GAINSHARING. Management program where workers’ pay is related to various performance goals.
“A special bulletin released by the Department of Health and Human Services' inspector general states that while hospitals have a legitimate interest in trying to reduce costs, they can't apply the practice known as "gainsharing" to fee-for-service Medicare and Medicaid patients. Under gainsharing, physicians receive a percentage of the hospitals' savings when they make treatment choices that save money.” (Wall Street Journal, July 9, 1999, p.1)< xml="true" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" prefix="o" namespace="">
GALLEY. Preliminary layout for a print publication.
GAME PLAN. Marketing strategy (football).
“During last year's soccer playoffs, one visiting team found a video camera and a microphone hidden in its locker room. That team's coach claimed the equipment had been installed by Mr. Ahumada's side to steal his game-plan. Another opposing coach alleged that Mr. Ahumada's team had tear gas sprayed in his team's hotel.” (Wall Street Journal, < xml="true" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" prefix="st1" namespace="">
GAME THEORY. Management planning technique based on anticipating competitors’ actions and reactions.
GARAGE SALE.
“Ms. Gilbert, a co-worker of Mr. [BRIAN Ellin]'s at software firm Janrain Inc., also uses RSS to scan the Web for job listings for her unemployed husband, and for garage sales in the family's Portland neighborhood.” (Wall Street Journal,
GARBAGE IN, GARBAGE OUT (GIGO). Output can be no better than the quality of the inputs.
“Dr. Temple's view was, ‘Garbage in, garbage out,’ he says in an interview. If the data were unreliable, so was the conclusion." (Wall Street Journal,
________ GATE. A scandal.
“Since Watergate, the 1970s political scandal that ended the Nixon presidency, visible unethical activities in the
GATEKEEPER. Person who controls access to managers. Gatekeepers are important members of organizational buying centers. They control the flow of information to be reviewed by the group making purchase decisions.
GAZUMP (TO). Raise the price after initially agreeing to a lower one (real estate).
“Gazumping may sound like a polite response to a sneeze, or perhaps a sneeze itself…. ‘It’s become slang for when a seller disappoints an intended purchaser by raising the price after accepting his or her offer.’” (Wall Street Journal, June 6, 1996, p. B10)
GEAR DOWN (TO). To reduce the size of an operation.
GEAR UP (TO). Get ready.
“IPOs often begin trading with a measure of disorder, as investors gear up to trade and market makers try to figure out where a stock should open, and Google's had its share of problems.” (Wall Street Journal,
GEEK. A computer technology person.
GENERAL ACCOUNTING OFFICE (GAO). Congressional accounting agency monitoring fiscal activities of the government. The GAO and its executive branch counterpart the OMB*, often differ in budget estimates and assumptions.
GENERAL AGREEMENT ON TARIFFS AND TRADE (GATT). 1940s United Nations’–sponsored agreement to reduce and eliminate trade barriers. The GATT was incorporated in the WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION in 1994.
GENERALLY ACCEPTED ACCOUNTING PRINCIPLES (GAAP). Standardized rules and procedures for accounting.
“These officials ‘ought to have been aware that the establishment and/or release to income of such accruals and provisions were not in accordance with applicable generally accepted accounting principles,’ a Nortel statement said. Further, the improper use of accruals and provisions ‘misstated the company's financial statements,’ Nortel said.” (Wall Street Journal,
GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND (GO BOND). A municipal bond (tax-free for federal income) that is backed by the municipality issuing it. GO bonds are considered less risky than revenue bonds, which are issued by municipalities, tax-free, but are backed only by the revenue from the investment made with the funds from the sale of the bonds.
GENERATION X. Young Americans in the 1990s searching for an identity.
“Generation X-ers are known for being cynical and risk-averse, but home buying might signal a new optimism. ‘They were told the sky was falling down and they wouldn't do as well as their parents,’ says Bernard Carl Rosen, a
GENERATION Y. Retailing term for today’s 10-24 year old age group.
GET A JUMP ON (TO). A head start; to get started before your competitors.
“Attempting to get a jump on their judicial colleagues, or to placate ‘feeder’ professors, these judges pushed the application/interview date to a full year before their now-proposed solution.” (Wall Street Journal,
GET A KICK OUT OF (TO). Enjoy.
“Robert Canepa, owner of the Mill Valley Market,
GET AWAY WITH (TO). Do something wrong without getting caught.
GET BEHIND (TO). Support.
GET BOUNCED (TO). Be forced out, fired.
