The Most Painfully Annoying Business Expressions

• Con_Alma

  http://www.forbes.com/2009/12/16/annoying-business-jargon-entrepreneurs-management-jargon.html
  
  Some of these are dead on.
  
  "Take It To The Next Level"
  
  In theory, this means to make something better. In practice, "the phrase means absolutely nothing," says Laurent Duperval, who runs an eponymous consulting company in Quebec. "Nobody knows what the next level actually looks like, so how am I supposed to know when I've reached it?"
• gorocks99

  

  Circle back ... yes. Out of pocket ... yes. Low-hanging fruit ... yes.
  
  Lets see, what else ...
  
  "PTO"
  "EOD"
  "Key insights"
  
  There are more, I can't think of them right now b/c my head is filled with useless jargon.
• justincredible

  

  I hate pretty much any business expression and acronyms.
• queencitybuckeye

  Everything being a "system". The construction industry is particularly guilty here. Some joists with plywood and carpet laid across them is not a "flooring system", it's a fucking floor.
  
  Also, using nouns as verbs, as in "I'll effort to get those to you tomorrow". What's wrong with the correct word, such as "try"?
• Con_Alma

  nouns as a verb....google.
• Little Danny

  

  One used quite frequently in my office is when someone leaves a mass email will go around "wishing that person well in their future endevours".
  
  Why don't they just say what they really mean and say "Don't let the door hit you in the arse on the way out?"
• Polar Bear 73

  "Thinking outside the box". I heard some comedian say, "if you are truly thinking outside the box, why does it have to be a box".
  
  Another favorite that I hear at almost every staff meeting, "let's take this offline".
• Curly J

  

  Famous line where I work is "Make it happen".
• mucalum49

  

  The list is pretty accurate but the reader comments had my two favorites "touch base" or the business/multi-use "it is what it is".
  
  Sadly in my MBA classes I hear a lot of these regularly.
• justincredible

  

  "It is what it is" makes me want to stab myself in the ear. My wife hears one all the time at work that I have luckily never heard or I would kill myself: "the net net of it."
• justincredible

  

  These expressions play a very large role in my quest to get out of the corporate world.
• tsst_fballfan

  

  synergies
  right sizing
• xnds1fan

  

  "World Class"
• september63

  

  downsizing........
• I Wear Pants

  gorocks99 wrote: Circle back ... yes. Out of pocket ... yes. Low-hanging fruit ... yes.
  
  Lets see, what else ...
  
  "PTO"
  "EOD"
  "Key insights"
  
  There are more, I can't think of them right now b/c my head is filled with useless jargon.

  I thought low-hanging fruit was just an economic principle.
• Def Leopard

  One that I hear almost daily is "moving forward".
• justincredible

  

  My most hated acronym:
  
  SLA
  
  Die in a fire, SLA's.
• O-Trap

  

  Skill set
  Level of experience
  "Shake hands and kiss babies"
  CPM (If CPM were a person, I'd kill it in the nuts.)
  Paradigm shift
  Key demographic
  Business model
  Went a different direction
  In the red
  In the black
  
  What is most sad is that I've already caught myself saying these from time to time, because I hear them so often. Grrrrrr.
• Manhattan Buckeye

  Polar Bear 73 wrote: "Thinking outside the box". I heard some comedian say, "if you are truly thinking outside the box, why does it have to be a box".

  This, such a stupid concept. I'm surprised it didn't make Forbes' list.
• fan_from_texas

  Synergies.
  Right-sizing
  Realigning expectations in light of the difficult economic environment
  Unprecedented events of the past year
  Incentivizing
  Aligning capacity to reflect forseeable demand
• Manhattan Buckeye

  ^^^^
  
  adding one more:
  
  "we are not immune to the effects of the current global economy"
• believer

  

  Due to the economy we've had to right-size the organization by tapping into key synergies that will be discussed in-depth off-line by key players going forward.
  
  I cringe every time I hear this nonsense, but it is what it is! lol
• Cleveland Buck

  

  I say 'it is what it is' several times a week when I'm trying to sell some equipment. It means nothing, but most of what I'm saying doesn't mean anything, I'm just trying to make them feel comfortable enough to send my boss a $20,000 check without even seeing what they are getting first.
• darbypitcher22

  

  pretty nice list there
• captain_obvious

  my favorite: "Punt" This was a reply from a higher up that had no answer. He probably should have replyed "run away", as he was no help and just hid from the issue with the salesmen out on a limb all by himself.