Customer Reviews

The Dictionary of Corporate Bullshit: An A to Z Lexicon of Empty, Enraging, and Just Plain Stupid Office Talk

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is the only dictionary you need in your office. It includes phases and definitions for all the annoying, humiliting and hysterical moments we endure from 9-5. DOCBS makes a great gift for anyone who's ever had to make small talk at the microwave, play with the boss's kids, gone through diversity training or had to sing happy birthday to someone you despise.

Having spent 30+ years in corporate America, I can really identify with these terms. This is a real tongue-in-cheek look at everyday office language in a light-hearted way. Lois, here's one for your next edition: "Census reduction" - call it what you will, but it's true meaning is layoff.

After 15 years in the corporate workplace, I've heard my share of BS. This book is funny and so true. This would make a great gift for people just entering the workplace, or anyone who's been in a cubicle too long!

Lois Beckwith has written an excellent companion piece to Ambrose Bierece's THE DEVIL'S DICTIONARY.

The title sums it up -- here's everything you need to know about how to follow the empty jargon of office life.

this book is a great gift, you'll want to share it with anyone who's ever worked in a cubicle.

This book is hilarious. Each entry gets funnier and funnier. It's not simply amusing because you recognize all of the office politics and indignities that lois describes. It's brilliant because she describes the office and corporate b.s. better than you can. In the spirit of 9 to 5, I envision Dolly, Jane and Lilly sitting around, getting high, and reading a copy of the Dictionary of Corporate BS, as they plot the downfall of Mr. Hart.

I am thoroughly enjoying these hilarious, yet so true, definitions. It is must for anyone who is planning to work, is working, or is retired wants to reflect on all the BS they had to put up . An excellent gift.. I am sending copies to my two sons who are both involved in the corporate world . enjoy, enjoy

...because it just might save your life. Or at least the lives of innocent cubicle rats caught in the line of fire. These entries are hilarious, often painfully so. The perfect book to bring to your next post-work bitch session.

I strongly recommend this book - has thousands of uses around the office!

I bought this book four days ago and it already looks well-thumbed. I use it on the job to "call out" (it's a term in the book) language usage and behavior which is designed to evade, avoid and obfuscate.

People give their best when they're respected and rewarded for good work. But, if you cannot manage that, at least do not insult a worker's intelligence. After all, things can be bad enough without adding insult to perceived injury.

An interesting side note: I did not consistently discern that Lois Beckwith encouraged employees to avoid placing themselves in the victim role. Sometimes her advice was very assertive and made a lot of sense, but, in other examples, she encouraged a sense of shared victimhood which was not only neurotic but actually a disservice to her intended audience.

Oh, well. If letting off steam is the objective, the book serves a good function. Or functionality (since that word IS in the book).

I bought this in my first month of business school and despite being a satire, it was actually useful in assisting with the usage of the proper jargon for presentations and papers. It is also extremely funny to watch other people use the terms without any hint of irony.

If you work in an office, you'll both laugh and cry when reading this book. It could be filed under "humor" if only it weren't such an accurate representation of corporate BS terminology. This is an important anthropological work!