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businessballs - business and management terms Category: Management > business and management Date & country: 13/09/2014, USA Words: 1681

Mortgage
A loan acquired from a bank, building society, etc., with which to buy property or land, usually to be paid back with interest over a specified number of years at regular monthly intervals. To borrow money from a bank, etc., using your property as collateral, giving the lender the right to own your property if the loan is not repaid

Mothball
In business, to stop using a piece of equipment or building, etc., for a period of time, but keep it in good condition for when work can resume

Motherboard
Also known as the Logic Board. The main circuit board of a computer which has all the components to make everything in the computer work together, such as the monitor, keyboard, mouse, DVD drive, etc

Motivational Research
A type of market research used to investigate the reasons why people buy specific products or brands

Mountweazel
A fictitious entry in a reference source or listing, traditionally an act of mischief, but also used to catch copyright cheats or those who obtain and use a database without a licence or a fee. Logically mountweazel entries are removed from legitimate authorized versions. Mountweazel is supposedly named after a false entry Lillian Virginia Mountweazel in the 1975 New Columbia Encyclopedia. Also called a nihilartikel, from the Latin nihil meaning nothing, and the German word artikel. A fictitious 'trap street' is the equivalent used to combat map copyright theft. (NB This is entry is not a mountweazel, probably..)

Mulct
A fine or financial penalty, or the verb form, to cheat or swindle someone out of money or penalize someone by imposing a fine, from the Latin word multare, to fine

Multinational Corporation
MNC. Also known as Transnational Corporation. A company which operates in several countries outside the country in which it is based

Murphy's Law
Humorous saying: Anything that can possibly go wrong will go wrong

Mutual Company
A type of organisation, business, etc., which is owned by members and has no shareholders. The members usually have a share of the profits

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
(MBTI) A psychometric questionnaire or personality test in which people answer questions about themselves, which helps identify strengths and personal behavioural/behavioral preferences. See personality styles and models

Mystery Shopper
A person hired by market research companies or manufacturers, etc., to visit or telephone shops or service providers anonymously in order to assess the quality of goods, helpfulness of staff, layout of premises, etc.

Naked Debenture
Also known as Uncovered Debenture. A company's loan or debt which is not backed by any security, i.e., the company's assets

Narrow Money
Also called M1. A country's money supply which can be exchanged, for example coins, bank notes, bank cheques, travellers cheques, etc

National Brand
A brand or product which is available nationwide rather than a local brand which is available in only one area of the country

National Debt
The total amount of money owed by a nation's government

National Insurance
(NI) In the UK, contributions made to the government by employers and employees which provide payments to the sick, retired and unemployed

Nationalise/Nationalize
(UK/US English spellings) To convert a business or industry from private ownership to government control and ownership

Natural Wastage
In business, the process of reducing the number of employees by not replacing those who have left their jobs, rather than by redundancy or dismissal

Negative Equity
A term commonly used in the property market during a recession when a property is worth less in value than the outstanding balance of the loan with which it was purchased. This usually only affects the borrower if they need to sell the property during this time

Negative Growth
A term used to describe a recession. The opposite of economic growth

Negative Inventory
A situation where a mistake in the ordering system or transactions of a business shows the stock to be less than zero. Sometimes this is done deliberately to reduce costs

Negotiating Table
Describes formal discussions where agreements are trying to be reached

Neologism
A word or expression which has been newly invented but is not yet in common use, or an old word which has a new meaning. There are a few in this very dictionary listing

Nepotism
In business and organizations, nepotism refers to those in power showing favouritism towards friends and family, for example by giving them jobs because of their relationship rather than their abilities. The word came into English from French in the mid-1600s and originally derives from the Italian nipote, nephew, and the tradition of giving privileges to the 'nephews' of popes, who were typically actually illigitimate sons. Nepotism is a common source of conflict of interest

Nest Egg
A sum of money which someone has saved for the future

Net Assets
The total assets of a company or individual minus all liabilities (debts)

Net Lending
The total amount of funds lent by a bank or building society over a certain period, minus any repayments made by borrowers

Net Price
The price payable for goods or services after any deductions, discounts, etc., have been taken off

Net Profit Margin
Usually expressed as a percentage, in business, the money earned after costs, expenses, taxes, etc., have been deducted.

Net Yield
The profit from an investment after taxes, costs and all other expenses have been deducted

Net-Centric
Activities, communities, services, information, etc., interconnected by the Internet

Netiquette
A set of informal rules and regulations that govern Internet etiquette, i.e., the acceptable behaviour of people on the World Wide Web

New Issue
On the Stock Market, a share or bond which is offered to the public for the first time

Newbie
A newcomer or novice at something, especially on the Internet

Next-Generation
Term used to describe a product or technology which has been improved or upgraded so that the newest version is much more advanced than previous versions

Niche Market
A specialised market in which a specific product is sold to a particular type or group of customers. A product or service for which there is sometimes little demand and often little or no competition.

