Unclear and misleading language
Can anyone explain the obsession nowadays with changing long-established, well-understood words for new words which are unclear and misleading? Some of the changes are obviously due to Political Correctness but other changes seem to have been made purely to confuse us.
Take, for example, "Personnel Department", a clear description of an office which deals with recruitment and organisation of a workforce in a business. This has been replaced, without explanation, with "Human Resources", a term which sounds as if it concerns employees laid out on a meat rack. "Human Resources" itself has become too much of a mouthful: callers to my small business now ask to speak to "HR", Exactly what has been gained by changing 'Personnel' to 'HR'?
Some of these changes are actually detrimental to the running of the business. I phoned my bank recently with a minor query and went through the usual series of menus, trying to get through to a bank representative. Eventually I was offered a choice of "Balance" or "Agent". Presumably "Representative" has now been replaced by "Agent" but this term sounds too much like somebody trying to sell me something. I rang off.
There are countless similar examples. Are you happy about our "Police Force" now being described as a "Police Service"? Do our railways run more smoothly because we are now "Customers" instead of "Passengers"? Add your own examples.
This gripe sounds trivial but clarity of language is one of our defences against state tyranny and we should do more to oppose this constant distortion of familiar English words and phrases.
George Orwell showed so clearly in "1984" that destruction of a country's traditions and way of speaking is one of the first steps towards control of the population. Today we have Hype and Spin: tomorrow we may see the setting up of The Ministry Of Love.
By: Oracle2007
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My son drew my attention to your post and asked was it me so you may guess I bang on about this sort of thing a lot.
Thanks for posting I thought I was alone!
Patients are just that not “service users”, I am a rate payer not a “customer” the list is endless and I wonder who they think they are fooling that in some way by changing the name we, the end user, think we get a better service. I am a pessimist and always see the glass half empty so when a government department changes its name all I see is the millions spent on rebranding everything and how that money could be better spent! What did happen to the DSS I wonder?
Hijacking of words that already have a recognised meaning is also common; my favourite example is the “resolution” of TV screens. I have always thought resolution was dots per unit measurement and that is certainly true if you buy a printer. But buy a television and suddenly it’s the number of pixels on the whole screen! You buy a full HD screen of any size you get the same number of pixels thus as the screen size goes up the “true” dots per square inch go down and that’s what I call the resolution.
As you say it’s spin and where there is spin there is motive and the motivation you can be absolutely sure is not customer service.
Thanks for posting I thought I was alone!
Patients are just that not “service users”, I am a rate payer not a “customer” the list is endless and I wonder who they think they are fooling that in some way by changing the name we, the end user, think we get a better service. I am a pessimist and always see the glass half empty so when a government department changes its name all I see is the millions spent on rebranding everything and how that money could be better spent! What did happen to the DSS I wonder?
Hijacking of words that already have a recognised meaning is also common; my favourite example is the “resolution” of TV screens. I have always thought resolution was dots per unit measurement and that is certainly true if you buy a printer. But buy a television and suddenly it’s the number of pixels on the whole screen! You buy a full HD screen of any size you get the same number of pixels thus as the screen size goes up the “true” dots per square inch go down and that’s what I call the resolution.
As you say it’s spin and where there is spin there is motive and the motivation you can be absolutely sure is not customer service.
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"Service users", what was wrong with patient? What is a Maternity envelope? I always thought an envelope was a white or brown piece of paper that you put a letter in!
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Political correctness simply obscures reality. In the case of Personnel vs Human Resources, the implication is that personnel were once living people and should be respected as individuals. Resources are non-living things, like coal, oil, or different mineral ores, to be mined, burned or smelted; used, and then disposed of when no longer functional.
Consider this. When do CEOs or corporate directors ever get hired through Human Resource Departments? Managers and supervisors, perhaps. Someone mentioned Staffing Office. How about Labor Pool Table? That’s for mail clerks, and copy machine operators, and file clerks.
