In today’s world, especially in business and the IT industry, running into foreign terms is unavoidable. It can cause anxiety, especially if you are just starting out in a new field.

However, understanding these terms and being able to use them confidently significantly increases your professional value. Here are some examples of commonly used terms and tips on how to overcome the fear barrier.

Hiring, HR and interviews

  1. CV (Curriculum Vitae) - a detailed resume describing your professional background.
  2. CL (Cover Letter) - a cover letter that complements your CV and explains why you are a good fit for the vacancy.
  3. HR (Human Resources) - the department that handles recruitment, training and development of staff.
  4. Skills - a specialist’s abilities and competencies. Soft skills (“softs”) are related in one way or another to communication between colleagues, while hard skills (“hards”) are professional skills.
  5. Researcher - a researcher, a recruiter’s assistant who searches for information and candidates.
  6. Recruitment - the process of attracting, screening and hiring suitable candidates for open positions in an organization. A recruitment agency is an organization that specializes in finding staff for companies.
  7. Call - a phone or video conversation, Zoom, a conference call.
  8. Outsourcing - handing certain tasks or projects over to an external provider.
  9. Outstaffing - an employer transferring its employees to be managed by another company.
  10. Onboarding - the process of adapting and integrating new employees into a company.
  11. Networking - building and maintaining business contacts and relationships.
  12. Mentoring - the process of passing knowledge and experience from a more experienced specialist to a less experienced one.
  13. Leadership - a person’s ability to influence others and lead a team to achieve goals. Used about decision makers in a company, such as the director, top management or the board of directors.
  14. Job Offer - a letter from a company offering a job and describing the terms of employment.
  15. Feedback - response, reviews and suggestions.
  16. Offboarding - the process of formally and smoothly parting with an employee, including handing over duties and documentation and following all required procedures.
  17. Competency Assessment - the process of evaluating an employee’s skills, knowledge and personal qualities to determine how well they fit their position or their potential for career growth.
  18. 360-Degree Feedback - an employee evaluation method in which colleagues, subordinates, managers and sometimes clients assess the person’s work, giving the fullest possible picture of their professional performance.
  19. Sourcing - the process of finding and attracting potential candidates for vacancies.
  20. Work-Life Balance - the balance between work and personal life.
  21. Corporate Culture - the set of values, norms and behaviors accepted in a company.
  22. Benefits - additional perks provided to a company’s employees on top of salary (insurance, fitness, etc.).
  23. Bonus - an additional payment to employees for completing certain tasks or reaching goals.
  24. Part-time, Flextime, Full-time - a flexible, part-time or full-time work schedule.
  25. Coaching - the process of professional support and development of employees to increase their effectiveness.
  26. References - recommendations or testimonials from a candidate’s previous employers or colleagues.

Business slang

  1. Meeting - a gathering to discuss work issues.
  2. Overtime - work beyond regular hours.
  3. Support - support, maintenance of existing projects and systems.
  4. Profit - earnings, income, or the benefit gained from using a certain product or service.
  5. Release - putting a product on the market, completing a stage of development.
  6. Deadline - the final date by which a task or project must be completed.
  7. Conversion - the process of turning a website visitor into a customer.
  8. Content - the informational material on a website or in an app.
  9. Lead - a potential customer or interested person.
  10. Lead Generation - the process of attracting potential customers and converting them into buyers.
  11. Targeting - aiming marketing or advertising campaigns at a specific audience.
  12. Marketplace - a platform for trading goods and services between sellers and buyers.
  13. Insight - a deep understanding of a problem or situation that can lead to new solutions.
  14. Merchandising - activities that promote products on the market and increase their sales.

IT

  1. Feature - a distinctive characteristic or additional function of a product or service.
  2. Backend - the server side of an application, responsible for processing data.
  3. Frontend - the client side of an application that the user interacts with.
  4. Bug - an error in software.
  5. Demo - a demonstration version of a product.
  6. Commit - saving changes in a repository.
  7. Build - the assembly of a project, the result of compiling source code.
  8. Repository - storage for a project’s code and files.
  9. Sprint - a short development period within an agile methodology.
  10. Iteration - repeating a stage of the development process to improve the product.
  11. Code Review - the process of colleagues checking code to find errors and improve its quality.
  12. Deploy - the process of placing a finished product on a server or in the cloud.
  13. Framework - a structure that provides a ready-made architecture for building applications.
  14. Integration - the process of combining different systems or components into one whole.
  15. Module - a separate, self-contained part of software.
  16. Pipeline - a sequence of stages for processing data or commands.
  17. Refactoring - the process of changing a program’s internal structure to improve its readability and reduce complexity, without changing its external behavior.
  18. Scrum - a project management methodology based on an iterative approach and flexibility.
  19. Timeline - a schedule or plan showing the sequence of events or project stages.
  20. User Story - a short description of one of a program’s features from the user’s point of view.
  21. Widget - an interactive element of a user interface.
  22. Dashboard - a control panel displaying key indicators and metrics.
  23. DevOps - a software development culture aimed at collaboration between developers and IT operations teams.
  24. Ping - checking whether a device is reachable on a network by sending network requests.
  25. Big Data - processing and analyzing large volumes of complex data.
  26. Machine Learning - a field of artificial intelligence based on training computers on data.
  27. Backlog - a list of all the tasks that need to be done in a project.
  28. Git - a version control system for tracking changes in files and coordinating work among programmers.
  29. Deprecation - the process of marking software components as obsolete.
  30. Kanban - a methodology for managing work processes by visualizing the workflow.
  31. Commitment - an obligation or duty taken on by an individual or a team.
  32. Support - support or maintenance.

How to stop fearing foreign terms?

1. Don’t be afraid to ask

If you don’t know what a term means, don’t hesitate to ask. It’s better to clarify on the spot than to misinterpret important information. Asking and finding out is a sign of a desire to learn and grow professionally.

2. Use dictionaries and learn English

Use professional dictionaries, online platforms and forums to deepen your knowledge, for example multitran.com or www.urbandictionary.com. Knowing English will also make it easier to communicate with colleagues.

3. Practice using the terms

The more often you use new terms in speech and writing, the faster they become part of your active vocabulary. Try writing articles, preparing reports or simply chatting with colleagues using professional vocabulary.

4. Join professional communities

Taking part in professional communities and social media groups will keep you up to date with the latest trends and updates in your industry, and will also help you better understand slang and specialized vocabulary.

PS:

We have presented an extensive list of terms related to hiring, HR management and interviewing. Still, language is constantly evolving, and new terms appear almost every day.

If you notice that we have missed any important concepts, or you have interesting suggestions, please share them in the comments.

Also, if you have questions about a particular term, or would like a deeper understanding of a concept, don’t hesitate to ask.