The definitions are designed to be quick, easy and enjoyable to read. It's not meant to be an encyclopaedia.
A la Carte - Technically à la carte, an
eating-place menu from which individual dishes at separate prices can be
ordered, or less commonly where a side dish may be ordered at no extra charge,
from the French phrase meaning 'to the menu'. Increasingly now applied to
non-food services in which individual selections are offered rather than fixed
provisions.
A1 - Top quality rating, applicable
to various business situations, e.g., credit-worthiness, and more general
references to quality and fitness for purpose.
Abilene Paradox - A feature/cause of many poor or
daft decisions by groups or committees, in which the collective (unanimous or
group) decision is considered wrong or silly by individual members, and/or is
clearly wrong or silly from an rational standpoint. The term is from Jerry B
Harvey's book The Abilene Paradox and other Meditations on Management
(Jossey-Bass, 1988): a family decide to go to Abilene, as suggested by a family
member who believes others might want to go, although he had no strong personal
view himself. The trip was a waste of time, after which it emerged that no-one
wanted to go. The wrong group decision was caused by individual reserve and politeness,
faulty assumption/assessment of the true wishes of others, combined with urge
to 'follow the herd'. The group's members form false impressions of the group's
preference, and blindly follow it. The effect is related, but slightly
different from a risk in elections and especially tactical voting, whereby the
collective effect produces an outcome nobody wants. This 'daft group decision'
effect may also be likened to group decision outcomes represented by
expressions such as 'designed by committee' and 'a camel is a horse designed by
a committee', both of which seek to illustrate that group decisions often
produce unhelpful or poor quality outcomes. The tendency is an example of 'heuristic'
thinking (specifically 'following the herd'), where decisions are made
instinctively and emotionally, rather than logically and rationally, and
relates strongly to Nudge theory and the heuristics within it.
Above
The Fold -
Originally a newspaper editorial/advertising term referring to the upper-half
of the front page ('above the fold') in terms of its immediate and optimal
viewing viewing position. More recently 'above the fold' has been adopted and
adapted for use in internet terminology, where it refers to the upper section
of a webpage that is viewable without scrolling down the page. 'Above the fold'
is therefore a reference to the best (most read) position in online/printed
media such that it commands highest demand/prices for editorial/advertising. It
is by its nature a rather loose term, dependent on the publication itself, and
especially given the different screen sizes and page layouts for content
viewable online using PCs, smartphones, tablets, etc.
Above
The Line -
Marketing and advertising through mass-media, such as television, radio,
newspapers, magazines, Internet, etc., which is less personal than Below The
Line Marketing. Companies usually use advertising agencies for ATL marketing.
Abram's
Law -
Construction industry theory relating to concrete strength as determined by the
ratio of water to cement.
Absolute
Advantage - Being
able to produce goods more cheaply than other countries.
Abstract - A brief summary covering the
main points of a written article or research project.
Accelerator - A company which supplies office
space, marketing services, etc., in exchange for payment, to help get new
companies started.
Acceptance
Bonus - The
amount paid to an employee who agrees to perform a difficult task.
Accessibility - Refers to the ease by which an
audience is able to receive, understand and act upon communications and
services from businesses, big corporations, agencies, local and central
government. Accessibility is a relatively modern concept, becoming increasingly
prominent from the late 1900s, especially concerning state services, and
particularly for disadvantaged, disabled, or minority groups of people. The
concept and central principles of accessibility are however very relevant and
important for all communicators, on a personal and organizational level. Major
factors of accessibility include: language and grammar style, translation
(where required), font/print size, typeface/font style, design, technical ease
(relating to electronic media), media types/versions (web, print, audio, video,
as required), timings and availability of information, detail and complexity.
Accounts - An individual's or company's
financial records. Also an arrangement to keep money with a financial
institution, e.g., a bank, building society, etc.
Accretion - Growth or increase in the value
or amount of something.
Accrual - The accumulation of payments or
benefits over time.
