As we increasingly adopt the American model of health care, welfare and education we also use American business expressions. So ambitious managers need to learn the management language and the rest of us need to understand what they are on about. The USA is the land of the sports fan and Americans business and sport have one big thing in common they are both very competitive. So it is not surprising that American business language is full of sporting expressions. The three big sports in the USA are basket ball, base ball and (American) football .So some of the expressions may not be as familiar to a British /European audience.My favourite at the moment is a slam dunk which is a basket ball expression for when a player gets a basket with an emphatic delivery. It means can’t miss, a sure thing in fact the opposite of a long shot. Stepping up to the plate is a baseball phrase used to mean taking responsibility and the ballpark figure is the estimated or rounded up number as in the attendance at a sporting event. The whole nine yards is an American football expression meaning to go the full distance.Of course not all expression have a sporting origin some just creep into common usage or become popular because someone famous used it on TV. or in a film. Remember the God Father make him an offer he can’t refuse. Well hears another one that has American gangster overtones. What would it take to make this go away? This means how can we fix this between us, what do I have to give you to change your mind? This might sound like a bribe to a British/European ear but it is in fact a plea for a frank negotiation. A popular expression in the American business community is leverage as in what leverage have we meaning what pressure we can bring to bear. The chief executive or CEO to use the US term may well claim to be clear eyed a British equivalent might be having your eye on the ball as in being focused on what’s important. Wake up and smell the coffee was made popular on the American election campaign and means read the writing on the wall-it obvious if you think about it. Another favourite of America politicians was where is the meat? This was apparently taken from a TV advert for beef burgers and came to mean this is just froth where is the substance? Some of the old favourites are still in use. Its not rocket science is intended to emphasise that something is not difficult. Running an idea up the flagpole is about drawing an idea to everyone's attention like waving a flag. You can't make an omelette without breaking eggs is another way of saying, you can't get something done without upsetting someone and the end result is worth the short term pain. We are all on message or singing from the same song sheet when everyone is clear what is expected and we are all saying the same things to our staff and customers. A much used management expression at the moment is this is not an exercise in ticking the boxes. This is intended to convince staff that we are not just going through the motions but want to see real action. The expression comes from the fact that we have all become used to completing computerised tick box forms. If you want to negotiate a good deal or make a persuasive argument, you need to get everything in order, or get all your ducks in line. In the current harsh financial climate senior managers can be heard referring to the low hanging fruit meaning all the easy pickings for making savings have been taken. Finally senior managers can be heard trying to impress upon staff the dramatic nature of the budget situation and a sense of urgency by referring to standing on a burning platform.If we sometimes find it hard to understand our American cousins they also have difficulty with our expressions after all if we make a cock-up they won’t understand and looking it up on Google won’t help.Blair McPherson is author of People management in a harsh financial climate and Equipping managers for an uncertain future both published by www.russellhouse.co.uk