In today’s world of disguises, no self-respecting person wants to be anything less than an administrative assistant. HR needs a new title, something like: Human Educational and Corporate Community Development Division. That should make any hourly wage slave feel good about themselves and the future.
Consider this. When do CEOs or corporate directors ever get hired through Human Resource Departments? Managers and supervisors, perhaps. Someone mentioned Staffing Office. How about Labor Pool Table? That’s for mail clerks, and copy machine operators, and file clerks.
In today’s world of disguises, no self-respecting person wants to be anything less than an administrative assistant. HR needs a new title, something like: Human Educational and Corporate Community Development Division. That should make any hourly wage slave feel good about themselves and the future.
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In the last 10 years we have moved towards being judged on talking a good game not your actions. We had a prime minister whose whole approach was predicated on gloss, spin and rhetoric even by politicians (low) standards and it seems that in industry, senior management are similarly impressed by BS. This shift in language is not as trivial as it first seems. There seems to be a type of moron who hides behind this fudging and soft-pedalling using it to do a mediocre job at best. I just hope there enough of us with the integrity and intelligence to see through and challenge soundbite culture, wherever it occurs.
Also, the police are not a 'service' - law,order and justice are cornerstones of civilisation. There are times when that is 'force' - pure and simple. People who interact with the police are not there for a 'customer experience'.
As Mark Twain once said (I believe) - "Common sense ain't".
Also, the police are not a 'service' - law,order and justice are cornerstones of civilisation. There are times when that is 'force' - pure and simple. People who interact with the police are not there for a 'customer experience'.
As Mark Twain once said (I believe) - "Common sense ain't".
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I agree with Overlifty. The job description 'secretary' seems to be passe and degrading these days. Now they're executive assistants, personal assistants and office managers and administators. How come they still do the filing, book meetings and make the coffee then?
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GrumpyOldWoman - 30-May-09 17:59
I remember being told at a meeting about fifteen years ago that I was a "schedulable resource", not long after our personnel department was renamed Human Resources. It seems they've decided we're not actually people any more, just resources that can be used until we drop. It's all intended to dehumanise so they can feel better about shafting us.
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Alan McMillan - 9-Apr-09 11:54
The gripe is perfectly valid and I agree with it. Having been out of the workplace now, as a housewife for many years, I have been overwhelmed at the changes in office and job descriptions, let alone general daily life. Junior clerks are now "administrative assistants" , for example, and there are numerous others with pompous titles involving the words "co-ordinator", "advisor", "administrator" , "operations" and God knows how many more. I wonder if it's all to do with psyching people up to make them think that they've got an "important" position in society?
I used to laugh every time Ann Robinson on "The Weakest Link" challenged her contestants to give a more concise description of their airy-fairy-sounding jobs. Certainly used to bring some of them down to earth with a wallop.
I used to laugh every time Ann Robinson on "The Weakest Link" challenged her contestants to give a more concise description of their airy-fairy-sounding jobs. Certainly used to bring some of them down to earth with a wallop.
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Read old books and newpapers and you see " A hotel..." but nowadays it's "An hotel..." Madness.
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Personnel dept = yuk. Human Resources = yuk. What's wrong with just
Staffing office?
Actually the renaming is simply a refelection of the fact that human beings are now simply ciphers, and of no real consequence to the business.
Staffing office?
Actually the renaming is simply a refelection of the fact that human beings are now simply ciphers, and of no real consequence to the business.
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I agree the way officious people explain things to us poor mortals confuses that much that in the end we tend to give up anyway.Also peoples job titles change practically from week to week.Mine started off as classroom assistant then went to teaching assistant then teachers assistant and now its learning mentor.I do much the same job as I have for the past ten years but with a different title.Don't ask me why?
I think some of the worst people at tech talk are computer technicians.They tend to talk to you in highly technical language assuming that you actually know what they are waffling on about.I usually let them waffle for about half an hour then tell them that I don't understand a word they've said and could they repeat in simple terms.