Across
The Board - The
involvement of, or affect on, everyone or everything in an industry or company.
Activity-Based
Costing - An
accounting/business term and method of profitability analysis which calculates
and includes all business costs attributable to (used by) a particular business
activity (typically a service provision of one sort or another for a given
market). Conventional accounting tends not to allocate fixed/indirect costs per
activity, which creates risks of overheads not being adequately recovered, or
overheads being drained or over-burdened by one activity or another (the
activity concerned thereby seeming a lot more profitable than it actually is,
quite aside from the negative effects on other activities which may be starved
of essential indirect support). The Activity-Based Costing (ABC) method
analyses and allocates fixed/indirect costs according to usage by services, and
so brings far greater transparency and clarity to inform strategic
decision-making. In large organizations Activity-Based Costing tends to require
quite complex computerized systems, and in very large organizations the
allocation of overheads implicit within the ABC approach may generate
significant political/departmental conflict, especially where staff
productivity/profitability targets and rewards depend on the outcomes.
Actuals - Real costs, sales, etc., that
have occurred, rather than estimations or expectations.
Added
Value - Enables
and justifies a profit in business.
Addendum - An added section of information
in a letter or report.
Ad
hoc - Created or
done for a particular purpose as necessary and not planned in advance.
Adjunct - A thing which is added or
attached as a supplementary, rather than an essential part of something larger
or more important.
Adoption
Curve - A graph
showing the rate at which a new piece of technology is bought by people for the
first time. It is based on the idea that certain people are more open for
adaptation than others.
Ad
Rotation -
Describes the rotation of advertisements on a web page - each time a user
clicks on a different page or returns to a page they've viewed previously in
the same session, a different advert appears on the screen.
Adverse
Event - Term used
when a volunteer in a clinical trial has a negative or unfavourable reaction to
a drug, etc.
Advertising - The promotion and selling of a
product or service to potential customers. To announce publicly or draw
attention to an event, etc.
Advertising Standards Authority
(ASA) - The UK
self-regulatory body funded by the advertising industry for ensuring that all
advertising adheres to ASA standards, notably not to offend or mislead people.
Equivalents named the same exist in other countries.
Advertorial - An advert in a magazine or
newspaper that is written like an article giving facts rather than appearing as
an advertisement for a product.
Affidavit - A sworn signed statement of
fact used as evidence in court whose signature has been witnessed by a
commissioner of oaths or other authorised officer, for example a notary.
Medieval Latin for 'he has stated on oath', from affidare, meaning to trust.
Affiliate - A company or person controlled
by or connected to a larger organisation. In web marketing an affiliate
normally receives a commission for promoting another company's products or
services.
Ageism - Unfair prejudice or
discrimination on the grounds of a person's age.
Aggregate - A whole consisting of the
combination of smaller separate elements.
Aggregate
Planning - The
process of planning and developing the best way of producing the right amount of
goods, at the right time and at the minimum cost, based on the total number of
items which need to be produced, and the amount of materials, equipment and
workers necessary for production.
Aggressive
Growth Fund - A
high risk investment fund in which shares are expected to increase in value
very quickly in the hope of making large profits.
Agile
Development Method
- A type of business development which gets things moving quickly and adapts
during the development, as distinct from conventional planning and project
management implementation.
Agio - The percentage charged by a
bank for exchanging one form of currency or money, into another that is more
valuable.
Agitprop - Political propaganda (published
ideas designed to motivate people into certain political views or actions)
typically in art, music, literature, etc., a portmanteau word combining the
original Russian words agitsiya (agitation) and propoganda, where the term grew
from the state department responsible for disseminating communist ideas and
information to its people in the 1930s. In the west the term is more associated
with publication of left-wing or socialist ideas, often targeted against a
governing right-wing authority.
Agribusinesss - Farming industry on a large corporate scale.
AIDA
- Attention, Interest, Desire, Action - an early and fundamentally useful
model/process for effective communications. Also called the 'hierarchy of
effects' - we all buy things, and decide to change something, after passing
through these four key stages.
