- to take offline – n., to discuss something later; to set aside a topic of conversation in a until a later time, when a more appropriate group of people can address the topic..
Today’s corporate jargon is one of my favorites. When used correctly, it can help keep a business meeting on track, and it can help make sure issues get discussed in appropriate settings by appropriate decisionmakers. For a usage example, imagine this conversation taking place in a large staff meeting:
BOSS: “As you know, we’re going to be releasing the company’s new product line on January 10.”
EMPLOYEE: “Boss, I’ve already scheduled vacation that week because my pet parrot is having beak replacement surgery. Should I change my plans?”
BOSS: “Thanks for letting me know about your vacation plans, but let’s take that issue offline.”
The Boss is using “to take offline” to mean that he or she wants to discuss this issue further, but in a different setting. The Boss is not indicating that the subject is off-limits — there’s plenty of other good coroprate jargon for that. Instead, the point is to pospone the discussion to a different setting. The staff meeting is the wrong forum.
Sometimes, the issue could validly be discussed in the forum, but in the interest of covering a broad area of discussion, this piece of corporate jargon can be used to set aside the discussion to a smaller, more targeted group of people. For example:
BOSS: “Welcome to the meeting of Acme Enterprises Employee Parking Lot Planning and Construction Committee. Today we’re going to discuss construction of the new parking lot on the East side of the building. Let’s start by talking about what color paint we’re going to use in painting the lines in the parking lot.”
EMPLOYEE: “I think we might need more handicapped parking spots in this new parking lot.”
BOSS: “Good point. Why don’t you and the other members of the Handicapped Spot Subcommittee take that issue offline and get back to the larger Committee.”
The point here is that the subject is relevant to the larger group, but it would be more efficient to dsicuss the issue in a smaller sub-group.
A final note on the meaning of “to take offline”:
Like so many things in life, corporate jargon can be both infuriating and seductive. Today’s example of corporate jargon has both of these qualities. On the one hand, it is useful and well-understood. On the other hand, it’s infuriating because the literal meaning of the phrase is often the exact opposite of the intended meaning. Here’s why:
Take a look at the literal meaning. The phrase stems from the computer term “off-line,” which, according to Merriam-Webster means “not connected to or served by a system and especially a computer or telecommunications system; also : done independently of such a system.” In other words, the literal meaning of taking a conversation “offline” is that you want to take a conversation that is being discussed via some computer or telecommunication system (online) and take it offline, moving it to a live, in-person conversation with real human interaction (“offline”). In reality, though, the opposite is more frequently the case. You’re in a meeting with twenty live, human beings in the room, and when someone says they want to take an issue “offline,” they usually mean “I’ll call you about this later.”