Localization Manager

The Community You Will Join:

No global movement springs from individuals. It takes an entire team united behind something big. Airbnb helps anyone belong anywhere as the world’s largest community-driven hospitality company. Every day, we connect thousands of guests and hosts online, leading to meaningful experiences in the real world. We’re helping people live like locals in parts unknown while breaking down cultural barriers and bringing people together. 

Do you wake up everyday asking yourself how you can impact the creation of a truly local experience that delights global users? Do you love working with content, design, marketing and engineering teams? Do you want to be part of one of the teams that is actively working on bringing to life Airbnb’s mission, where everyone can belong anywhere? Do you love to work in a fast-paced, fun, fast-growing company? Do you like to work in a multicultural team? Do you love owning the localization strategy for your market?

If you answered yes to all the questions above, we would love to talk to you, as the Localization team at Airbnb is looking for an experienced Localization Manager.

The Difference You Will Make:

At Airbnb, Localization has evolved from translation management into a strategic function that shapes how millions of users experience our platform. Our team partners with launching teams across all content, leveraging LLM-based machine translation alongside human expertise, and actively influences product, marketing, and business decisions to deliver an authentic local experience in every market. 

As a Localization Manager, you will be pivotal in our international expansion efforts, a top priority for Airbnb. You will join the core leadership team in your region, shaping local initiatives and adapting global strategies to meet market needs. Your role will encompass not only driving language strategy but also building collaborations with internal stakeholders and external vendors/agencies to create internationalized products that resonate with local audiences. 

Localization Managers serve as the linguistic and cultural experts in collaborating with local teams to develop strategy that drives business growth. You are the guardians of Airbnb's tone, style, and voice – and the enforcers of quality and excellence in your language. As a Localization Manager, you're not only passionate about languages and cultures, but also about giving our users a native experience across all platforms. 

If you want to help shape how people connect and explore the world – Airbnb is the place to be.

This role is based in Milan (or within easy commuting distance).

Your Responsibilities:

Airbnb’s Localization Manager role and responsibility goes beyond the traditional focus of ensuring quality of translated content: 

• Partner closely with Country Manager and function leads for Marketing, Legal, Business Operations, Policy, Communications, Community and Supply to devise business strategies that align with Airbnb’s goals in your market
• In addition to being the linguistic and cultural expert for the region/market, proactively share roadmap and intent behind product updates to adapt global strategy to the Italian market – and feed local business insights back to regional and global Localization leadership to inform broader strategy.
• Apply linguistic and cultural expertise to develop strategies that drive international growth – understanding Italian market expectations, crafting language approaches that deliver an authentic native experience, and proactively influencing stakeholders to deliver the best possible user experience.
• Own and drive localization of Product naming and Creative copies, engaging and representing local teams to build Airbnb’s brand in international markets
• Actively research the needs of Airbnb international users in collaboration with Consumer Insights and Research team
• Understand challenges in the localization process and lead localization quality improvement initiatives at the language and team level
• Take ownership of the strategy to help achieve excellence in localization quality across all platforms 
• Hold translation and QA vendors accountable for quality standards aligned with Airbnb's expectations; review vendor-reported metrics and RCAs to identify trends and drive improvements.
• Coordinate language feedback from both users and Airbnb employees
• Develop and maintain linguistic and cultural standards and guidelines
• Collaborate with Creative teams in producing creative content, acting as supervisor for the local Copywriter.
• Work with Localization Program Managers and Linguistic QA Managers to ensure we ship top quality products internationally

Your Expertise:

• 8+ years in product localization with a proven track record of owning localization strategy in international launches in addition to managing language quality and content localization
• Fluency in English and native knowledge of Italian is a must
• Experience in building market strategies informed by thorough market research and data analysis
• Strong capability to collaborate across functions, driving partnerships, and initiatives forward
• Ability to show initiative and work independently, and drive initiatives at a strategic level 
• Strong understanding of UI/UX localization (placeholders, tags, smart counts), CAT tools, i18n libraries, CLDR standards, and LLM-based machine translation
• Outstanding experience in project/program management, partner/stakeholder management, with experience working across cross-functional teams and time-zones
• Excellent ability to manage multiple and diverse stakeholders across businesses and leadership levels with excellent communication/presentation skills
• Track record of being a self-starter, self-motivated and outcome-oriented individual who seeks ownership and accountability
• Ability to work at both strategic and tactical levels, with a proven track record to execute in ambiguous environments
• Must be able to prioritize and manage conflicting demands

*Please submit your CV in English*

Our Commitment To Inclusion & Belonging:

Airbnb is committed to working with the broadest talent pool possible. We believe diverse ideas foster innovation and engagement, and allow us to attract creatively-led people, and to develop the best products, services and solutions. All qualified individuals are encouraged to apply.