and them.

Also Read: 40+ Transcription Companies Hiring Worldwide on the TCI Job Board