Learning the lingo & TLAs

(or 'Three Letter Acronyms' for the uninitiated)

Each time I've moved organisation I've had to learn a whole glossary of new abbreviations and try to dismiss any previous associations. Despite being given the thickest induction file I've seen in my life I've not yet started to indoctrinate myself into the new company's lingo.

I had enough issues with my current employer where the amount of militarism's was staggering. I did my best to adopt them and received responses like this:

"Point of form Ma’am. 'Ack' is the single most abused military abbreviation to pass from correct military usage into mangled civilian form. ACK is an instruction found at the bottom of a signal demanding the recipient acknowledge receipt of the same. This is not to be confused with ack-ack, an abbreviation for Anti-Aircraft fire which in turn is artillery designed to shoot upwards at aircraft. ACK is also contextual. When used by DoS it means Assistant cook.

I understand that Ack can be used as slang for acknowledgement of receipt but this is the thin end of the wedge. If we allow this sort of behaviour to pass unchecked the next thing you know we will be constructing Sangers with sandbags with the seams facing outwards. Seen it done. Completely unacceptable. Whole unit went to pot. "

Equally, when I tried to instruct them in the common vernacular/parlance....
"CBA? I can't work out what Combat Body Armour (CBA) has to do with anything."

That's 'cos it's 'Can't be arsed' (for those without teenagers)...