GET HAMMERED (TO). To suffer severe setbacks.
GET IN BED WITH. To work closely with.
GET IT TOGETHER (TO). Become organized.
“At a news conference last week at the Securities Industry Conference in
GET IT WHILE THE GETTING’S GOOD (TO). Take the opportunity while it is there.
GET LOST. Go away (impolite command).
“Brand franchise mergers and acquisitions are on a roll, and will continue to be on a roll because consumers and retailers have forced marketers into that ‘get out front or get lost’ mentality that led to the Quaker, Grand Metropolitan and Campbell moves late last year and in early 1995.” (Brandweek, June 26, 1995, p. 16)
GET MILEAGE OUT OF (TO). Exploit; to benefit from.
GET ONE’S DUCKS IN A ROW (TO). Get organized.
GET RICH SCHEME. Way to make money fast (often risky or fraudulent).
“Despite the potential of INFOMERCIALS, by 1994 this exciting, promising uniquely sales-intensive medium has remained a ghetto for gadgets, get-rich schemes and gaudy promises of fantasies fulfilled.” (Advertising Age, April 11, 1995, p. S8)
GET SIDETRACKED (TO). Become distracted.
GET THE AX (TO). Be dismissed, eliminated.
“Still, with a limited number of young viewers to go around, analysts expect an unusually large number of shows to get the ax early on. DeWitt Media, a New York-based ad-buying firm, forecasts that only seven of the new shows will still be afloat by Christmas, including ‘Ally’ and the new ‘Law and Order.’" (Wall Street Journal, August 13, 1999, p. W1)
GET THE BALL ROLLING (TO). Get things started.
GET/GIVE THE BOOT. Be dismissed.
“Indeed, Mr. Adams wasn't the only stock-fund manager to get the boot last week. On the same day that Berger, a unit of Kansas City Southern Industries Inc., announced a reorganization including Mr. Adams's plan ‘to pursue other interests,’ Liberty Financial Cos.' Stein Roe funds unit announced the departure of two managers.” (Wall Street Journal, May 12, 1999, p. C1)
GET THE BUSINESS (TO). Be treated roughly.
GET THE DRIFT/HANG OF IT (TO). Understand.
GET THE INK/INK IT (TO). Get the customer to sign the contract.
GET THE PINK SLIP (TO). Be dismissed.
GET TO WHERE THE ACTION IS (TO). Find where decisions are made or opportunities can be found.
GETTING AT (WHAT ONE IS). The point or essence of what one is saying.
GETTING ONE’S FEET WET. Beginning to learn about a new market/product.
GETTING TRACTION. Making progress.
GIVE AWAY THE FARM. To sell at a very low price.
GHOST RIDER. Person who falsely claims to have been in a vehicle involved in an accident in an effort to collect for alleged injuries.
GHOSTING. Writing for someone else who will claim it as their work. Books by celebrities are often written by professional writers who are not acknowledged in the book.
GIFFEN GOODS. Goods that do not obey the law of demand, in that quantity demanded decreases as price decreases (from British economist, Robert Giffen).
GIG. A job, often a temporary position.
GILT-EDGE. Of high quality and reliability.
“Gilt-edged bonds are marketable bonds denominated in sterling that are issued by the Bank of England on behalf of the treasury.” (Euromoney, Aug. 1995, p. 68)
GIMMICK. A special item practice or feature of a product designed to gain customer interest.
“The plush ducks remained on the show's set for the entire segment -- an accolade in itself: ‘Live’ gets sent thousands of promotional gimmicks a year but 99.9% of them don't get on the air. ‘Unless it's really clever it won't make it,’ says Michael Gellman, executive producer of ‘Live.’" (Wall Street Journal,
GINNIE MAE. Nickname for GOVERNMENT NATIONAL MORTGAGE ASSOCIATION.
GIVE A LITTLE (TO). Compromise.
GIVE-BACKS. The surrender by unions of previously agreed upon benefits.
“The bankers also concluded that the labor savings that US Airways is seeking aren't out of line, and ‘only on such basis would such a [turnaround] plan be potentially workable.’ They said the company seems to have taken full advantage of its first bankruptcy to reduce costs, and said they didn't see other significant opportunities for expense cutting, save for further employee givebacks, terminating other unions' pension plans or throttling back capital expenditures. The pilots plan was terminated in last year's Chapter 11.” (Wall Street Journal,
GIVE IT THE ONCE-OVER (TO). Check something but not spend a lot of time carefully reviewing it.
