Definition

A secretive project team operating with minimal oversight to develop innovations rapidly, named after a moonshine still in a comic strip and appropriated by Lockheed Martin.

Example Usage

We've got a skunkworks team building the new app in a separate office where Product Management can't find them.

Origin

From Lockheed's Advanced Development Projects unit in 1943, named after Li'l Abner comic strip

Fun Fact

The original Skunk Works at Lockheed developed the U-2 spy plane and SR-71 Blackbird in a rented circus tent next to a plastics factory.

Source: Aerospace and innovation management terminology

Related Terms

Beginner

corporate

As a noun in business jargon, refers to anything produced by or for a corporation's internal consumption—like training videos that make you question your will to live or bonds that fund expansion plans. It's become shorthand for the soul-crushing aesthetic of beige conference rooms and stock photo diversity. When something is described as "very corporate," it's never a compliment; it means sanitized, risk-averse, and optimized for maximum inoffensiveness.

💼 Corporate / Business
Advanced

forcing function

A constraint or requirement that compels a desired behavior or outcome by making alternatives impossible or impractical. It's institutional design that assumes people won't do the right thing unless you remove all other options.

💼 Corporate / Business
Intermediate

linchpin

The one person or thing holding an entire operation together, originally a pin that kept wagon wheels from falling off. In modern business, it's whoever everyone's terrified will quit because they're the only one who understands the legacy system. Also the go-to metaphor for making someone feel indispensable right before denying their raise.

💼 Corporate / Business
Beginner

pitfall

The obvious-in-retrospect trap that everyone falls into despite numerous warnings and past victims. It's the business equivalent of a concealed hole in the ground, except it's usually labeled 'Best Practice' or 'Industry Standard.' Pitfalls are most dangerous because they look like reasonable decisions until you're already stuck at the bottom wondering how you missed all the red flags.

💼 Corporate / Business
Beginner

outreach

The corporate-approved term for aggressively chasing down people who don't know they need your help yet. This noble practice involves organizations extending their services beyond their usual boundaries, typically to underserved populations or reluctant customers. It's basically showing up where you weren't invited, but with good intentions and a mission statement.

💼 Corporate / Business
Intermediate

Core Competency

The one thing your company claims to be really good at, which is usually just the thing you've been doing the longest. Like a restaurant saying their core competency is food -- technically true but not exactly inspiring.

💼 Corporate / Business

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