55
B
B2B Business-to-business.
B.A. Bachelor of Arts.
BAA-UC Birth and Adoption
Unemployment Compensation.
BAC Blood alcohol concentration.
BARS Behaviorally anchored rating scale.
BAT Breath alcohol technician.
B.B.A. Bachelor of Business Administration.
BBB Better Business Bureau.
BBIC Behavior-based incentive compensation.
BBS Bulletin board system.
BCBP Bureau of Customs and Border Protection.
BCIS Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services.
BCNU Be seeing you (Internet abbreviation).
B.D. Bachelor of Divinity.
B.E. 1. Bachelor of Education.
2. Bachelor of Engineering.
BEA Bureau of Economic Analysis.
B-ECM Business electronic countermeasures.
B.E.E. Bachelor of Electrical Engineering.
BEI Behavioral event interview.
BEO Banquet event order.
BFOQ Bona fide occupational qualification.
BG Brigadier General O7 (Army military abbreviation).
BHI Better Hearing Institute.
baby busters 56 balance billing
the optimistic soul-searchers who are con- cerned with self more than with money.
baby busters The“twenty-something” gen- eration of young adults born between 1961 and 1972, the period when the U.S. birth rate fell to one half the rate of the post-World War II peak, resulting in a labor shortage in the 1990s. Also known as baby busts.
Baby UI SeeBirth and Adoption Unemploy- ment Compensation.
backbone The main trunk of a wide area net- work. Smaller local area networks feed into the backbone.
back-dating In travel management, putting a false validation date on a discount ticket that requires advance purchase.
backdoor rationing A term used by critics to describe a federal rule that would add cost effectiveness to factors considered by the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) when deciding whether Medicare will pay for new medical procedures, devices, and drugs. Appropriateness, safety, and effec- tiveness are the current criteria.
background check The process of screening job applicants nationwide (and, to a growing extent, internationally) for criminal records, outstanding wants and warrants, misrepresen- tation of employment or academic credentials, and credit reports. May be performed by com- panies in-house or outsourced to background screening companies.
background investigation (BI) The processes of verifying the accuracy of information pro- vided on application forms and in interviews by job applicants. Background investigations vary in thoroughness from simple reference checks to verify an applicant’s current posi- tion and salary to contact with the applicant’s present supervisor by phone or in person. In the case of extremely sensitive positions (such as those involving security clearances), com- plete checks of FBI files, the applicant’s hometown police records, and credit records and interviews with current and former employers, friends, and acquaintances may be performed by the Federal Investigative Ser- vice.
back office system In travel management, computer software that is used by a travel agency for accounting purposes.
back-to-back ticketing A faring practice in which two discounted round-trip tickets are booked and the flight coupons are mixed to achieve savings. Considered by some a smart saving strategy and by others illegal.
back up The practice of making a copy of computer or word processor data or docu- ments (usually on external magnetic disks or tapes or on optical disks for off-site storage) to protect them in case the original data are lost or damaged.
bacterial meningitis Severe infection, with one of several bacteria, of the membranes that cover the brain and spinal cord. Symptoms include rapid onset of fever, headache, leth- argy, irritability, stiff neck, vomiting, and loss of consciousness over several hours. Poten- tially life-threatening and with potentially serious long-term effects including brain dam- age.See also meningitis and viral meningitis.
bad boy clauses Punitive contract clauses in executive compensation agreements designed to protect the employer from such practices as recruiting key employees following or at the time of the executive’s termination. Such clauses include noncompete agreements, denial of special pension arrangements for recruiting employees, and delaying a portion of bonus award plans until the executive retires.
bad trip Frightening or panic-inducing crises precipitated in some persons by taking a hal- lucinogen or a narcotic.
bait and switch An illegal sales and pricing strategy — advertising a product at a low price and then only offering higher-priced goods to the customer.
balance and reflex performance check A nonmedical drug test sometimes used as a substitute for urine tests to determine on-the- job impairment.
balance billing The practice of submitting a bill to the patient for the difference between the original charge for health care services and the amount allowed and paid by Medicare.
Part B, Medicare, pays 80% of the “allowed”
amount. The remainder is paid by supplemen- tal (medigap) insurance, Medicaid, or the patient. Practitioners can bill patients for the 20% if they have no supplemental insurance.
However, it is illegal in some states for
Balanced Budget Act of 1997 57 balloon payment
practitioners to bill for anything more even if the costs of providing the treatment or service are higher than the amount allowed and received.
