Task Force: Entering the Polish market
Today, Task Force is an international translation company with Ukrainian roots that operates in four countries: Ukraine, the United States, Poland, and Switzerland. After 10 years of local success in Ukraine, the company began its European expansion in 2022, opening an office in Warsaw. The Diia.Business team in Warsaw assisted with this.
Exporting Ukrainian: What does it have to do with translations?
As many Ukrainian companies are relocating abroad due to the full-scale invasion, most of them need translations. This is where Task Force can help:
Our clients are Ukrainian companies that export goods or services. It is through exports that the world learns about Ukrainian quality and high levels of service. In 2022, Ukrainian companies began to diversify their geographical presence more actively, and we were of course happy to help. Over time, it became clear that Warsaw was transforming into a hub for international and Ukrainian businesses, a hub for many international organizations that have provided and continue to provide assistance to Ukraine. Poland was and remains the only growing economy in Europe. For us, this combination of factors was decisive in choosing a market for our exports — the export of translation services.
Natalia Horbachevska, Task Force Founder and CEO
Unique support for Ukrainians in Poland
We already had experience of entering a foreign market before Poland, as we opened our office in the United States in 2019, so we had something to compare with. In Poland, we received tremendous support, advice, business recommendations, the necessary initial contacts, space for networking, and later the opportunity to share our experience with other entrepreneurs, etc.
In general, Diia Business Warsaw is a unique Ukrainian organization for Ukrainians abroad that helps them with starting a business. In other markets, we have not encountered such support — the available maximum is local economic offices that are not always interested in letting foreign businesses into their market and supporting them.
Natalia Horbachevska, Task Force Founder and CEO
The company’s operation in Poland
The Polish market, like any other, has its peculiarities. According to Natalia, the main recipe for success here is to find «your» client:
Our clients are Ukrainian companies that export goods or services. It is through exports that the world learns about Ukrainian quality and high levels of service. In 2022, Ukrainian companies began to diversify their geographical presence more actively, and we were of course happy to help. Over time, it became clear that Warsaw was transforming into a hub for international and Ukrainian businesses, a hub for many international organizations that have provided and continue to provide assistance to Ukraine. Poland was and remains the only growing economy in Europe. For us, this combination of factors was decisive in choosing a market for our exports — the export of translation services.
Natalia Horbachevska, Task Force Founder and CEO
The goal of proper localization is to become «local» in the market you choose to work in, says Natalia Horbachevska:
We actively implement and develop localization for ourselves and help our clients.
By the way, last year we had the honor to speak at the UNHCR conference on the integration of refugees from Ukraine in Poland and beyond. We shared our experience in Poland, where the company has been operating since 2022, creating jobs and paying taxes. During this conference, we also shared our recipes for success for Ukrainian entrepreneurs who are planning to work or are already working in Poland.
Since the opening of the office in Poland, the company’s activities have expanded significantly:
In addition to our main services — translation, interpreting, website localization, work with video and training materials, subtitling and voice-over — we have started providing sworn translations (which are relevant in Poland).
Thanks to the fantastic team and support of Diia Business, Poland has become more than just a market for us. It is like «the meeting place cannot be changed» because here we regularly see our clients, organize and attend partner events, and strategic sessions with teams (we now work from four countries). Poland is close to us mentally and geographically, and we see it as a bridge between Ukrainian business and the world. We believe that our mission at Task Force — to strengthen international cooperation through language — is relevant both in wartime and during the reconstruction of Ukraine, which we hope is not far off!
Natalia Horbachevska, Task Force Founder and CEO
