Management Jargon: 'Going Forward' Voted Most Irritating Term Used At Work

What's The Most Irritating Management-Speak Phrase?
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Office speak is getting right up workers' noses.
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Office workers are fighting back against the scourge of "management-speak", dubbing the very phrases intended to lubricate colleague relations a "pointless irritation."

"Going forward" and "thinking outside the box" have been dubbed the most offensive terms, according to a survey by the Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM).

And this vocabulary virus is not limited to the UK. Spanish workers have complained of over-use of "Es lo que es" ("It is what it is"), while the French say they cannot stand anglicisms such as "win-win", "next step" and the verb "brainstormer".

English words have also crept into Russian management-speak, where workers complain of their "top-manager", and even the Italians refer to "core business" and "benchmarking".

At the end of the day, office jargon is what it is, but if you don't want to 110% annoy your colleagues, try replacing the10 business terms listed below with their real-world equivalents.

Ten infuriating office terms and their English equivalents:

1. "Reach out" - Call, email or meet

2. "Touch base" - Contact; see above

3. "It's on my radar" - I'm aware

4. "Flag up" - Make aware of

5. "Low-hanging fruit" - An easily-achievable goal

6. "It's a win-win situation" - It's a good idea

7. "It's a no-brainer" - See above

8. "Best practice" - A good way of doing something

9. "I'll ping you an agenda" - I'll email you with what's happening

10. "Take it to the next level" - Improve (alternatively, avoid dealing with abstract "levels" altogether and give your colleagues a tangible goal).