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Look under the bonnet and sprinkle the magic - Blair McPherson
Blair
McPherson
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Look under the bonnet and sprinkle the magic
Blair McPherson
Published Date
6 Years Ago - 1419 Views
What type of person would
punch a puppy
? Would you
eat your own dog food ?
Well you might if you realised it meant doing something detestable but good for the business and you might try out something new on yourself first. These are two of the more unusual and in my experience less common examples of management speak. Have you recently been encouraged to look
under the bonnet
or been referred to the
strategic staircase?
If
like me you're not familiar
with these expressions they mean find out what's happening and look at the business plan. If a member of the senior management team announces that they are going to
sun set
the project they mean bring it to an end. If your boss asks for an
elevator pitch
they want a brief presentation. If a colleague boasts they're going to
sprinkle the magic
they are going to talk to people.
Management speak is used to deflect blame, complicate simple ideas, obscure problems, and perpetuate power relations. I wouldn't be at all surprised if you had recently been encouraged to
reach out
to
stake holders
or to think
out of the box
perhaps you and your colleagues
had a
thought shower ( brain storm)
as a way of coming up with new ideas or to identify some
leverage.
If this was part of a budget discussion there was probably a reference to
low hanging fruit
and for added dramatic effect you may have been told you were
standing on a burning platform.
Someone will have mentioned
the bottom line
and in response others will have referred to a
ball park
figure.
Everyone thinks management speak is ridiculous especially when they come across a new example that requires translating but once people become familiar with an expression they find it difficult not to use it. After all it shows you're a member of the club.
Blair McPherson
www.blairmcpherson.co.uk
management
local government
management speak
public sector
jargon
strategic staircase
punch a puppy
business plan
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