Learnings.org

layoff

As in...
Now that we have acquired XYZ Co, we need to rationalize that workforce

Being tasked with handling a large volume of work without the capacity to handle it.

As in...
How the heck does she take vacation the last two weeks of the year? I'm drinking though a firehose here and she's home making pizzelles and drinking egg nog.

to be a part of something; to contribute to a cause

As in...
Jim: Everybody got their hand in the fire on this? Laura?

Laura: Yes, Jim.

Jim: Tim?

Tim: Yes.

Jim: Randy?

Randy: Right now I feel like I have my butt in the fire, but as soon as I can get it out, I'm more than happy to turn around and put my hand in.

to be a part of something; to contribute to a cause

As in...
Jim: Everybody got their hand in the fire on this? Laura?

Laura: Yes, Jim.

Jim: Tim?

Tim: Yes.

Jim: Randy?

Randy: Right now I feel like I have my butt in the fire, but as soon as I can get it out, I'm more than happy to turn around and put my hand in.

an impromptu meeting, a quick chat or an informal talk with a colleague

As in...
"Hey Dave. After lunch, can you stop by my office for a fireside?"

An act of desperation by incompetent management to fix a dysfunctional leadership group. Typically manifested in a company wide "re-org" where incompetent problem employees have their roles stripped away only to have them given back under a different job title where life continues as usual. Just as the farmer fires the shotgun to scare the crows away only to return later in a different arrangement.

As in...
After our 10 missed deadlines, I was really hopeful that the company was finally going to get rid of all the dead weight; as usual they just fired the shotgun.

A frantic state usually brought on by a series of fire drills to which the individual is unable to respond.

As in...
Marcy was running around all afternoon with her hair on fire trying to get that deck done for tomorrow's board meeting.

Solving someone else's problem because they waited too long and need last minute help

As in...
Steve's eyes are bleeding again. I think he stayed at the cocktail hour a little long. Why do they call it a cocktail hour if it goes all night? Anyway, we have a fire drill on the presentation so I'm not going to make our sushi date. I'll see you later tonight. I guess I owe you a blowjob now too, right?

This is what self-important people say when they want other people to think that they've got a lot going on.

As in...
Facebook Status Update: sooo many irons in the fire!! thinking only positive thoughts and excited for changes coming my way! :) very happy!

The phrase people use when they claim to be alarmingly busy at work dealing with trivial issues that are insignificant in the grand scheme of things.

As in...
"Sorry for the delay, I’ve been away from my desk and putting out fires." or "Let me put out this fire and I'll call you right back."

The phrase people use when they claim to be alarmingly busy at work dealing with trivial issues that are insignificant in the grand scheme of things.

As in...
"Sorry for the delay, I’ve been away from my desk and putting out fires." or "Let me put out this fire and I'll call you right back."

The phrase people use when they claim to be alarmingly busy at work dealing with trivial issues that are insignificant in the grand scheme of things.

As in...
"Sorry for the delay, I’ve been away from my desk and putting out fires." or "Let me put out this fire and I'll call you right back."

to encourage someone else to get something done

As in...
Jack, we should have delivered that sales report two weeks ago. I've got legal breathing down my neck about meeting the terms and conditions of the scope of work. I don't care what you do, but you need to go over to measurement and light a fire under their asses to get this thing done. Leverage research if you need to, but you have til end of day today to figure it out!

to quickly learn everything there is to learn about a subject

As in...
Team, we are presenting "Best Practices for Marketing Viagra Online" tomorrow morning at the conference. If we're going to get this prep done in time we're going to need to drink from the fire hose tonight.

The percentage of exposure of a brand as it relates to a defined total market or market segment in a given time frame

As in...
John: To maintain an adequate share of voice in Q4, we are estimating that we will need to spend around a billion dollars a day in mass market advertising.

Steve: John, you're fired.