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I am one of the FNGs here and I have a question...

Is there a place where I can find out what all these acronyms and buzz words are?

This is just TWO that I remember off the top of my head.

- O3
- Directs

Just to name a few...

Currently I am working my way through the basics and already I have run into this several times.

Thanks in advance

RichRuh's picture
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Ha! I must admit it has been a long time since I have heard the "FNG" acronym, but it brought a smile to my face.

O3 = One-On-One (meeting).
Direct = Direct Report = an employee who reports directly to you. Typically, you do the annual reviews for your direct reports

Another one that comes up from time to time is "Skip" = someone who reports to someone who reports to you.

There isn't really a "buzz word dictionary" anywhere, but the community is always willing to help! :)

--Rich

p.s. And for those who haven't heard it before, "FNG" stands for "fine new guy" 8)

juliahhavener's picture
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A glossary might be in order, however. Those of us who have been listening and utilizing MT for a while DO tend to drop certain words around more than others. I've had to explain 'O3' in several instances in the past year to some folks...others know it implicitly.

You'll also see 'DR' for direct report, and a LOT of DISC references.

I think my all-time favorite MT phrase, however, is "galactically stupid" - no definition required for this one, I hope!

Welcome to the forums, MJ!

P.S. Rich, thanks for the FNG definition...I was about the google it.

mjmcgraw's picture

I threw the acronym FNG out there because that is use in my DoD agency a lot. There are tons of them at work and we have been instructed to lighten up on them.

One the they like to use at work is W.A.R. = Weekly Activity Report
(some others SITREP, COTS, GOTS, MILFAM, AOR)... extra credit to you if you can figure out what each of this mean.

It is like many professions where if you have a high degree of experience you tend to talk at a much higher level of understanding. However, We forget about those that don't have a clue what it means.

Mark's picture
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Sorry for any confusion. Glad your fellow members helped out! We have great members.

But FNG does not abbreviate fine new guy, and let's end the use of that appellation here and now.

Mark

James Gutherson's picture

When I started at my new role 3 months ago, part of my induction was 2 pages (in 10pt type) of TLA's (three letter acronyms). I'm still finding more - and finding some I thought I knew, I didn't really :?

tlhausmann's picture
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[quote="juliahdoyle"]A glossary might be in order, however. Those of us who have been listening and utilizing MT for a while DO tend to drop certain words around more than others.[/quote]

mjmcgraw,

MT podcasts introduce a well defined vocabulary. The term 'skip' was new to me among many other terms. Precise, well-defined vocabulary is continuously reinforced and refined in subsequent casts. The result is better communication among MT fans at meet-ups...and most importantly with my team.

It would be galactically stupid not to share O3s, coaching, feedback, agendas, koans, buckets, mentoring, ctrl-shift-k & ctrl-g, decks, Horstman curve, DiSC, "our favorite books", and closing with your skips and directs. *whew* :)

stephenbooth_uk's picture

[quote="tlhausmann"] Horstman curve[/quote]

That's one I've not come accross yet. Could you please point me to the relevant cast/entry/document?

On the original point, maybe an entry on the FAQ forum would be in order?

Over the years I've quite often found issues where different people are using different terminology or, worse, the same terminology to mean different things. One of my friends in the US told me of an event at a company she worked for where a team from their UK office were in a meeting with a team from their US office and said they wanted to table an issue. The US team immediately leapt to their feet and started excitedly shouting that there was no way this issue should be tabled. The UK team were very confused as they were certain it needed to be tabled and didn't understand why the US team were so against it. The confusion, according to my friend, was that here in the UK to table something means to propose it or to put it forward for consideration whilst, apparently, in the US it means to drop it from consideration (presumably onto the table). A few years ago a pamphlet originally distributed to US service men posted to the UK during the second world war was republished here in the UK, it contains many examples of 'two countries separated by a common tongue', well worth a read.

