In strategy, much of our most important work happens in conversation.
But too often, that conversation goes in circles. Or it crashes early, with a thud.
One cause is inauthentic participation with buzzwords.
To clarify, I don’t mean jargon.
Jargon is useful… for people who share common knowledge that is tiring to repeat.
(⌐⊙_⊙) - I declare that “X” is now short-hand for “ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWX!”
(⊙-⊙) - “Okay, say the full alphabet now?”
(⌐⊙_⊙) - “XYZ.”
(⊙-⊙) - “Nice.”
The jargon acts as a convenient short-hand for a precise idea, at the cost of confusing those who aren’t in the know. (That’s why if you want more experts, you have to teach your jargon!)
Buzzwords, meanwhile, start as jargon, become status symbols, and then through fashionable use empty themselves of all meaning until there’s nothing left but a husk.
Unlike jargon, there’s no expertise to be found in a buzzword, nothing there to teach except a history of what it once was. The word space it occupied is now dead (RIP).
You can spot buzzword-based inauthenticity by looking for three common patterns:
Buying time to figure out what to say.
(⊙-⊙) - “Uhh, we’re looking for synergies… [What I really want to say.]”Self-soothing in an uncomfortable situation.
(⊙-⊙) - “Oh yes, it’s digital! [Hope they can’t tell I don’t know what to say!]”Terminate further inquiry.
(⊙-⊙) - “Our agentic offerings solve this problem. [Stop talking about this.]”
Even the first use of a buzzword is rude to the other participants in the conversation (yes, making people work extra hard to figure out what you’re saying is rude).
Strategy conversations must be meaningful to be effective.
You deserve meaning. Everyone else in the conversation deserves meaning too.
Watch your own buzzword use. Gently encourage others to do the same.
Ben and David
StrategyTeaming.com
P.S. What’s your least favorite corporate buzzword? :/