Department

Definition

A group of employees organized around a specific function, united only by their mutual resentment of other departments.

Example Usage

Marketing and sales had never agreed on anything in the company's five-year history, which the CEO chose to ignore while calling them 'aligned departments.'

Source: Corporate organizational terminology

Related Terms

Intermediate

rotational

Describing a work program where employees rotate through different positions or departments, theoretically to build diverse skills but often to prevent anyone from getting too comfortable. In mechanics and physics, it refers to anything involving spinning or rotating motion. HR departments love rotational programs because they sound developmental while actually just shuffling people around every few months.

👥 Human Resources

Intermediate

change agent

An individual tasked with driving organizational transformation and getting people to embrace new processes. Usually the most hated person in the department until the change actually works.

👥 Human Resources

Intermediate

allowances

The corporate world's way of saying 'here's some extra cash for specific things' without calling it a raise. This could be travel allowances, housing allowances, or that sweet per diem that employees definitely use exactly as intended. In accounting, it's also shorthand for 'money we've set aside because we know something will probably go wrong.'

👥 Human Resources

Advanced

banding

Grouping similar jobs into broad pay grades rather than individual job-specific ranges. It reduces administrative complexity while somehow making salary decisions even more arbitrary.

👥 Human Resources

Beginner

lateral move

A job change to a position at the same organizational level, typically for skill development or career pivoting. A promotion in learning opportunities only, with identical compensation.

👥 Human Resources

Beginner

Engagement Survey

An annual exercise where employees fill out anonymous surveys and nothing changes, yet somehow HR uses the data to justify their existence for another year.

👥 Human Resources

Translate This Term

See “Department” in Corporate Speak, Gen-Z Slang, Pirate Speak, and more.

Try the Translator

Share This Term

Post on X Share on Facebook Share on LinkedIn

Discover a Term

Intermediate

lockout

The reverse Uno card of labor disputes where management barricades the door and tells workers they're not welcome until ...