“Synergistic Implementation Abilities”
This was one of the many phrases I came across recently while dissecting job descriptions, and after the fifth or sixth time I found a similarly vague and buzzword laden line item, the only thing I could think was “someone has too much time on their hands”.
The individual who sits around combining phrases to make the job seem more complicated than it actually is has done no one a favor, including the Human Resources and Recruiting folks that have to fill those positions. Give me real skill sets. I speak engineering, programming, retail management, training, OD and all facets of human resources and I couldn’t translate this one into anything reasonable.
So I suppose that meant they should be looking for someone who speaks “buzzword” as their second language.
Let’s drill down:
Synergism: the interaction of elements that when combined produce a total effect that is greater than the sum of the individual elements, contributions, etc. (synergistic: pertaining to, characteristic of, or resembling synergism) – there are also medical related and theological definitions, which have no bearing on the industry or position in question.
So we want candidates who possess the ability to implement programs where the total outcome is greater than the sum of its parts. What we have here is a buzzword to cloak a cliché.
No kidding.
Instead of recycling the words from the medical, theological or legal industries to support the needs of some business professionals to sound more intelligent, lets recycle the mindset that we need fifty cent words to communicate. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t intend to bifurcate the conversation, nor is it my goal to be disingenuous in my critique of this confounding obfuscation of organizational development. (Hattip to Laurie, I couldn’t resist)
Perhaps with unlimited space in our website job listings, we’ve gotten “wordy”.
However, that line item simply had no business in the skill set. It didn’t mean anything. Someone needed a third for their list.
Common Sense can kill the buzzword. It doesn’t need to be fancy, it needs to be real.
Share your examples of nightmare wording, or buzzwords you‘d like to see tossed in the bin.
I’m supporting you right through this. You have a basic right to your opinion, and you must never let other people tell you anything different. Good on you!
Really good sharing this.
Hi extraordinarily awesome blogs!! Man .. I will take the rss feeds
Could not agree more. Same exact sentiments expressed in tow recent posts on HR Goobbledygook and HR Integrated and Synergized. Funny too @ switchhr.com
That’s perfectly fine, I appreciate you reading my blog. And there is a link on the side of the page where I can be followed on twitter.
I want to quote your post in my blog. It can?
And you et an account on Twitter?
Tammy,
You force me to confess there is a common and well-beloved buzzphrase that I would gladly devote my life to seeking out, destroying, and driving a steak through its insipid, meaningless, miserable little heart.
It is “to reach out to.”
Once this was a phrase reserved for touchy-feely types like psychologists, HR professionals, and guys trying to seem sensitive to impress women. And so we had: “Yes, Justin, I’ve been planning to reach out to you;” “She’s been having a tough time, Armand, I reached out to her yesterday;” and “Why don’t you and I reach out to Matthew who will reach out to….”
And then everything exploded and everyone began “reaching out to.” Lawyers, actuaries, real estate brokers, the guy in the hardware store, NASCAR drivers, even your company president who doesn’t “get” HR. And so we had “I’d like to reach out to you about your plumbing bill….new aluminum siding …. your tax audit… mufflers…the 25 bucks you owe me,” and so on down the line.
Once someone e-mailed me that she’d like to “reach back out to me.” I wasn’t sure if she meant she wanted to reach out to me for the second time or to reach backwards to reach out to me because she apparently thought I was standing behing her.
Wouldn’t it be simpler most of the time to say “I’ve been meaning to get in touch with you?”
I suppose there’s still a place for “reaching out to” when it’s said by touchy-feely types like psychologists and HR professionals. And, oh yeah, I probably wouldn’t complain if Nicole Kidman wanted to “reach out to me.” I might even reach back.
Thanks, Tammy!
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This post was mentioned on Twitter by TrinaWardell: gr8 post @TLColson – http://bit.ly/6OQ7oU – I wholeheartedly agree w/ “it doesnt need 2 b fancy it needs 2 b real”…
Buzzwords that bother me the most are the ones I get hypnotized into using. The newest one that I have been using that I have to stop is “working in silos.” Aaargh!
BTW adowling: A seat at the table needs to chopped up and used for firewood.
Bandwidth.
Yup.
There are so many.
And all of them suck.
Buzzwords make my head hurt. What happened to just being real? My new most hated, bandwidth. Bandwidth is an IT term and doesn’t belong in a discussion about clients. It makes me roll my eyes just as much as “seat at the table”.
Hey Tammy – I really like this. You did a nice job of keeping it short and sweet and really getting to the bitter point quickly!
Wordy job descriptions can make qualified candidates appear fearful and not apply. Keeping it simple, the point, and emphasizing the essential job functions should be the meat and potatoes of writing up JD. I can’t think of any words that I’d exactly say were buzzy, but i know I’ve come across many in my time!
Good work!
Great post Tammy! Nothing frustrates me more than to read a job description, and then to spend precious time and energy to attempt to dissect it, so one can understand it?
“Wordy” is a great way to describe it. Yes, I do believe that Common sense can kill the buzzword.
Keep it simple.
Your friend,
Shennee:)
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Trina Wardell, Marguerite Granat. Marguerite Granat said: This hits a nerve,kill the buzzwords! RT@TrinaWardell:gr8 post@TLColson – http://bit.ly/6OQ7oU #recruiting #hr [...]
Right on Tammy. The more clear and succinct we are in the job descriptions we post, the more candidates we will draw. Everyone loves “big” words, but we must consider our audience. This is a great post, very well written, and I’m about to jump on the RT twitter wagon. My followers need to hear this message.
Good job,
Margo Rose @HRMargo http://hrmargo.com