Thanks

Stephen

mptully's picture

[quote="stephenbooth_uk"]Over the years I've quite often found issues where different people are using different terminology or, worse, the same terminology to mean different things. One of my friends in the US told me of an event at a company she worked for where a team from their UK office were in a meeting with a team from their US office and said they wanted to table an issue. The US team immediately leapt to their feet and started excitedly shouting that there was no way this issue should be tabled. The UK team were very confused as they were certain it needed to be tabled and didn't understand why the US team were so against it. The confusion, according to my friend, was that here in the UK to table something means to propose it or to put it forward for consideration whilst, apparently, in the US it means to drop it from consideration (presumably onto the table). A few years ago a pamphlet originally distributed to US service men posted to the UK during the second world war was republished here in the UK, it contains many examples of 'two countries separated by a common tongue', well worth a read.

Thanks

Stephen[/quote]

I had to google what 'tabling' meant after listening to the 'chairing a meeting' podcast. I just couldnt understand it! Although, I have always taken 'tabling' to mean 'adding something to the meeting, which isnt on the agenda'. Especially the really unfortunate habit that some people have around here of tabling long documents!

Mary

Mark's picture
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Stephen, you always add value here!

I had no idea of the tabling bifurcation. A classic Yank blunder.

Roberts Rules of Order supports the US version of tabling, but I have no idea whether the UK uses Roberts or not.

Am reading Day of Battle eery night now (2 am!) and if all us Yanks could talk and write like Churchill, we'd be fine.

Mark

tlhausmann's picture
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[quote="stephenbooth_uk"][quote="tlhausmann"] Horstman curve[/quote]

That's one I've not come across yet. Could you please point me to the relevant cast/entry/document?

[/quote]

Horstman Curve = Learning Curve as applied to Manager Tools.

Mark and Mike use the term in forum postings (among others):
http://www.manager-tools.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=112
http://www.manager-tools.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=1929
http://www.manager-tools.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=1552
http://www.manager-tools.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=9225

Try a Google search: site:www.manager-tools.com "Horstman Curve"

tlhausmann

agreen's picture

Been here 6 months. Love MT. nearly caaght up on listening to them all. Is there someone willing to share an explanation of KOAN?

ramiska's picture

Welcome aboard. I, too am trying to catch up. There's a lot here, eh?

A Koan is essentially a parable.

From Wikipedia:

[quote]A Koan is a story, dialogue, question, or statement, generally containing aspects that are inaccessible to rational understanding, yet may be accessible to intuition. A famous kōan is: "Two hands clap and there is a sound; what is the sound of one hand?".[/quote]

nateh's picture

Is there any list of all of the acronyms that are used on this site and in the general management world?

I am new to all of this and I want to learn what the education system cant teach.

ramiska's picture

Not really. It's easiest if you start in the beginning, listening to the "basics" podcasts. Most of the acronyms and initialisms start the long way. Just stick with it and ask for clarity if you're unsure through context. Eventually it will all make sense and you'll be confusing the new folks, too.

stephenbooth_uk's picture

[quote="nateh"]Is there any list of all of the acronyms that are used on this site and in the general management world?[/quote]

Not that I'm aware of for this site but for general business terms, abbreviations and acronyms you can use Google. Go to your favourite Google site and in the search box enter 'define:' followed by the term you want to see the definition of, e.g. [url=http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&q=define%3Aitil&btnG=Search&meta=]d...

Stephen

Mark's picture
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I think the only acronym we use specific to Manager Tools is O3 (Oh-Three), for One on One (OOO=O3).

Please feel free to point them out if I've missed them, or even other ones that we DON'T use that you struggle with.

I can tell you that when I come across an acronym I don't know, I go to acronymfinder.com. It's been profiled in the Wall Street Journal (okay, there's one we might have used: WSJ) and it is COMPREHENSIVE. Alas, that means you have to see several identical acronyms with different meanings, sometimes. But I still think it's the best.

Mark