Balanced Budget Act of 1997 Education:
Allowed a tax credit of up to $1500 for the first two years of college or vocational school (Hope Scholarships on tuitions paid begin- ning January 1, 1998) and up to $1000 a year, rising to $2000 in 2002 (for those who owe federal income tax). Credits begin to phase out when adjusted gross income on a joint return exceeds $80,000 ($40,000 on a single return) and drops to zero credit when family income tops $100,000 and individual income exceeds $50,000. The bill also allowed a tax credit of up to $1000 per year for the third and fourth years of college and for graduate study beginning in July 1998. The maximum credit rose to $2000 after 2002. Employers can provide a worker up to $5250 per year tax-free (beginning December 31, 1996) for undergraduate education; graduate students must pay taxes on the value of tuition paid by the employers. Education IRAs could be opened beginning January 1, 1998, for chil- dren under age 18; families can contribute up to $500 per year per child and pay no taxes on interest as long as the money is spent on education. The full tax break is limited to joint filers with income below $150,000 and single parents with income below $90,000. Interest on student loans is deductible during the first five years of repayment; maximum deduction was $1000 in 1998 and rose by $500 each year to a maximum of $2,500 in 2001. Mili- tary health care: Authorized the Department of Defense (DoD) to test Medicare subven- tion for three years at six sites around the country, starting in January 1998. Medical Savings Accounts: The bill allowed 300,000 Medicare recipients to establish medical sav- ings accounts as a trial of that solution. Medi- care: Saved Medicare for ten years and slowed its growth over five years. Expanded plan options for eligible seniors. Established a demonstration project of 390,000 medical savings accounts. The Medicare Part B pre- mium was permanently set to cover 25% of the cost of the program.
balance sheet A financial document that pre- sents a tabular statement or summary of the status of a company in terms of its assets, liabilities, and equity. It compares the status of the assets and liabilities of the company at a given point in time, usually at the end of an accounting period, such as a fiscal year. It also provides the most accurate picture of a com- pany’s financial status.
balance sheet insurance An insurance policy purchased (usually by large companies) to protect a corporation’s overseas balance sheet, specifically customer and client payments.
Baldrige Award See Baldrige National Qual- ity Program.
B a l d r i g e N a t i o n a l Q u a l i t y P ro g r a m Designed to improve national competitive- ness, promote quality achievements of U.S.
companies, and publicize successful quality strategies. Awards are made annually to rec- ognize U.S. companies for performance excellence and quality achievement and are given only to organizations that apply for it in writing, are willing to undergo a rigorous on- site evaluation of their operations and share confidential information with examiners and judges, and agree to reveal their quality secrets with other organizations if they win the award.
Awards are made in the following eligibility categories: manufacturing businesses, service businesses, education organizations, and health care organizations. Contact: Baldrige National Quality Program, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Technology Administration, U.S. Department of Com- merce, Administration Bldg., Room A600, 100 Bureau Drive, Stop 1020, Gaithersburg, MD 2089-1020 (phone 301-975-2036; fax 301-948-3716, e-mail [email protected]; Web site www.quality.nist.gov/).
Balkanized group or society A group of people that has been segregated or divided by race, culture, religion, sexual orientation, or some other attribute.
balloon angioplasty A medical diagnostic procedure in which a deflated balloon is inserted into an artery and inflated to com- press fatty deposits to eliminate blockages and prevent a heart attack.
balloon payment A large extra payment that may be charged at the end of a loan or lease.
banding 58 baseline performance
banding Seebroadbanding.
bandwidth The range of frequencies within a band. Determines the amount of data that a medium, such as video, can transmit in a given period of time. It is usually measured in bits per second orkilobits. Bandwidth is deter- mined by the types of cable used (copper, coaxial, or fiber optic) and the speed of the switching mechanism that routes the data.
Bandwidth is the main obstacle to the wide- spread use of interactive multimedia commu- nications, due to the large file sizes needed for graphics, audio, and video media.
bank investment contract (BIC) Issued by banks instead of insurance companies, they are similar to guaranteed investment contacts.
bankruptcy The legally affirmed situation or condition of being unable to meet one’s finan- cial obligations.
banner A type of advertisement used on the Internet, mainly, but not exclusively, by busi- ness-to-business marketers, such as Web page design and domain registration, business tech- nology, business portals, advertising agencies, and services and data communication. The ads occupy only a small horizontal space on a Web site. Effective banner ads use a simple clean layout that is attractive, may employ very sim- ple animation, and may use the familiar 3-D button to get the viewer to interact or respond.
