A1 - Top quality rating, applicable to various business situations, e.g.

, creditworthiness, and more general references to quality and fitness for purpose.
Absolute Advantage - Being able to produce goods more cheaply than other countries.
Abstract (or: executive abstract) - A brief summary covering the main points of a
written article or research project.
Accretion - Growth or increase in the value or amount of something.
Accrual - The accumulation of payments or benefits over time.
Across The Board - The involvement of, or affect on, everyone or everything in an
industry or company.
Actuals - Real costs, sales, etc., that have occurred, rather than estimations or
expectations. Added Value - Enables and justifies a profit in business.
Addendum - An added section of information in a letter or report.
Ad hoc - Created or done for a particular purpose as necessary and not planned in
advance.
Adjunct - A thing which is added or attached as a supplementary, rather than an
essential part of something larger or more important.
Advertorial - An advert in a magazine or newspaper that is written like an article
giving facts rather than appearing as an advertisement for a product.
Affiliate - A company or person controlled by or connected to a larger organization. In
web marketing an affiliate normally receives a commission for promoting another
company's products or services.
Ancillary Staff - People who provide necessary support to the primary activities and
work of an organization
Arbitrator - An independent person or body officially appointed to settle a dispute.
Archive/Archives - A collection of records no longer active. Also pluralized - archives
meaning the same, and referring to the place of storage.
Assets - Anything of value which is owned by an individual, company, organization, etc.
Asset Stripping - Buying a stricken company and selling off its assets with no thought
for the future of the company or its people, customers, etc.
Autocratic - A person who is offensively self-assured or who exercises too much
power. Expects to be obeyed and not caring about the opinions and feeling of others.

B2B - Business-To-Business, or in normal communications 'business to

business'. This
refers to a commercial trading model by which a business supplies other
businesses, and by implication does not generally supply consumers, i.e.,
domestic private customers
Back-End Load - A fee or commission paid by an individual when they sell
their shares in an investment fund
Bells and Whistles - Extra features added often more for show than
function, especially on computers, cameras, etc., to make the product
more attractive to buyers.
Bid Bond - A sum agreed to be paid by a company that wins a contract if
the work is not carried out.
The Big Board - An informal name for the New York Stock Exchange on Wall
Street.
Bilateral - Agreement or involvement or action by two parties,
people, companies, countries, etc.
Blue Chip - On the stock market, shares of a large company with a good
reputation, whose value and dividends are considered to be safe and
reliable.
Bonus Culture - Term used when companies give their executives huge
bonuses in addition to their large salaries, even if their performance has
been poor, especially leaders of
financial institutions.
Brand Loyalty - When a consumer repeatedly buys a particular brand of
product and is reluctant to switch to another brand.
Bread and Butter - The main source of income of a company or an individual.
Business To Consumer - Transactions in which businesses sell goods
and/or services to end consumers or customers.
Buy-in - Purchase of a company where outside investors buy more than
50% of the shares, so they can take over the company.
Cafeteria Plan - A system which allows employees to choose from a selection
of benefits
which may be tax-advantaged, such as retirement plan contributions,
health benefits, etc., in addition to their salary.
Calculated Risk - A risk which has been undertaken after careful
consideration has been given to the likely outcome.
Capital - The net worth of a business, including assets, cash, property,
etc.,
which
exceeds

its liabilities (debts). The amount of money invested in a business to

generate income.
Capital Allowance - Money spent by a company on fixed assets, such as
buildings, vehicles, machinery, which is deducted from its profits before
tax is calculated.
Capital Flight - The sudden movement of money from one country or
investment to another in order to reduce risk, such as high inflation,
or to increase profit.

Capped-Rate - Interest rate, usually on a loan, which cannot rise above the
upper set level but can vary beneath this level.
Cartel - A group of separate companies or nations which together agree
to control prices and not compete against each other. Also known as a
Price Ring.
Chain Of Command - A system in a business, or in the military, in which
authority is
wielded and delegated from top management down through every level
of employee. In a chain of command instructions flow downwards and
accountability flows upwards.
Conciliation - To bring two disputing sides together to discuss the problem
with the aim of reaching an agreement.
Conditional Sale - A purchasing arrangement, usually where the buyer pays
in installments
but does not become the legal owner of the goods until the full purchase
price has been
paid.
Conglomerate - A corporation which consists
companies with different business activities.

of

several

smaller

Conservator - In law, a guardian or protector appointed by a court to

manage the affairs, finances, etc., of someone who is too ill or incapable
of doing so themselves.
Consumer Credit - Also called Personal Credit or Retail Credit. Loans
given to consumers by financial institutions for household or personal
use.
Consumer Debt - Money owed by people in the form of loans from
banks or purchase agreements from retailers, such as 'buy now pay
later'.
Consumer Panel - A group of selected people, usually a cross-section of a
population,
whose purchasing habits are monitored by an organization, in order to
provide feedback on products, services, etc., which are used.
Consumer Watchdog - An independent organization that protects the
rights of individual customers and monitors companies to check for illegal
practices.
Contraband - Goods prohibited by law from being exported or imported.
Smuggling
Cooperative - An organization or business which is owned and run by
its employees, customers and/or tenants, who share the profits.
Corporate Veil - A term which refers to the fact that a company's

shareholders
are
not
liable for the company's debts, and are immune from lawsuits
concerning contracts, etc.
Corruption - Lack of honesty or integrity. Illegal behavior, such as
bribery, by people in positions of authority, e.g. politicians.
Cost Cutting - Reducing an individual's, company's expenditure.
Cost Effective - Producing a product, offering a service, etc., in the most
economical way to the benefit of the company and the customer.
Cost Leader - A company which has a competitive advantage by
producing goods or offering services at a lower cost than its
competitors.