GIVE SOMEONE PAPER (TO). Place an order.
GIVE THE NOD (TO). Give approval to a plan; perceive as having an advantage.
“For this year, the top analysts expect the leisure category to rebound ahead of most other business sectors. They're counting on an army of well-to-do baby boomers entering the biggest-spending years of their lives. Mr. Conder says he likes Brunswick Corp., the boat maker; Mr. [Joe Havorka] gives the nod to Polaris, the fishing and hunting vehicle maker; and Mr. [Bob Simonson] is going with Royal Caribbean.” (Wall Street Journal,
GIVE THEM THE NICKEL TOUR. Make it fast.
GLAD-HANDING. Shaking hands with everyone present. See also SCHMOOZING.
GLAMOUR STOCK. A stock that is widely followed. In the 1990s many technology companies have become glamour stocks.
GLASS CEILING. Invisible barrier (discrimination) to career advancement for women and minorities.
“They cited examples of women at the firms complaining about the memberships, along with allegations of harassment, unequal pay and glass ceilings culled from media reports and other sources. Mr. Mehri called Wall Street ‘
GLASS-STEAGALL (ACT OF 1933). Depression-era banking reforms that prohibited commercial banks from offering stock brokerage and insurance services. Banking reforms in the 1980s and 1990s have gradually removed many of the barriers among these service industries.
GLASNOST. Openness. From the Russian term for the new openness to discuss differences with the West, initiated by Soviet President Gorbachev in 1990.
GLIMMER OF HOPE. A slight chance of success.
“At Dean rallies, and on his Web site, there are still glimmers of hope and signs of devotion to the candidate." (Wall Street Journal,
GLITZ/GLITZY. Flashiness/bright, showy.
“Something uneasy has entered into the contract of illusion between us and celebrities. A sharp change occurred in the immediate aftermath of 9/11, when most citizens felt a twinge of nausea at the sight of an Entertainment Weekly cover. This acute aversion to hollow glitz lasted awhile, and seemed to fade, but has now revived due to the unelected tub thumping of Robert Redford, Susan Sarandon and their ilk.” (Wall Street Journal,
GLOBAL ARENA. World marketplace.
GLOBASM. A company or executive who becomes obsessed with expanding globally is said to be experiencing globasm.
GO BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD (TO). To begin again after something has failed or been rejected.
GOBBLEDYGOOK. Surrounded or overwhelmed by unnecessary details, jargon, or clutter.
GO BELLY UP (TO). Fail; go bankrupt.
GO BOND. See GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND.
GOFER. Low-ranking employee; errand boy (from “go-for”).
“Ms. [Lenore Lillie], 26 at the time, started as little more than a gofer. But with only one other person left in the purchasing department, she soon found herself sorting out those suppliers willing to give the company some financial leeway, and finding replacements for those who wouldn't.” (Wall Street Journal,
GO FOR IT. Take the risk or chance.
GO-GO FUND. Risky, aggressive mutual fund. These funds tend to do well in BULL markets but poorly in declining markets.
GOING CONCERN. Existing business.
GOING GREAT GUNS. Working or producing at full capacity.
GOING LONG. Purchasing a stock or other investment.
GOING SHORT. Selling a stock without owning the shares. When going short an investor sells shares borrowed from the brokerage firm, expecting the price of the stock to decline. See also SHORT SQUEEZE.
GOING THE EXTRA MILE. Paying attention to detail; providing quality service.
“As colleagues of Danny Pearl, we certainly appreciate (and admire) the risks that journalists are sometimes obliged to take. But that argues all the more for going the extra mile to make clear that journalists are non-combatants.” (Wall Street Journal,
GOLD COASTER. Someone who is doing very little work as they approach retirement.
GOLDBRICKER. Employee who tries to do the least amount of work without getting fired, lazy worker. The author’s father told the story of a framing carpenter who, when he heard the
GOLDBUG. Investor in gold or gold stocks. Goldbugs perceive the commodity to be a safe investment during period of depression or hyperinflation.
GOLDEN BOOT. Incentives offered to older employees to get them to retire.
GOLDEN FLEECE AWARD. Symbol of exorbitant prices (from ancient Greek mythology). For years former U.S. Senator William Proxmire made symbolic Golden Fleece Awards bringing public attention to inflated prices charged by businesses for products sold to the government.
GOLDEN GOOSE. The prize; valuable asset. The golden goose is used in many fairy tales as a magical source of wealth.
