With every new industry that we tap into as creatives – whether that be entertainment, retail, property or something else – there comes a whole new world of jargon. Conversations become a minefield of DOPs, VFXs and ATLs mixed with BTLs, DOOH or whatever other acronyms dominate your field. Many people are left thinking … WTF.

Like code tailored to a specific computer program, jargon claims to be a method of streamlining communication – a verbal shorthand to make industry chat quicker, easier and more effective. This may ring true for some individuals. But for new hires or partners, it can feel less like a tool and more like a barrier.

Shared language can create community between those that know it, but this also leads to exclusivity. In place of clarity, we use jargon, acronyms, shorthand. It risks shutting people out rather than bringing them in. When many companies are scaling back on diversity initiatives, now is the moment to reflect on the way we operate – to assess the finer points of how we communicate and ensure that we are inclusive in the way that we work.

In my years working in commercial production, the mission of every shoot and every campaign has been the same: communicate the brand’s voice as clearly and engagingly as possible. If the work we do hinges on being approachable and open, shouldn’t our working style reflect that too?

I didn’t cut my teeth in a big agency and didn’t have a grounding in the media landscape. In my early years, every new acronym or unfamiliar word in a brief felt like a new hurdle

When I first entered advertising over a decade ago, workplace jargon was everywhere. It felt as though I had a whole new language to learn. This was especially the case because my route to production and adland was relatively unconventional – I didn’t go to film school, didn’t cut my teeth in a big agency and didn’t have a grounding in the ins-and-outs of the media landscape. In my early years, every new acronym or unfamiliar word in a brief felt like a new hurdle.

It’s not intentionally exclusive. These terms are handy, and once you’re in the bubble, they’re fun to use. But as specialised language and acronyms shot across the office like darts, it fed a monster that many young women are all too familiar with: imposter syndrome. It wasn’t the new software, hardware, or creative challenges holding me back, just the sense that I was – undeniably – out of the loop.

As my focus shifted from photography to film, this intensified. The terms that the crew threw around on large creative shoots completely differed from those used on smaller sets. Even the most minute phrases, such as ‘craft services’, left me utterly confused. The term doesn’t really conjure up images of mini cheddars and Haribo on a snack table – more coloured paper and PVA glue!

I’m not alone in these feelings. Half of Gen Z and millennial workers apparently feel left out at work due to corporate jargon like ‘blue-sky thinking’ and ‘low-hanging fruit’ and 60% say it feels like another language. In the words of career coach and TikToker Emily Durham, the younger generations “are not playing the corporate game”. If we want to attract, and keep, fresh talent and new ideas, we need to acknowledge the language gap.

If you have a good idea, why would you risk it being lost in translation? It’s always better to ensure people can follow your train of thought than to assume they’ll figure it out

While I do believe language is critical to building a more inclusive industry, I also want to make it clear that my point is not to wage war against acronyms. Jargon is, in many ways, unavoidable. Even if we did away with all industry shorthand tomorrow, new phrases would emerge.

Adolescence, Netflix’s new and spectacular four-part show makes it clear how all communities will inevitably create their own coded languages, showcasing how emojis have become a secret shorthand for a younger generation. Language is living, and it denotes community – for better or worse. And few things evolve and adapt quicker than the creative industry. But for newbies trying to make sense of their work, we do need to try harder.

The key is awareness. We can’t remove shorthand, but we can call it out and create a culture of explanation and education, rather than exclusion. And my advice to new hires is: feel empowered to speak up. Interrogate what a word means, why it’s used, maybe even if it’s necessary. My work life changed when I just started asking – push past the hesitation and ask for clarification.

It’s not just good for your understanding of your work, it’s honestly good for business. If you have a good idea, why would you risk it being lost in translation? Creatives, strategists, directors – they don’t just speak to their peers, they collaborate across the creative journey. It’s always better to ensure people can follow along your train of thought than to assume they’ll figure it out in silence.

Creativity is an act of translation – whether that’s a feeling, a story, or a fresh perspective on the world. Our job is to create a shared feeling with our work, a feeling that we can be proud of. Let’s just make sure we’re doing the same thing in our workplaces.

Penny Harrison is chief operations officer at Wonderhatch; wonderhatch.co.uk