Courier - A person who carries and delivers messages, documents,

packages, etc., often between companies. A person employed by a
travel company as a tourist guide.
Credit Crunch - Also known as Credit Squeeze. This usually precedes
a recession. A
situation in which loans for businesses and individuals are difficult to
obtain, when a
government is trying to control inflation, because of the fear of
bankruptcy and
unemployment.
Credit Repair - The process of helping to improve a person or
company's credit rating, sometimes by disputing or correcting credit
history discrepancies.
Credit Union - A financial institution, similar to a bank, whose members
create the funds from which they can obtain loans at low rates of
interest.
Crowd funding - A method of funding and underpinning a project or business
venture
which became increasingly popular and visible in the 21st century,
whereby users or other interested people are involved as investors at
project inception, and therefore agree and commit to support a
development of one sort or another.
Crown Jewel - The most valuable and profitable asset of a company or
business.
Cutover - Also known as 'Going Live'. The point in time a company or
organization, etc., replaces an old program or system with a new one.
Cut-Throat - Ruthless and intense competition. An unprincipled, ruthless
person.
The Daily Official List - The daily record setting out the prices of shares
that are traded on a stock exchange.
Daughter Company - A company that is controlled partly or completely
by a holding or parent company.
De Facto - (Latin) - Existing in reality or fact, with or without legal right.
Delegation - An assignment of responsibility or task, usually by a manager to
a subordinate.
Demerit Goods - Products or services such as as alcohol, gambling, drugs,
prostitution, etc.,
which are considered unhealthy or undesirable, and are often subject to
extra taxes in order

to reduce consumption and potentially to fund remedial actions in response

to
consumption.
Dirty Money - Money made from illegal activities which needs
'laundering' so that it appears to be legitimate.
Disburse - To pay out money from a large fund, e.g. a treasury or public fund.
Dog - An informal slang term for an investment which has shown a
poor performance. Dotcom - an internet business, or the internet
business sector.

Double-dipping - The practice, usually regarded as unethical, of receiving

two incomes or benefits from the same source, for example receiving a
pension and consultancy income from the same employer.
Dutch Auction - A type of auction which opens with a high asking price which
is then
lowered until someone accepts the auctioneers price, or until the sellers
reserve price has been reached.
Earnest Money - Money paid in good faith as a deposit, usually for a
property, to show that the buyer is serious about doing business with the
vendor.
E-Business - Electronic Business. Using the internet to conduct
business or enable businesses to link together.
E-Commerce - Electronic Commerce. The buying and selling of products
and services over the Internet.
Embezzlement - Dishonestly appropriate goods or money from one's
employer for
personal gain; steal from one's employer, typically by electronic
administrative methods, thus abusing a position of trust or responsibility.
Empirical - Information derived from experience,
experiment rather than from theory or opinion.

observation

or

Euphemism - the replacement of a strong/offensive word or phrase with an

alternative
word or phrase considered to be milder/inoffensive. Euphemisms are used
widely and very wrongly by politicians and business people attempting to
avoid responsibility and personal acknowledgment of mistakes, bad
decisions and unjustifiable actions, etc. Euphemisms in such situations are
part of 'spin', or spinning a story.
Ex Gratia- (Latin) - Something given or carried out as a favor or gift,
rather
than
as
a
legal
duty.
Eyeballs - Advertising term. A name given to the number of people who
visit a website advertisement, which can be counted by the number of
click-throughs.
Fallen Angel - Term used in finance to describe bonds which once had a
good investment value, but have now dropped in value to a much lower
rating.
False Accounting - A criminal offence. Giving false information in,
or destroying, a company's accounts, usually for personal gain.
Fraud.

Fast Track - Quick route in a career to success and promotion,

associated
with
high
ambition.
Fat Cat - A wealthy person living off investments or dividends, or a chief
executive of a large company or organization who is on a very large salary,
huge pension, etc.
Figurehead - In business, organizations, politics, etc., a person who
holds an important position or office but lacks real power or authority; a
'front man'.

