Etym.From French pivoter, 'to turn', popularized in early 2010s corporate literature as a neutral-sounding term for course correction, cited in Stanford Pitch Notes 2012.

A rhetorical maneuver that reframes a failed initiative as an intentional course correction to delay accountability and retain funding.

'We need to pivot toward higher-margin customers,' read the roadmap - Q3 Board Deck, slide 12

Etym.from Old French aligner, later anglicized as align and repurposed in Silicon Valley circa 2014 by a strategy consultant who needed a softer synonym for compliance, see R. Hargrove, 'Terms for Transformation,' 2016.

A rhetorical maneuver that professes shared priorities to postpone substantive decisions and shift accountability into future milestones.

'Can everyone confirm shared priorities by EOD' - Proceedings of the 2019 All-Hands Meeting

Etym.from Old English stac, 'pile,' later repurposed by marketing teams to imply intentional design rather than accumulated debt, see Morris, Corporate Lexicon 2012.

A marketed bundle of software, services, and vendor relationships presented as a cohesive solution that primarily obscures integration work and diffuses accountability.

'We should consolidate onto a single stack to reduce vendor friction' - Q2 Product Strategy, slide 12

Etym.from mid-20th-century aviation jargon, repurposed in early 21st-century venture discourse to quantify company survival in investor communications, see Sommers, Venture Language, 2011.

A single-number projection, expressed in months of funded operation, that reduces cash on hand and burn rate to a negotiable timeframe used to justify spending, hiring, or fundraising.

'We need to extend runway by 12 months to hit the growth inflection' - Q2 Board Deck, slide 12