A-list - A list of the most celebrated
or sought-after companies or individuals, especially in show business and
entertainment.
Alpha
Test - The first
stage of testing a new product, especially computer software or hardware,
carried out by a developer under controlled conditions.
Amalgamate - When two or more companies
combine or unite to form one large organisation.
Amortize - To gradually reduce and write
off the cost of an asset in a company's accounts over a period of time.
Anchor
Tenant - The
first and most prestigious tenant, typically a store in a shopping centre, that
will attract other tenants or shoppers.
Ancillary
Staff - People
who provide necessary support to the primary activities and work of an
organization, e.g: schools, hospitals.
Annuity - Often used to provide a
pension. An annuity is a fixed regular payment payed over a number of years to
a person during their lifetime.
Antediluvian - An interesting and humorous
metaphorical description of something (for example a product or service or
concept) that is obsolete, old-fashioned or primitive, or devised a long time
ago. 'Ante' is Latin for 'before', and 'diluvian' is from Latin 'diluvium'
meaning 'deluge', so the overall literal meaning is 'before the flood', being
the biblical flood and Noah's Ark, etc. Antediluvian is therefore a clever way
to say that something is (so old as to be) 'out of the Ark'.
Anthropomorphic / anthropomorphism
/ anthropomorphous
- also called personification - this refers to giving human characteristics to
an non-human thing, such as an animal, or a tree, or the Sun, Moon, a god,
cartoon character, etc., for dramatic, visual, metaphorical, and amusing
effect, etc. It's a very very old concept. Anthropomorphic characterizations
have been found on ancient scuptures dating back more than 30,000 years. The
word is Greek, originally from athropos, human, and morphe, form.
Appellant - A person appealing to a higher
court against a decision of a lower court or other decision-making body.
Apple
Box - Used in
films, TV, etc. Wooden boxes of various sizes which are used to elevate actors
and celebrities.
Appraisal - A review of performance,
capability, needs, etc., typically of an employee, in which case the full term
is normally 'performance appraisal'.
Arbiter - A person who settles a dispute
or has the ultimate authority to decide the outcome of a matter.
Arbitrator - An independent person or body
officially appointed to settle a dispute.
Archive/Archives - A collection of records no longer active. Also
pluralised - archives - meaning the same, and referring to the place of
storage.
Articles
Of Association -
The document which lists the regulations which govern the running of a company,
setting out the rights and duties of directors and stockholders, individually
and in meetings.
Aspirational
Brand - A brand
or product which people admire and believe is high quality, and wish to own
because they think it will give them a higher social position.
Assets - Anything of value which is
owned by an individual, company, organisation, etc.
Asset Stripping - Buying a stricken company and selling off its
assets with no thought for the future of the company or its people, customers,
etc.
Atmosphere - In films, TV, etc., a general
crowd of people, extras.
Attrition - The process of reducing the
number of employees in an organisation by not replacing people who leave their
jobs.
Auditor - A qualified person who officially
examines the financial records of a company to check their accuracy.
Auteur - An artist or creative, for
example a film director, whose personal style is recognizable because he/she
keeps tight control over all aspects of the work.
Autocratic - Offensively self-assured or
given to exercising unwarranted power. Expecting to be obeyed and not caring
about the opinions and feeling of others.
AV - Anti-Virus, a common abbreviation
referring to virus protection software/services for computer and internet use.
Avant
Garde - New or
original and often unconventional techniques, concepts, products, etc, usually
associated with the arts and creative areas.
Average Daily Rate - In the hotel industry a calculation of the average
price at which a hotel room is booked each night based on total daily revenue
divided by the number of rooms sold. The term may have more general meanings in
other contexts.
Avatar - An identity, often in cartoon
form, which can be chosen from a selection or created by the person using it to
represent themselves in a website chatroom, etc.
–
Ajit Patel UK, Sanda Wellbeing & Sanda Welness Groups
No comments:
Post a Comment