KENYA · GUIDE 0670 · EDITION 4.7
Video captioning service in Kenya: Operations and Quality Checks
Deliver the agreed result consistently
Agree whether hesitation, overlapping speech and meaningful background sounds belong in captions, especially where training content depends on accurately distinguishing different speakers.
The operating sequence for this offer is:
- Confirm the source video's permitted use, target language and caption format, then ask the client for names and technical terminology.
- Transcribe and time captions against the actual speech, checking that line breaks and reading speed remain usable in the specified frame.
- Proof all numbers, names and exports against the source and provide both embedded captions and subtitle files only where included in the order.
Put acceptance into the job record
Captions accurately reflect speech and remain readable within the specified frame.
Replay the exported video on a typical phone and compare names, amounts and speaker changes with the source rather than trusting automatic transcription.
Inspect at the point where a correction is still possible, then again at handover. Record rejected or incomplete output separately from accepted output. A completed task is not automatically an accepted task, and an invoice does not establish that the customer received the right result.
Measure real capacity
Time preparation, the main operation, transport, cleaning, approvals and correction as applicable. The slowest stage determines how much you can promise. Where two orders need the same person, space or equipment at the same time, resolve the conflict before confirming both deadlines. An additional enquiry should not erase a commitment already made.
| Operating checkpoint | Evidence for this business |
|---|---|
| Before starting | Agree whether hesitation, overlapping speech and meaningful background sounds belong in captions, especially where training content depends on accurately distinguishing different speakers. |
| During delivery | Transcribe and time captions against the actual speech, checking that line breaks and reading speed remain usable in the specified frame. |
| At acceptance | Replay the exported video on a typical phone and compare names, amounts and speaker changes with the source rather than trusting automatic transcription. |
| At the pilot review | Record transcription corrections, unresolved names, timing adjustments and device readability observations, retaining the terminology decisions that would accelerate another episode from this client. |
Keep a correction and escalation rule
When inputs, access, specifications or customer instructions change, pause the affected work and confirm the effect on time and cost. Do not quietly lower the acceptance standard to avoid a delayed delivery. Keep rework caused by your error distinct from a customer-requested change of scope and agree the remedy clearly.
Correct words can still produce unusable captions when line breaks split phrases, text covers demonstrations or rapid exchanges become impossible to follow.
Retain the minimum records needed to investigate a complaint without disclosing unrelated personal information. Use measured delivery and actual acceptance as the basis for expanding capacity, rather than the maximum theoretical output of a tool or production line.
Operating control points for this exact offer
| Sequence | Work method | Release checkpoint |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Inventory filenames, durations and language; ask whether the videos are final edits. Create a terminology sheet containing machine-part names, personal names and the workshop's preferred spelling. Agree whether mixed-language passages need transcription or a separately qualified translator. | All three source videos play from beginning to end and the reviewer confirms their versions. |
| 2 | Generate a draft transcript only as an aid, then listen line by line while correcting words against the actual audio. Flag inaudible passages with timestamps for the buyer instead of guessing an instruction about a machine. | Technical nouns and any safety-related wording have an explicit client resolution. |
| 3 | Divide speech into readable caption units at meaningful phrase boundaries. Place cues so they follow the spoken sequence and do not remain over an unrelated demonstration. Add necessary speaker identifiers without filling every pause with redundant text. | Watch a complete clip without sound to see whether instructions and speaker changes remain understandable. |
| 4 | Export one SRT as a pilot, import it into the buyer's intended player and compare punctuation, accented letters and timing. Decide separately whether a styled review copy is needed because an SRT does not preserve all editor styling. | The buyer accepts the pilot import before the other two caption files are finalized. |
| 5 | Replay every final SRT paired with its corresponding source and issue a delivery manifest. Keep corrections in one reviewed change list and invalidate the previous caption file if the picture edit changes. | Each delivered SRT has the correct filename, full final cue and no overlap introduced by a late correction. |
Do not substitute a tick for an observation: record the count, measurement, approved sample or evidence reference used at each checkpoint. Mark unresolved work as held and identify who can approve the recheck.
Diagnose a failure before repeating it
| Observed symptom to investigate | Check the cause | Proposed response |
|---|---|---|
| Captions gradually drift | Compare a cue at the start and another near the end with the locked source. | Check whether the video version or timing conversion changed; retime against the correct master. |
| Wrong machine term repeats | Search the complete transcript for the term and similar spellings. | Obtain the instructor’s approved wording and replace every affected cue. |
| Caption text loses accents | Inspect the file encoding and the receiving player. | Re-export UTF-8 and test the actual import rather than renaming the extension. |
These are diagnostic prompts, not proof of the cause in a real incident. Separate suspect output, record any correction and repeat the relevant acceptance check. Link rejected units, rework time, replacement materials, customer credits and collection delays to the actual job result.