Back burner
A corporate euphemism for 'we'll pretend to care about this later' while actually hoping everyone forgets about it. The art of making procrastination sound strategic.
Corporate buzzwords beginning with B
Decode business jargon with satirical definitions and related terms. Browse 55 entries.
Back-channeling
Private conversations to influence outcomes.
Back-channeling
Communicating through unofficial channels, which is great until you realize it's the only way to get things done.
Backburner
A corporate euphemism for "never" that makes procrastination sound like strategic prioritization, usually used when people want to avoid admitting they'll never actually do something.
Bake it in
To make something a permanent part of the process, which is great until you realize it's a bad process.
Baked In
A corporate euphemism for "already included" that makes basic accounting sound like sophisticated financial planning, usually used when someone wants to avoid taking responsibility for budget decisions.
Baked in
A corporate way of saying something is already included or accounted for, usually used to avoid admitting you forgot to plan for it in the first place.
Ball in your court
A corporate euphemism for "I'm done with this problem" that makes passing responsibility sound like a sports metaphor, usually used when someone wants to avoid making a decision.
Ballpark it
To make a wild guess and present it as an educated estimate.
Balls in the Air
Managing several activities or tasks simultaneously; similar to 'too much on the plate.'
Balls in the air
A colorful metaphor for juggling multiple projects, tasks, or responsibilities simultaneously, often used to sound busy rather than organized.
Bandwidth
A pretentious way of saying 'I'm too busy' or 'I don't want to do this' while making it sound like a technical limitation. Because apparently 'time' wasn't corporate enough.
Bandwidth
The capacity to take on additional work in terms of time, resources, or energy.
Bandwidth check
Asking if someone has time to do something, because apparently 'are you busy?' is too direct.
Bells and whistles
Unnecessary features that make a product look impressive but serve no real purpose, like a sports car with a built-in espresso machine.
Bellwether
An early indicator of future trends.
Benchmark
A corporate euphemism for "comparing ourselves to people who are actually good" that makes mediocrity sound like competitive analysis, usually used to justify why we're not as terrible as we could be.
Best of breed
A pretentious way to say "the best" that somehow makes you sound less confident. If you're truly the best, just say it without the unnecessary canine metaphor.
Best practice
A supposedly superior way of doing something that everyone talks about but no one actually follows, usually because it's too expensive or time-consuming.
Best regards
The corporate email equivalent of "thoughts and prayers" - a polite way to end a message that means absolutely nothing and is used by everyone.
Best-in-class
The best example of something, which is usually just the only example you've seen.
Bias mitigation
Efforts to reduce unfair bias in AI systems, ensuring algorithms don't discriminate against certain groups.
Big bang for the buck
A sleazy salesperson's way of promising maximum value with minimum investment, usually while hiding the fact that you're getting exactly what you pay for.
Big bet
A significant investment or strategic decision with high potential returns but also high risk of failure.
Big bet
A major investment in something that will either make you rich or bankrupt, with no middle ground.
Big rock
A major project that will consume all your time and probably fail, but at least it sounds important.
Bite the bullet
Do something unpleasant but necessary.
Bleeding Edge
Describes the newest, most innovative product, idea, or technology.
Bleeding edge
Technology or ideas that are so new and untested that they're likely to cause more problems than they solve, but sound impressive in presentations.
Blessing
Approval from someone in authority.
Blocking and tackling
Basic tasks required to get work done.
Blue Sky Thinking
A corporate euphemism for "wasting time on impossible ideas" that makes pointless brainstorming sound like innovative strategy, usually followed by doing nothing because the ideas are completely unrealistic.
Blue ocean
A new, competition-free market space.
Blue sky thinking
Creative brainstorming without constraints.
Blue-sky thinking
Imagining solutions to problems that don't exist while ignoring the actual problems that do exist.
Boil it down
To simplify something complex, which usually means removing all the important details.
Boil the Ocean
A corporate euphemism for "trying to do everything at once" that makes poor planning sound like ambitious strategy, usually used when someone wants to avoid making actual decisions.
Boil the ocean
An impossible task that sounds impressive but is actually just a fancy way of saying 'we have no idea what we're doing.'
Boil the ocean
An impossible task that sounds impressive but is actually just a fancy way of saying 'we have no idea what we're doing.'
Brain Dump
Writing down all ideas quickly, often during or after a brainstorming session.