{"id":71,"date":"2017-06-21T16:05:59","date_gmt":"2017-06-21T16:05:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/inknowin.com\/wordpress\/?p=71"},"modified":"2017-06-21T16:06:38","modified_gmt":"2017-06-21T16:06:38","slug":"does-business-need-a-new-language","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/inknowin.com\/wordpress\/2017\/06\/21\/does-business-need-a-new-language\/","title":{"rendered":"Does Business need a new language?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"

Business needs a new langauge. We \u2018exploit\u2019 our \u2018target\u2019 audience and \u2018capture\u2019 their Tacit Knowledge<\/p><\/div>\n

Language plays a powerful role in communication. Through the spoken word we receive instructions, communicate ideas, transfer knowledge and convey our feelings. Words conjure up images in our minds. Sometimes, through overuse, it becomes a habit to use some terms and phrases in spite of their being applied out of context.<\/p>\n

Business is replete with such examples. Take a look at the classic phrase that adorns most company Mission Statements, \u2018Our employees are our most valuable resources\u2019, or \u2018employees are our biggest assets\u2019. In business speak the term \u2018resources\u2019 or \u2018assets\u2019 are used to denote inanimate objects or capital that is deployed in the pursuit of profit. Assets depreciate over time and usage. Resources get used up. A more humane manner of expression for employees could be \u2018capacity\u2019 as in \u2013 \u2018Employees are our most valuable capacity\u2019\u2026. One constantly builds on \u2018capacity and capability\u2019 don\u2019t we?<\/p>\n

Another word in business that is used loosely and almost universally is \u2018Exploit\u2019; as in- \u2018we will exploit the opportunity\u2019 or \u2018we will exploit their weakness..\u2019. I too used the word similarly until an employee of an NGO sensitized me to the connotation of the word \u2018exploit\u2019- to \u2018abuse\u2019 or \u2018take advantage of\u2019 or \u2018manipulate\u2019 someone who is helpless and at a disadvantage. A better term would be \u2018to make the most of\u2019 or \u2018to harness\u2019 as in \u2018let\u2019s make the most of the situation\u2019 or \u2018let\u2019s harness the opportunity\u2019. Sounds better doesn\u2019t it?<\/p>\n

\u2018Target Audience\u2019 or \u2018Target segment\u2019 is a term that we can do without. What image does the word \u2018target\u2019 conjure up in the mind? For me I see the sights of a gun, with the finger on the trigger, ready to shoot down the object in the crosshairs, right? I am sure prospective customers also see the same image when a company representative refers to them thus. No wonder most \u2018Target Audience\u2019 slip away out of sight (pun intended). Wouldn\u2019t \u2018desired audience or addressable segment\u2019 make better sense? It also sounds nice as well as inclusive, doesn\u2019t it?<\/p>\n

I cringe when I hear the phrase, made to employees, to describe the launch of a Knowledge Management Program- \u2018we want to capture your Tacit Knowledge\u2019. I see it as a big turnoff to the participants- they then see Knowledge Management as a tool to \u2018exploit\u2019 them. Better response has been observed when we tell employees that the KM Program is an effort to improve their access to relevant knowledge when they want it.S2XQGV4Z9QQK<\/a>
\nI am sure you too know of some phrases and words that need to be stamped out of the business lexicon. I would be happy to hear from you on this.<\/p>\n

\n\n\t<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Language plays a powerful role in communication. Through the spoken word we receive instructions, communicate ideas, transfer knowledge and convey our feelings. Words conjure up images in our minds. Sometimes, through overuse, it becomes a habit to use some terms and phrases in spite of their being applied out of context. Business is replete with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":25,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,3,9,12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-71","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-customer-centric","category-customer-feedback","category-knowledge-management","category-listening-to-the-customer","has-post-title","has-post-date","has-post-category","has-post-tag","has-post-comment","has-post-author"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/inknowin.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/inknowin.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/inknowin.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/inknowin.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/inknowin.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=71"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/inknowin.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":72,"href":"http:\/\/inknowin.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71\/revisions\/72"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/inknowin.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/inknowin.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=71"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/inknowin.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=71"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/inknowin.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=71"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}