Financial Equity - The ownership of interest in a company, usually in the form

of shares.
Floor Trader - Also known as a Local. An investor who is allowed on the
trading floor of a stock exchange, to buy and sell shares, etc., for their
own account.
Fungible - Describes goods or commodities which can be exchanged for
something of the same kind, of equal value and quality.
Gain sharing - Also called profit sharing. An incentive system which
enables employees to have a share in a company's profits.
Gap Analysis - Enables a company to assess the gap between its actual
performance and its potential performance, by comparing what skills,
products, etc. are available to what is
required to improve performance, output, etc.
Generalist - A person who has a broad general knowledge at a high
level,
and/or
many
skills.
Get All Your Ducks In A Row - A term for getting organized, having everything
in order
and making sure all the small details are accounted for before embarking on a
new project.
Golden Handcuffs - Financial incentives or benefits given to a valued
employee to ensure that they continue working for a company, and to
discourage them from wanting to leave to work for another company.
Golden Handshake - Usually offered to high-ranking executives in a
large company. A clause in their contract which provides them with a
large sum of money and/or other benefits in the event of them losing
their job or retiring.
Golden Parachute - A company's agreement with an employee, usually a top
executive,
which promises a significant amount of money and/or benefits if the
employee is forced to leave their job, usually because of a change of
company ownership, outside of the control of the original employer
company.
Green Audit - Also called Environmental Audit. An official assessment
which shows the effect that an organization or a company has on the
environment.
Greenback - An informal term for US paper money, i.e., the dollar, derived
from the color of the money.
Guru - An influential teacher or an expert in a particular subject
who shares their knowledge, often by writing books.

Haggle - Negotiate with someone over the price of something until an

agreeably mutual price is reached.
Hands-Off - A term often applied to managers who do not directly
participate when dealing
with a situation in the workplace by letting the people involved decide what
they want to
do.
Hard Selling - An aggressive type of selling which puts a lot of pressure
on a prospective customer to buy a product or a service.

Harvesting - A term used when a product is still being sold, although it is

no longer being invested in, prior to being withdrawn from the market.
Headhunt - To find a person who is specialized in a particular job,
usually
for
a
senior
position in a company, and then persuade them to leave their present
employment.
Hedge Fund - A type of investment fund, which is unregulated and usually
very high risk,
used by individuals and organizations (not the general public) with large
amounts
of
money
to invest.
Hush Money - A bribe or payment, which is often illegal, given to
someone to stop them from disclosing information, usually to prevent
bad publicity or to hide a crime.
Idea Showers - Usually called Brainstorming. A method of problem
solving involving members of a group meeting and sharing ideas.
Identity Theft - A crime in which someone obtains another person's
personal information, such as passport, credit card details, etc., and poses
as that person in order to steal money, get benefits, make purchases, etc.
Incentive Marketing - The offering of rewards or gifts to sales people as an
incentive
to
get
more orders from dealers or customers. To offer customers rewards for
buying
products
or
services.
Indict - To formally charge someone with a crime.
Induction - The introduction and training of a member of staff in a new job
or
position
in
a
company.
Industrialist - A person who owns or runs a large industrial enterprise.
They are often referred to as a Business Magnate.
Infomercial - An 'information commercial'. A long television commercial
(advertisement) presented in the form of a documentary or TV program.
This format is used so that it does not appear to be selling a product or
service.
Inside Track - An advantageous position in a company or organization.
To know about something before others get to hear about it.
Insolvency - Not having enough finances or assets available to pay all your
debts.
Intangible Asset - A company's assets which do not physically exist, such

as brand name, trademarks, copyrights, etc.

Intellectual Property - Commonly abbreviated to IP, an idea or creation, e.g.,
artwork,
writing, etc., that belongs to an individual or organization, which has
commercial value and therefore cannot be copied or sold without the
owner's permission.
Intrinsic Value - The actual or real value of a business, commodity, asset,
etc., rather than the market value or share price.

Involuntary Liquidation - When a company is forced into bankruptcy by

its creditors, so that its debts can be paid.
Job Costing - A system of calculating the cost of each individual job or
project carried out by a business, includes time, labor, materials, etc.
Job Lock - A situation in which a person feels they cannot leave their job
because they are afraid of losing benefits connected to the job.
Job Protected Leave - Allows people to officially take time off from their
work for a longer period without the fear of losing their job, often because
of illness or pregnancy.
Junk Bond - Also known as High Yield Bonds. A high risk bond with a
high interest rate, often used by companies to raise finances in order to
take over other companies.
Just-In-Time - JIT. A manufacturing system in which materials and components
are
delivered immediately before they are required, in order to increase
efficiency, reduce waste and minimize storage costs.
Kerb Market - In the US, the buying and selling of shares in companies
which
are
not
listed
on the stock exchange. In the UK, the buying and selling of stocks and
shares
outside
official
trading hours.
Key Account - In business, a company's main client or customer, who
represents a large percentage of the company's income.
Keyword Advertising - Used on the Internet. When a user types in a
particular 'keyword', an advertisement which is linked to a business
relevant to that word, is displayed alongside the search engine results.
Kickback - A bribe or illegal payment made to someone in exchange
for a successful referral for a job or transaction.
Knock-Off - An unauthorized copy of a product, usually designer clothing.
Knowledge Worker - Also known as an Intellectual Worker. A person who is
employed
by
a company to use their brain and intellect to work with information, rather
than
performing
manual tasks.
Kudos - Common term meaning positive recognition, praise or fame - from
the Greek word kydos, meaning glory.