Using buzz words in the office has now got ‘out of hand’ - 26.09.2008

The vast majority of Britons, 72%, believe that using business buzz words hinders productivity in the office, despite over half of all Briton’s admitting to using business jargon every other day (56%), according to new research from MWB Business Exchange, the leading serviced office company.

Phrases such as ‘think outside the box’ and ‘in the loop’ are still used by a large section of Britain’s office workers, with over a third (38%) admitting to using them every other day. However, most find these buzz words irritating. One in five (19%) rate ‘thinking outside the box’ as the most annoying phrase they hear in the office, while one in ten (11%) think ‘blue sky thinking’ is the most irritating phrase.

“Using jargon in the office has got completely out of hand,” commented John Spencer, CEO MWB Business Exchange. “A lot of the time it comes down to laziness, as buzz words are used to save time thinking of the most appropriate phrase. More needs to be done to stamp it out as it is damaging relationships with both suppliers and colleagues".

“It’s time to start applying common sense to what we say in the office as well as in the real world. Senior managers, as some of the worst offenders, need to set an example and could start by banning certain buzz words from meetings to try to reverse the trend.”

A quarter of Briton’s (24%) admit to using buzz words because ‘everyone else does’, further supporting the notion that it’s the job of senior management to stamp it out as they’re being used to fit in. A third of respondents (32%) also believe they use buzz words as a ‘tongue in cheek’ gesture.

When asked who uses jargon the most frequently it’s senior managers who come out on top, despite the fact that younger people (those under 24 years old) are more likely to admit to using it than their older peers (those over 55 years old), supporting the notion that it’s firmly ingrained in British business culture.

Smaller businesses fair better with only 25% of employees admitting to using jargon every day, compared to almost all employees of large companies, 98%. And Britons are also more likely to use jargon in an internal meeting the older they get, 38% of under 24 year olds, compared to 63% of those aged over 55.

Interestingly, women are more likely to use business jargon than men, with only a quarter of men (26%) admitting to using it compared to over a third (36%) of women.

The research was carried out in August 2008 in conjunction with TickBox and 1,215 responses were analysed.