NIH Syndrome
Not Invented Here. A term used for companies who reject ideas or products which are not theirs because they originated from outside the company

Nikkei Index
A share price index for the 225 stocks traded on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in Japan

No-Load Fund
A fund which does not impose a sales or commission fee on the investor for the buying and selling of stocks and shares

No-Win No-Fee
Conditional Fee Agreement. An agreement with your solicitor in which you don't have to pay their fee if your court case is not successful

Nominal Damages
A very small sum of money awarded by a court to the plaintiff when no real damage or harm was caused by the defendant, who has to pay the damages, usually $1 or

Non-Callable
Also known as Bulletbond. A bond or stock which cannot be redeemed by the issuer before a particular date or until maturity

Non-Compliance
Failure or refusal to obey or comply with a rule, regulation or standard, which can commonly result in serious action by an inspector or ombudsman

Non-Departmental Public Body
Also known as Quangos (Quasi-Autonomous Non- Governmental Organisations) In the UK, organisations which are not government departments but are accountable to Parliament and are financed by the government to deal with public matters, e.g., Health Trusts

Non-Disclosure
A signed formal agreement in which one party agrees to keep certain information secret. Often used in business when products or projects are being developed

Non-Executive
In business, a member of a board of directors or a consultant who is not an employee of a company but who gives independent advice

Non-Executive Director
Also called Outside Director. A person who is an independent member of a company's board of directors, i.e., they are not an employee of the company and are therefore not responsible for the day to day operations of the company but monitor the activities of the full time executives

Non-pc
Language or an action which is considered not to be politically correct, i.e., potentially offensive, especially to a minority group of some sort

Non-Recourse Debt
A type of loan or debt in which the borrower is not personally liable to the lender. If the borrower fails to make repayments the lender can only take back what was bought with the loan and none of the borrowers other assets.

Non-Tariff Barrier
(NTB) A type of non-tax trade restriction on imported goods which is used to make it difficult for certain goods to be taken into a country

Nonfeasance
Failure to perform a duty or carry out an act when under legal obligation

Nosedive
A sudden drop or plunge in prices, values, etc

Not Enough Bandwidth
Term which is used when there are not enough people and/or enough time to get a job done

Not-Spot
An area of poor or lack of coverage in cellphone service or similar communications technology

Notary
A person, usually a solicitor, officially authorised to witness signatures and certify legal documents

Notebook
A very small portable computer

Notice Of Deficiency
In the US, an official document sent to a taxpayer which shows that they owe more tax than has been declared on their tax form

Notice Period
The period of time during which an employee must work between resigning from and leaving their place of work

Nudge Theory
a modern concept and 'instrument' of social influence, used by governments, state organizations and commercial corporations, chiefly attributed to US professor of economics/behavioral science Richard Thaler, popularized by the 2008 book 'Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness', by R Thaler and Cass R Sunstein. Nudge theory, or simply 'Nudge', employs principles/techniques of suggestion, positive accentuation, situational/environmental adjustment, support, reward, etc., in altering behaviour/behavior of social groups, populations, audiences, etc. Methods are based on the careful design of communication and relationship between the influencer and the target group, often applied with great subtlety and sophistication. Many of the tactics are hardly noticeable, and target groups will commonly not perceive remotely that their actions and attitudes have been influenced at all. The sense is one of achieving a big beneficial/advantageouos change by exerting often a tiny but crucial influence at a crucial point in the decision-making process, or at a pivotal stage, so as to produce a major change-effect. Nudge theory is to an extent counter-intuitive because it seeks to achieve influence more effectively than traditional strategies involving forceful instruction, threat, legal action or other enforcement. Simple examples of Nudge theory methods:

Number Cruncher
An accountant or person who's job is working with numbers, and who is able to do large calculations. A computer which can perform complex calculations in a short time

Numbered Account
Often called a Swiss Bank Account. An account, offered by certain banks, which can only be identified by a number, so the account holder is known only to a restricted number of the bank's employees

NVQ
National Vocational Qualification. In the UK, a qualification with no age limits, that does not have to be completed in a specified time, which reflects the skills and knowledge required to perform a particular job competently.

Obsolescence
The state of becoming obsolete or out of date. Old-fashioned.

