How PepsiCo Delivered Flawless English-Chinese Interpretation on Microsoft Teams for APAC Food Safety Training

When PepsiCo's Food Quality team needed to deliver critical APAC-wide Food Safety Compliance Training in English and Chinese, they faced a new technical frontier: Microsoft Teams simultaneous interpretation. Unlike Zoom, Teams has distinct limitations and workflows, especially for bilingual cross-border sessions involving multiple countries such as Mainland China, Thailand, Indochina, and Australia.

Why It's Not “Just” Interpretation

• Food safety content is highly specialized — any translation or interpretation errors risk compliance failures.

• Teams’interpretation function is not intuitive and requires complex setup with language channels and meeting roles.

• Sessions involved alternating English and Chinese segments to balance time allocation fairly, which added complexity to scheduling and interpreter workflow.

• Teams differ significantly from Zoom's more mature interpretation interface, demanding new testing and preparation.

Our Proven Approach

1. Four Rounds of Rigorous Teams Testing

• Tested both English→Chinese and Chinese→English directions

• Simulated live meeting conditions, including channel switching and role handovers

• Confirmed no audio dropouts or delays in interpretation

2. Deep Collaboration with Client IT

• Walked PepsiCo’s IT team through exact configuration steps

• Ensured moderators and interpreters understood role-switching to avoid confusion

• Shared cheat sheets and live support during the first session

3. Content Structuring Strategy

• Recommended segmenting the meeting into alternating monolingual blocks rather than simultaneous dual channels

• Enabled interpreters to focus on one language at a time, reducing fatigue and errors

• This approach leveraged Teams’ current technical constraints to maintain consistent interpretation quality

4. Fast Multi-Location Interpreter Scheduling

• Coordinated across 4 time zones in under 2 hours

• Used a blend of automated scheduling tools and human coordination to ensure seamless handoffs

Results That Speak Volumes

• Zero technical glitches or communication breakdowns throughout the entire session

• Interpretation quality praised as “excellent” by PepsiCo’s Food Quality team

• Interpreter team retained for follow-up Food Safety Audit Readiness Training on Teams

• A smooth transition from Zoom-based sessions to Teams without loss of quality

What U.S. Enterprises Can Learn from This

If you're planning bilingual compliance or training sessions on Microsoft Teams for China or APAC markets, keep these in mind:

• Don't underestimate the technical complexity of Teams interpretation; invest time in at least 2-3 full dry runs.

• Structure content strategically—switching languages in blocks can vastly improve interpreter accuracy and endurance.

• Work closely with your IT team; the right meeting roles and channel setup are mission-critical.

• Schedule interpreters considering time zones and fatigue—overlapping shifts risk quality drops.

Up Next for PepsiCo & Landelion: Audit Readiness Training on Zoom

Same platform, new content, same commitment to flawless delivery.

Have you encountered Zoom interpretation challenges in your cross-border trainings? Share your experience or questions.

Related Resources

• Expand Your Reach into China — Landelion Services

• Microsoft Teams Language Interpretation Setup Guide (Official)

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