1. BUSINESS ACRONYMS and ABBREVIATIONS
Words formed by the first letters of the words in a phrase.
Acrynoms are the first letters of the words in a phrase pronounced as a word.
Examples:
- NATO for North Atlantic Treaty Organization
- UNESCO for the United Nations Educational, Scientific,
and Cultural Organization
- SIM (card) - Subscriber Identification Module
Here is a list of common acronyms and abbreviations used in business:
ACRONYM MEANING EXAMPLE
AGM Annual General
Meetiing
"Last year's activities and accounts will be
discussed at the AGM."
B2B Business to business
(sells things to other
businesses)
"Here's an interesting article
on B2B commerce."
B2C Business to
consumer
(sells things to the
general public)
"We are thinking of re-entering
the B2C market."
CEO Chief Executive
Officer
(most important job
in a company)
"Mr. Brown reports directly to the CEO."
CFO Chief Financial
Officer
(in charge of the
company's finances)
"The CFO is attending a meeting on cost
reduction."
CPA Certified public
accountant
(qualified accountant)
"A CPA deals with our income tax returns."
CTO Chief technology
officer
(in charge of
computer systems)
"The town's CTO declared that all schools
would have new computer systems next year."
COB/EOB Close of business /
End of business
"I need an estimate by tomorrow COB."
(or EOB)
COD Cash on delivery "You don't have to pay now - it's COD."
2. N/A Non-applicable "The information requested does not apply."
NDA Non-disclosure
agreement
(agree not to reveal
information)
"All those present will be asked to sign
an NDA."
OT Overtime
(working extra hours)
"No OT will be approved this month."
PR Public relations "The PR department is planning a press
conference."
ROI Return on
investment
"Investors always hope for a high ROI."
RSVP Repondez s'il vous
plait
"RSVP to Julie before the end of the month."
TBA To be announced "Details of the agreement are TBA."
TBD To be determined "An appropriate course of action is TBD."
VAT Value added tax "It costs 1500€, VAT included."
YTD Year to date "What are our YTD sales figures?"