Jurga Žilinskienė

Jurga Zilinskiene MBE (Lithuanian: Jurga Žilinskienė, born 2 August 1976) is an entrepreneur, programmer and founder of Guildhawk, formerly Today Translations,[1] a global translation company.

Jurga Zilinskiene MBE
Alma materUniversity of London
TitleCEO & Founder of Guildhawk
Spouse(s)David Clarke
Awards

A summation in City AM described Zilinskiene as: '...one hell of a formidable businesswoman... a Lithuanian-born cross between Richard Branson and Margaret Thatcher... combined perhaps with shades of Warren Buffett, whose frugality and dislike of shopping and ostentation she shares'.[2]

Zilinskiene has been interviewed in many national newspapers about Guildhawk and her unconventional approach to business. She has appeared in the Financial Times,[3] the Independent on Sunday,[4] Daily Telegraph[5] and the business website, Growing Business.[6]

In 2018 Zilinskiene was named as one of 100 women that Lithuania is proud of as part of the '100 Lithuanian Women' project.[7][8] She was awarded an MBE by Queen Elizabeth II in the 2019 Birthday Honours.[9]

Early life

At 19, she moved to Britain[4] to study law and economics at the University of London.

Guildhawk

In 2001, while at university, Zilinskiene set up Guildhawk under the name Today Translations – for which she was awarded the Shell LiveWIRE Award for Young Entrepreneurs in 2003.[6]

Zilinskiene funded the company with £13,000 of personal investment and it continues to operate without external funding. This example of bootstrapping is rare within the City.[10][6][4] Currently, the company has a global network of 3,000 translators and interpreters.[11]

Zilinskiene frequently engages in government and media briefings, as well as forums organised by multinational companies.[10] In 2006, Zilinskiene organised a trade mission with over 20 delegates from multinational organisations such as Merrill Lynch, to seize business opportunities in Lithuania. The trade mission involved Lithuanian parliamentarians and British diplomats, causing international media interest.[12] To mark the success of the trip, Zilinskiene was given a UK Trade & Investment Certificate of Appreciation for her contribution to enhancing international trade by Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.[13]

In October 2010, she was nominated to, and accepted, the Freedom of the City of London at a ceremony in the Guildhall, becoming the first female Lithuanian to receive the Freeman title. She was subsequently recognised as a Liveryman to the Worshipful Company of Fruiterers,[14] one of the City's oldest fellowships. She also sits on the China Interest Group Committee.

In June 2013, Zilinskiene took part in a panel discussion at Forum One in Kaunas, Lithuania,[15] the biggest business leadership event to ever take place in Eastern Europe. The event featured some of the brightest Lithuanian business minds and a special talk by one of Zilinskiene's business idols, Sir Richard Branson.

In recognition of her sustained business success, Zilinksiene was invited to be part of the judging panel for the Shell LiveWIRE Award for Young Entrepreneurs in 2015,[16] the award she herself received 12 years prior.

In September 2016, Zilinskiene was selected to participate in the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses initiative aimed at supporting SMEs. She graduated from the programme in the same year.[17] Shortly afterwards Zilinskiene was also invited to attend an Executive Education course at Harvard Business School.[17]

Charity

In September 2012, Zilinskiene co-hosted the Courage and Benevolence Ball alongside the English actor, Sir Timothy Ackroyd at Café de Paris in London. The event was sponsored by Guildhawk and raised money towards Epidermolysis Bullosa research and treatment for the charity, DebRA.[18]

Personal life

Zilinskiene is married to David Clarke, a former Chief Superintendent at City of London Police.

Awards

Television Appearances

Matt Cooke, reporter for BBC London News interviewed Zilinskiene in June 2011 regarding her involvement in the Ready to Supply programme run by the City of London Corporation; a scheme aimed at spreading wealth and employment beyond the square mile through practical advice and business support to SMEs who are looking to procure from large organisations.[20]

In October 2009, Zilinskiene was interviewed by STV about the initiative launched by Guildhawk to recruit Glaswegian interpreters.[21] The Glaswegian interpreter campaign was similar to the recruitment of Geordie,[22] Scouse[23] and Brooklynese[24] interpreters. However, this was met with some trepidation and controversy around the need to translate local dialects.

In November 2016, Zilinskiene’s company advertised for ‘the world’s first emoji translator’,[25] which received widespread media coverage.[26][27][28] As a result of the unusual job advertisement, Zilinskeine appeared on BBC,[29] ITV News,[30] and Vice, as well as several radio stations.[31][32]

References
  1. The Guardian – How to translate hope into reality, 14 June 2004
  2. City AM – Investment bank wannabe lays his soul bare at Goldman altar, 25 January 2010
  3. Financial Times – Suppliers to the Square Mile, 22 March 2011
  4. The Independent, Business Essentials: 'Debt is foreign to me, but how else can I expand', 6 June 2004
  5. Daily Telegraph – Starting out, 26 June 2007
  6. Growing Business, 1 June 2004
  7. "W@ | 100 Lietuvos Moteru". W@ | 100 Lietuvos Moteru. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
  8. EN.DELFI. "100 women of Lithuania that all Lithuanians worldwide are proud of!". DELFI. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
  9. "Birthday Honours List - United Kingdom". The London Gazette. 8 June 2019. Retrieved 10 June 2019.
  10. Arabic eBook Success Stories, 2008
  11. "Professional translation services agency in London, UK". www.todaytranslations.com. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  12. Exploring land of promise in the not-so-far east, Lloyd's List, No. 59,197 – 29 June 2006
  13. British Chamber of Commerce in Lithuania Newsletter, Winter 2006
  14. Worshipful Company of Fruiterers Newsletter – December 2010
  15. http://www.forumone.lt/en/
  16. "Shell LiveWIRE | News". www.shell-livewire.org. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  17. "Jurga Zilinskiene". Today Translations. Retrieved 10 March 2017.
  18. "Today Translations sponsor The Courage and Benevolence Ball, 23 November 2012". Archived from the original on 28 November 2012. Retrieved 3 December 2012.
  19. "PNE Group". Archived from the original on 24 March 2012. Retrieved 24 June 2011.
  20. BBC London News – 25 June 2011
  21. Parliamo Glesga? Can you speak Glaswegian? – STV News – 14 October 2009
  22. "Journal Live, Translators wanted to decipher North phrases – 9 October 2010". Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 19 July 2011.
  23. Daily Mail, Interpreters hired to translate Geordie and Scouse accents for foreigners – 8 October 2010
  24. NY Daily News, London firm Today Translations give tourists a hand in understanding confusing Brooklynese – 29 April 2010
  25. Eggert, Nalina (12 December 2016). "Emoji translator wanted - London firm seeks specialist". BBC News. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  26. Petroff, Alanna (13 December 2016). "Now hiring: Emoji translator in London". CNNMoney. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  27. Hunt, Elle (13 December 2016). "Sign of the times: London company advertises for 'emoji translator'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  28. "A Top London Translation Firm Is Looking To Hire Its First Emoji Translator". The Huffington Post. 14 December 2016. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  29. Today Translations (11 January 2017), BBC reports on Today Translations' search for an Emoji Translator, retrieved 20 January 2017
  30. Today Translations (11 January 2017), London company looks for an Emoji Translator - ITV, retrieved 20 January 2017
  31. "Wanted: Emoji translator, The Newsroom - BBC World Service". BBC. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  32. "Is there a need for an emoji translator in today's professional world?". audioBoom. Retrieved 20 January 2017.


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