“One can build a case that the summer of 2000 was the turning point for United. UAL managers were desperately trying to win approval from labor and government to acquire US Airways Group Inc., and were willing to buy pilot approval. Rick Dubinsky, the former head of United's pilot's union, famously said pilots didn't want to kill the golden goose, ‘We just want to choke it by the neck until it gives us every last egg.’" (Wall Street Journal,
GOLDEN HANDCUFFS. Attractive financial incentive designed to keep executives from leaving a company.
“Sotheby's Holdings Inc. reported wider fourth-quarter and annual losses, chiefly due to the payment of ‘golden handcuffs’ packages to top executives and settlements related to a price-fixing inquiry.” (Wall Street Journal,
GOLDEN PARACHUTE. Special retirement benefits for executives.
“Tom Glocer, the first American to run London-based Reuters, drew angry press attention for extracting a promise of a golden parachute of more than $3.5 million if he was fired." (Wall Street Journal,
GOLDEN SHARES. Special shares of stock, often retained by European governments in companies that were privatized. The special shares give the government power to overrule corporate board of directors decisions.
“EU governments put golden-share arrangements in place in the 1980s, when then began privatizing strategic state-owned companies.” (Wall Street Journal,
GOLD MINE. A very profitable opportunity.
“At one point UC's Mr. [David Russ] even faced the danger that he would lose some of the [Google] gold mine. The university has investments in two funds that own Google stakes.” (Wall Street Journal,
GO NAKED (TO). Stock market action of selling a call option without owning the stock.
GOOD-FAITH LOAN. Credit provided to a borrower based on their character and past payment history, without collateral. Also called a signature loan.
GOOD-FAITH MONEY. A deposit made as a commitment to a transaction. Also called earnest money.
GOOD-OLD-BOY CLUB SYSTEM/NETWORK. See OLD-BOY CLUB/ NETWORK.
GOOD SCRUB. To review a business plan.
GOOD-TILL-CANCELED ORDER (GTC). Stock market buy or sell order with no time restriction. Most stock orders are either day-orders or GTC.
GOODWILL. The amount by which the purchase price for a business exceeds the value of its real assets.
“Givaudan SA, a producer of flavors and fragrances, reported a steep rise in first-half net profit, mainly due to a change in its accounting rules that freed it from goodwill charges. Givaudan, of
GO POSTAL (TO). To become extremely violent.
GO PUBLIC (TO). Sell shares of stock in a company that was previously privately owned.
“The average IPO is down 1.2% from its offering price this year, compared with a 26% average gain in 2003. Seventy-six, or 51%, of the 148 companies to go public this year now trade below their offering prices, according to Thomson Financial.” (Wall Street Journal,
GO THROUGH THE RANKS (TO). Start at the bottom of an organization and be promoted upward.
GO THROUGH THE ROOF. To become extremely upset.
GO TO BAT FOR (TO). Support (baseball).
“Two Ex-Attorneys General To Go to Bat for Microsoft” (Wall Street Journal, Jan. 31, 2000, p. 1)
GO TO THE MAT. To argue forcefully in favor of a project or idea.
GO TO THE WALL (TO). To do everything possible to make something successful.
GOVERNMENT NATIONAL MORTGAGE ASSOCIATION “GINNIE MAE.” (GNMA). Government corporation which guarantees payment on mortgage-backed securities.
GRAB YOUR WALLET. Be careful with your money.
GRACE PERIOD. Period of time until a bill becomes due.
“Some consolidators will require a certain loan amount in consolidation for you to benefit. Others won't give you the discounts if you consolidate during your grace period, which is often the best time to do it, said Mr. Thibeault.” (Wall Street Journal,
GRAIN OF SALT (WITH A). Less than certitude.
“‘The first thing I'd say is to take each posting with a grain of salt,’ says Bobbi Moss, a vice president at Management Recruiters International, a
GRANDFATHER CLAUSE. A provision in a law exempting existing individuals or businesses from the requirements of a new law.
“But if the changes are approved, a few dozen other states are expected to follow suit. And when rules governing Medicaid planning change, there's no grandfather clause. That means that even if you gave away your assets years ago, you still would have to follow the rules in effect when you apply for the program.” (Wall Street Journal,
GRAPEVINE. Informal office communication network; gossip.