I think some of the worst people at tech talk are computer technicians.They tend to talk to you in highly technical language assuming that you actually know what they are waffling on about.I usually let them waffle for about half an hour then tell them that I don't understand a word they've said and could they repeat in simple terms.
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So are you saying, if the change has been made for reasons of Political Correctness that the change is valid, but not if it has been done to confuse?
Isn't political correctness an attempt to curb Freedom of Speech?
Something that results in a change of department name within an organisation - public or private is going to be the result of some Consultancy excercise carried out by the organisation. The silly changes reflect an organisation's poor managerial ability. The fact that such terms could be copied by others is just demoralizing. If the organisation was well managed, why would it need to buy into everything a consultancy exercise recommends?
Isn't political correctness an attempt to curb Freedom of Speech?
Something that results in a change of department name within an organisation - public or private is going to be the result of some Consultancy excercise carried out by the organisation. The silly changes reflect an organisation's poor managerial ability. The fact that such terms could be copied by others is just demoralizing. If the organisation was well managed, why would it need to buy into everything a consultancy exercise recommends?
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trivial! the language we speak now has changed enormously from 200 years ago, our language has been constantly changing for better or worse since the first person formed his/her first syllable. Police force/Police service - noone would care if they did their job. Ditto personnel.
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You're right, the gripe sound sound and is trivial.
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>Are you happy about our "Police Force" now being described as a "Police Service"?
Well actually, no - not really. Personally I would have thought that calling them "Police Farce" would have been the right thing to do!
Well actually, no - not really. Personally I would have thought that calling them "Police Farce" would have been the right thing to do!
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Having a poke - 30-Aug-07 14:41
Totally agree.
I'd just like to suggest that maybe the Police are due another name change as they no longer appear to be a "Force" or offer a "Service". As a marketeer, I'd like to suggest the following:
Lazy Officious Doughnut Eating Kids Playing God.
I used to respect the Police but now I live in Worcester where they consider the real criminals to be the ones parked on yellow lines and not the ones selling smack to the kids.
Sorry....that's a whole new gripe.
Bring back our language!
I'd just like to suggest that maybe the Police are due another name change as they no longer appear to be a "Force" or offer a "Service". As a marketeer, I'd like to suggest the following:
Lazy Officious Doughnut Eating Kids Playing God.
I used to respect the Police but now I live in Worcester where they consider the real criminals to be the ones parked on yellow lines and not the ones selling smack to the kids.
Sorry....that's a whole new gripe.
Bring back our language!
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Would that be 'prehaps' or 'perhaps' Angrydad? ;-)
Sorry, I couldn't resist!
Sorry, I couldn't resist!
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Before anyone corrects me it is a typo on my previous entry. I meant to type the word "thing" obviously, not "ting".
That having been said I tend to type so fast that I often change words so prehaps we should all be doing it!!!
That having been said I tend to type so fast that I often change words so prehaps we should all be doing it!!!
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Angrydadcalledray - 30-Aug-07 00:28
I quite agree.
It does nothing but confuse things and companies spend money on this sort of ting which is even more unbelievable. Remember how much BT spent on changing its logo? Same principle.
I can almost understand it if the existing term is likely to cause offense (not mentioning a particular marmalade) but some terms or words seemed to be changed just to infuriate us.
I'm pretty sure that I heard somewhere that an arrested person has to be refered to as a "client", what?
Personnel changed to HR - Makes no sense.
Someone explain why we do this.... or is it just a load of old morlocks!!!!
It does nothing but confuse things and companies spend money on this sort of ting which is even more unbelievable. Remember how much BT spent on changing its logo? Same principle.
I can almost understand it if the existing term is likely to cause offense (not mentioning a particular marmalade) but some terms or words seemed to be changed just to infuriate us.
I'm pretty sure that I heard somewhere that an arrested person has to be refered to as a "client", what?
Personnel changed to HR - Makes no sense.
Someone explain why we do this.... or is it just a load of old morlocks!!!!
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