Occupational Psychology
Also called Organisational Psychology. The study of peoples behaviour at work, covering personal relations, mental health, employee selection and training, safety, etc

Ochlocracy
Mob rule. Also known as Mobocracy. Ocholocratic groups are typically prone to extreme actions and not very clever decisions, which may be a reflection of vengeful motivation, weak intelligence, lack of organization, or any/all of these. An ochlocracy is usually an example of ineffective democracy, and of the so called 'wisdom of crowds' not working very well. Often mob rule results from a reaction against oppressive leadership. A popular metaphor which criticizes mob rule is: 'the lunatics have taken over the asylum'. Ochlocracy derives from the Greek word okhlos meaning mob. An ochlocrat is one who advocates or participates in mob rule. See the word mob, which is interesting in its own right

Off-Balance Sheet
(OBS) Refers to items such as assets or a debts which are not recorded on a company's balance sheet

Off-Market
Refers to the buying and selling of shares outside the Stock Market

Off-Peak
A time period when a service, e.g. phone network, travel, electricity, gas, etc., is being used less frequently by consumers, therefore prices and rates are cheaper at this time

Off-the-Books
A payment which is not officially recorded, usually to avoid tax

Off-the-Charts
Something way below or way above normal expectations

Off-the-Grid
A person who does not wish to be in 'the system' (for example has no bank account, employment or tax identification, no fixed address, etc). May instead refer to a person who lives self-suffiently in terms of gas, electric, water, sewerage services, etc. Or someone not connected to the internet

Off-the-Peg
Known in the US as Off-the-Rack. Describes merchandise, usually clothing, which is made in standard designs and sizes, rather than made-to-measure, and is available in stock at retail outlets

Offer By Prospectus
A description of a company, for example financial structure, prospects, aims, etc., used when new shares are offered to the public, or when the company is for sale

Offer Document
A document which a prospective buyer of a company sends to the company's shareholders giving details of the offer in the hope of persuading them to sell their shares

Official Strike
A work stoppage by employees that has the backing and approval of a union

Offline
Refers to a computer which is not connected to the Internet

Offshore
Refers to accounts, investments, banks, etc., which are in countries where there are lower taxes and/or little government control

Oligarchy
A small, elite group of usually wealthy people or families who control a government or organisation, and who are unwilling to share their power

Oligopoly
A market in which a small number of companies control the supply of certain goods and services

Ombudsman
A government official who investigates complaints from the general public about companies, government officials, the media, etc

Omnishambles
severe chaos, typically in several areas of organizational responsibility, and typically where a person or organization is expected to be well-organized (see omnishambles in the cliches origins page)

One-Stop
Describes a retail establishment which provides an extensive range of goods and services, so the customer can purchase everything they need without having to go elsewhere

Online
Refers to a service or product which is available to use or buy on the Internet. A computer which is connected to the Internet.

Open Account
An arrangement between a vendor and buyer in which the vendor allows the buyer to pay at a later date for goods received

Open Border
A border which allows the flow of unrestricted goods and people between countries

Open Cheque
Also known as an Uncrossed Cheque. A cheque which does not have to be paid into an account, and can be cashed at the bank of the person who wrote it. Also means a cheque which has been signed but no amount has been filled in

Open Communication
In business, a situation in which employees have full information about the organisation, and are encouraged to exchange ideas and objectives with management

Open Shop
A business or factory which does not require employees to be members of a trade union

Open Source
Describes computer software for which the original source code is freely accessible to everyone, so that anyone can modify or copy the program without paying a fee

Open-Book Management
A management technique in a company whereby all the employees are involved in the running of the company by training them in, and giving them access to, financial and operational details

Open-Ended Investment Companies
(OEIC) Limited investment companies which manage mutual investment funds. An OEIC can issue more shares if there is a demand from investors. The fund reduces if investors sell their shares back to the company.

Operating Income
The gross earnings of a company minus operating costs, excluding taxes and interest

Operating Lease
An arrangement in which a business leases equipment, cars, buildings, etc., for a period of time which is less than the expected useful life of the asset

Operation Process Chart
Used in manufacturing, a chart which shows each stage of a production process, including when materials are needed, how much time is to be allocated for each job, how many people are required to carry out the work, etc

Opinion Leader
A high-profile, influential public figure, such as a celebrity or business person, whose opinions and tastes are respected and/or copied by the general public

Opportunism
The practice of exploiting and taking advantage of opportunities which present themselves, with no regard for other people or eventual consequences

Opportunity Cost
Term which refers to the value or benefit of something which will be lost in order to achieve or pursue something else

Optimise
To get the most out of something. To use something in the best possible way

Ordinary Capital
The amount of capital invested in a company by shareholders

Ordinary Creditor
A creditor who has no priority or security if a company which owes them money goes bankrupt. Therefore, they will be paid only after other creditors have been paid