“Don't count on it, Mr. [NEWT GINGRICH] warns. In fact, he predicts, the details of the Medicare overhaul will flash through the senior-center grapevine as fast as gossip on the teenage instant-message circuit.” (Wall Street Journal,
GRASS STAIN. Slight damage or signs of strenuous effort. In baseball, the players who have played usually have dirty uniforms, including grass stains, while those who sat on the bench have clean uniforms.
“Because we PLAYED BALL, we came through with a few grass stains but no serious injuries.” (Wall Street Journal, June 17, 1996, p. A14)
GRAVE INSULT. Serious affront.
GRAVEYARD SHIFT. Work shift that starts around
GRAY MARKET. Legal but unauthorized (by the producer) distribution channel. Many
GREASE (TO). Make happen by the payment of a bribe.
GREASY SPOON. A small, cheap restaurant.
“Today’s diners must overcome an image, often incorrect, of a greasy spoon.” (Nation’s Restaurant News, Jan. 16, 1995, p. 7)
GREAT DEAL OF. Lots of.
GREATER FOOL THEORY. The idea that there is always someone willing to pay a higher price.
“‘As borrowing costs went down, people were willing to pay more for buildings,’ said Lloyd Lynford, Reis's chief executive. ‘Buyers are beginning to look at the performance of a building and say, My goodness. Maybe I shouldn't subscribe to the greater-fool theory that somebody will buy it at an ever-greater cost.'" (Wall Street Journal,
GREAT SOCIETY PROGRAMS. Social programs initiated during the Lyndon Johnson administration, 1964–1968.
“I think the underlying problem goes back to a great mistake that
GREENBACK. The American dollar.
GREEN CARD. Immigration permit allowing a person to work in the
“The
GREEN LIGHT. Signal to proceed.
“The SEC said the executives concluded a deal was pending when they were given the go-ahead to publicize within 48 hours a previously secret contract with Dean Foods. Armed with a green light from Dean Foods, the dairy executives bought stock and options in Dean Foods.” (Wall Street Journal,
GREENMAIL. Payment made to a CORPORATE RAIDER to stop buying up shares of the company. A company buys back shares of its stock for more than the original market price before the corporate raider bought up shares.
GREEN REVOLUTION. The hoped-for increase in output from the use of Western technology in agricultural production in the developing world.
“Environmentalist [Paul Ehrlich] has proved himself to be a stupendously bad prophet. In 1968 he declared: ‘The battle to feed all of humanity is over. In the 1970s, the world will undergo famines -- hundreds of millions of people are going to starve to death.’ They didn't. Indeed, a ‘green revolution’ nearly tripled the world's food supply.” (Wall Street Journal,
GREENPEACE. International organization which fights for environmental issues using visible symbolic efforts, including protests at nuclear test sites and intervention in the whaling industry.
GREEN SHOE. When an underwriter of an INITIAL PUBLIC OFFERING has the option to sell extra shares.
“The sale would increase in size to 5.7 billion euros if investors exercised the green-shoe overallotment option, and it would eventually cut the state's stake in Finmeccanica to about a third of all shares from the current 83%.” (Wall Street Journal,
GRIND TO A HALT/SCREECHING HALT (TO). Stop suddenly. GROSS. Total sales or revenue; twelve dozen.
GROSS. Total sales; a total before deductions; twelve dozen or one hundred and forty-four units.
GROSS IMPRESSIONS. The total number of exposures to a marketer’s message. One person seeing an advertisement four times counts as four exposures.
GROSS RATING POINTS. Total gross impressions, expressed as a percentage of the population.
GROSS REACH. Total potential viewers of an advertisement.
GROUND RULES. The basic rules or procedures to be used or followed.
GROUNDWORK. Foundation; preliminary research, or contacts made in establishing business relationships.
“The prospect of a formal troop commitment by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization appears far out of reach. The question is whether Mr. [Bush] can use his five-day tour of Europe, including a NATO summit in
GROUND ZERO. The center of activity.
GROUP OF SEVEN (G-7). The seven largest industrial countries, including
GS RATING. General Services Administration rating. Federal Civil Service job rating system.
GUARANTEED INVESTMENT CONTRACT (GIC). Retirement investment product offered by insurance companies.
“Overall, people in their 60s have only about 40% of their 401(k) portfolios invested in equities, and as they get closer to retirement, they tend to start going into much more conservative investments. In fact, guaranteed investment contracts and guaranteed-rate-of-return allocations are now up to nearly 20% of the asset allocations for that age group.” (Wall Street Journal,
GUESTIMATE. An informed guess regarding a fact or figure.