4 ms·

Never heard of a right-sizing before. The linguistic hurdles of execs will never cease to amaze me!

fridif 5y ago
To be fair, while I'm no "corporate simp", it is entirely possible that a company has hired too many people and needs to fire them to return to the "right size" for profitability to be sustained.
- hobs 5y ago
  We needed to reduce headcount to maintain profitability. You can keep some marketing speak without being absolutely full of it.
  - elliekelly 5y ago
    > We needed to reduce headcount to maintain profitability. Is Lambda School profitable? They’re still pretty new. And in an entrenched/moderately regulated space. I’d be surprised.
    - hobs 5y ago
      Then say margins, runway, etc - just say what's happening.
- mattm 5y ago
  How do they know this new size is the "right size"?
granzymes 5y ago
It's definitely not a new euphemism. Here's a HN comment from 2008 discussing it: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=403637 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=403637
- acheron 5y ago
  The Dilbert Principle book from 1998 or whatever has a joke about it.
jampekka 5y ago
What amazes me even more is how this doublespeak has any effect at all anymore. Are there still people who don't see through this? Or are the execs in such a bubble they believe it themselves?
- granzymes 5y ago
  I wonder to what extent it has simply become a term of art. In biology, a specimen that is killed in the course of an experiment is described as "sacrificed" and has been for over a hundred years. We expect certain words in a layoff press release, and so the writers of those press releases use those words.
  - nr2x 5y ago
    It's like saying 'the n word' which makes somebody say the real, far more unpleasant, word in their own head.
rwc 5y ago
This is extraordinarily common language to use in this scenario. Dates back to 1989 according to MW: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rightsize https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rightsize
a_lieb 5y ago
"Rightsizing" is a weird one, because it's occasionally used for benign stuff like reducing the rate of hiring. Much like "enhanced interrogation techniques," the broader meaning provides shelter for what it's really used for most of the time.
manigandham 5y ago
It's a common business term, specifically referring to an optimal size rather than just downsizing to reduce cost and overhead.
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
mathattack 5y ago
It’s up there with Synergies and Optimizing.

To be fair, while I'm no "corporate simp", it is entirely possible that a company has hired too many people and needs to fire them to return to the "right size" for profitability to be sustained.

hobs 5y ago
We needed to reduce headcount to maintain profitability. You can keep some marketing speak without being absolutely full of it.
- elliekelly 5y ago
  > We needed to reduce headcount to maintain profitability. Is Lambda School profitable? They’re still pretty new. And in an entrenched/moderately regulated space. I’d be surprised.
  - hobs 5y ago
    Then say margins, runway, etc - just say what's happening.
mattm 5y ago
How do they know this new size is the "right size"?

granzymes 5y ago

It's definitely not a new euphemism. Here's a HN comment from 2008 discussing it: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=403637 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=403637

acheron 5y ago
The Dilbert Principle book from 1998 or whatever has a joke about it.

jampekka 5y ago

What amazes me even more is how this doublespeak has any effect at all anymore. Are there still people who don't see through this? Or are the execs in such a bubble they believe it themselves?

granzymes 5y ago
I wonder to what extent it has simply become a term of art. In biology, a specimen that is killed in the course of an experiment is described as "sacrificed" and has been for over a hundred years. We expect certain words in a layoff press release, and so the writers of those press releases use those words.
- nr2x 5y ago
  It's like saying 'the n word' which makes somebody say the real, far more unpleasant, word in their own head.

rwc 5y ago

This is extraordinarily common language to use in this scenario. Dates back to 1989 according to MW: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rightsize https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rightsize

a_lieb 5y ago

"Rightsizing" is a weird one, because it's occasionally used for benign stuff like reducing the rate of hiring. Much like "enhanced interrogation techniques," the broader meaning provides shelter for what it's really used for most of the time.

manigandham 5y ago

It's a common business term, specifically referring to an optimal size rather than just downsizing to reduce cost and overhead.

deleted 5y ago

[deleted]

mathattack 5y ago

It’s up there with Synergies and Optimizing.