The Secret of Communication

It seems to me that the missing ingredient in the dried and cracking glue holding Business and IT functions together within an organisation is Communication. Of course, this is obvious to even the most casual observer but I would like to make a few points.

Let's start in the most obvoius place - jargon. Many see jargon as an infestation or a pox on language, however it is extremely useful when used appropriately. Jargon is a useful shorthand for discussing well understood subjects - in other words, if everyone in the room has the same background and shares the same vision, then jargon can be used to skim over otherwise leaden subjects. It is much easier to talk about "ROI" than it is to discuss the "potential cost savings due to a given fiscal outlay at appropriate cost of capital rates over a given period of time". A warning here is that these 'throwaway' concepts should be spoken of in their proper terms. For instance, ROI is measured as a percentage over a given period ("This project will show a ROI of 20% over 3 years" is correct - "This project has an ROI of 6 months" isn't). A common malapropism from the IT world is to talk about Bandwidth in terms of bits per second. Bandwidth is actually measured in Hertz, whereas bits per second refers to data rate - these are two quite distinct properties of a system, although they are closely related.

The above might seem like pedantry and hair splitting, which of course it is. However, if the verbal short-hand that is jargon is being used in a meeting or discussion, then the implicit verbal long-hand must actually mean something. As with all things, it is just as easy to get something right as it is to get something wrong. And there is nothing worse than sitting through a meeting or presentation with the sneaking suspicion that the speaker has only a very tenuous grasp of their subject, especially when they go to such lengths to misuse terminology and reinforce the audience's perception that they are an idiot.

I suppose that this is the semantic equivalent of knowing that it is never appropriate to fasten the bottom button on a suit jacket - not everyone knows the rules, but those who do will always look down on those who don't . And of course, those who know the rules will always look better. While I'm on the subject, it is also worth remembering that since the invention of central heating it is no longer appropriate to ever wear a waistcoat, however you fasten the buttons.

But back to Communication, and to put to bed the point about jargon. When in the company of like-minded people it is best used sparingly. But of course, we should all try to speak as clearly as possible at all times so, if at all possible it is best avoided all together.