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FYI - The most important abbreviations in everyday work

Some time ago, in the first part of the blog post about the most important abbreviations in everyday working life, you got to know a first selection of abbreviations common in business transactions and their meanings. The ominous message at the beginning of the first blog post seems a lot more understandable after reading it. However, so that the last ambiguities in this regard are cleared up, you will find a second list of important abbreviations in this blog post, which will certainly make communication easier for you in everyday working life in the future.

MFG

Let's start with something simple. The abbreviation "MFG" is often found at the end of business correspondence and in this context stands for the greeting "best regards". Despite its familiarity, this abbreviation is now rather outdated; Communications experts are increasingly recommending the shorter "Best regards" these days. However, you should never abbreviate this in the same style and end your e-mails with "FG" in the future! In Internet language, "FG" often stands for "fat grin", which could pass as a greeting with a little imagination, but is definitely never appropriate in a business conversation. So if "Friendly Regards" seems too long for you, it's better to use "MFG" in the future.

Ooo

Anyone who uses the abbreviation "Ooo" in a business message is not making a surprised exclamation. But even the halfway well-known meaning "Out of Order", which is often found on lifts or toilets that are currently not in operation, is not what is usually intended in this context. In fact, "Ooo" here for "Out of office" means that a person is currently not in the office and therefore not available for business matters. So if you get an automatic reply to an email saying that the person you are writing to is currently "Ooo", you can expect to have to wait a while for their reply.

PPP

What initially sounds like a stuck record is actually the abbreviation for the well-known and - more or less - popular "Power Point Presentation". The abbreviation is now so common that it is not only commonplace in written correspondence, but is also often only referred to as “PPPs” in oral conversations.

S.t.

Now let's move on to a slightly lesser-known abbreviation that will once again require your knowledge of Latin. "St" stands for "sine tempore", which means "without time" in German. This does not mean, however, that you should go to a meeting without having time for it, but that you should appear on time and thus "without delay". "St" is in contrast to the "ct" mentioned in the last blog post.

Tba

If you are given the information, for example with regard to an appointment, that something is "tba", then this simply means that no precise information on this is available yet. "Tba" comes from English and stands for "to be announced". The abbreviation "tba" often acts as a placeholder to indicate that the requested information has not been forgotten, but that nothing is known about it at the moment.

Equipped with this wealth of knowledge of common abbreviations in everyday business, you will certainly not put your foot in your mouth when it comes to decoding mysterious-sounding business messages. If you are currently still looking for a job where you can put your newly acquired knowledge to the test, then just click through the online search engine Jobagent ! Here you will find all current vacancies in Switzerland and, with a bit of luck, your very own dream job.