See also skyscraper ad.
banquet event order (BEO) I n m e e t i n g planning in the U.S., detailed instructions for a particular event. Typically generated by the catering director and circulated to the kitchen, stewarding, banqueting, housekeeping, secu- rity, maintenance, audiovisual, and in-house florists. Internationally, it is a summary of all the particulars relating to a meeting need. Also known as a function sheet, event order, or résumé sheet.
banquet manager The hotel functionary who handles meal functions on the day of a meet- ing event. Responsible for organizing the room setup and supervising the wait staff.
bar code technology A means of automating a great variety of tasks in almost all industries, such as checkout stations in supermarkets, inventory control in factories and warehouses, vehicle registration, scanning printed forms in
survey organizations, and automating scoring in schools. Bar codes are self-contained mes- sages composed of bars and spaces printed in a specific pattern on an item of equipment, container, package, envelope, or form. The codes are binary: the black bars and white spaces represent ones and zeros. Uses an opti- cal mark reader or optical scanner and associated software to provide data input to a computer.
bare bones policy Seeno frills health plan.
bargaining See collective bargaining; negoti- ation; unions.
bar manager The hotel contact with whom meeting planners work out the details of of reception and hospitality suite arrangements, including bar setups, bartenders, liquor brands, and the types and sizes of drinks.
More important, the bar manager is the indi- vidual responsible for enforcing responsible serving practices that, if violated, could be grounds for legal suits. May also be called hospitality manager, beverage manager.
barriers As defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, architectural and communication barriers that are structural in nature in existing facilities, where such removal is readily achievable. The Act requires the removal of physical barriers caused by the location of temporary or mov- able structures, such as furniture, equipment, and display racks.
barrister In the United Kingdom, a law pro- vider, one who has the right to plead at the bar in superior courts of law. Equivalent of a licensed lawyer in the U.S.
Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Program of 2000 A scholar- ship program to foster and encourage excel- lence in science and mathematics established by Congress on January 23, 2000, as a tribute to the leadership, courage, and vision of Sen- ator Barry Goldwater.
base camp One model of a teaching, learning, and technology center. A place where faculty and academic support professionals form teams, plan, and train each other.
baseline performance An organization’s ac- tual and current performance level as deter- mined by objective measurement, not subjec- tive judgment.
base pay 59 bean-counter
base pay Seebase rate.
base rate The hourly rate or salary paid for a job performed. It does not include payments for overtime, incentives, or other differentials.
Basic Instructor Training Course (BITC) Training provided by the military services to convert officers, technicians, and other mili- tary personnel and civilian employees into instructors. Typically a two- to four-week course.
basic medical coverage Insurance coverage provided by an organization to its employees whether employer-funded or partially paid by the employees. It typically covers visits to physicians and outpatient clinics for treatment of illnesses and injuries and hospitalization.
basic rate interface (BRI) Basic rate inter- face for Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) lines, consisting of two 64-kpbs lines and a 16-kpbs data channel.
basic research Research directed at the dis- covery of new scientific knowledge that has no direct application to the current goals and objectives of the organization, although such research may be aimed at areas in which the company has a commercial interest.
basic seven Mathematical, statistical, and graphic tools used to study a problem, display its elements, and communicate the results of its analysis. The tools are cause-and-effect diagram, check sheet, control chart, histo- gram, Pareto chart, run chart, andscatter- gram.Attributed to Kaoru Ishikawa, one of the leaders of Japan’s quality movement.
Basic Skills Education Program (BSEP) A U.S. Army program designed to provide reme- dial training in the basic skills of reading and arithmetic for newly enlisted personnel with skills deficiencies.
basic skills training Traditionally seen as encompassing only reading, writing, and com- putation. Now defined as training provided to upgrade workers’ skills, equip them to deal with changes in technology and work pro- cesses, and overcome educational deficits.
basic training Initial or entry-level training provided by the U.S. Army and Air Force to introduce those enlisted to military life and to develop physical stamina and basic military skills.
basis point A means of measuring the dollar amount of investments that are smaller than 1%; that is, one percentage point equals 100 basis points.
batch To batch-process computer data accord- ing to a fixed frequency of preparation; trans- actions are collected and held until processing time, often overnight, instead of being pro- cessed immediately or on-line, to reduce costs.
batch processing Computerized monthly record keeping for employee savings plans that involves two functions: (1) editing partic- ipant data to reflect terminations, new hires, and so on and (2) updating all participant accounts to reflect investment fund earnings and recent employee and company contribu- tions. This type of processing results in delays of four or more weeks in responding to par- ticipants’ requests for information.
batch program A series of commands initi- ated by a single user command that is carried out sequentially without the need for further commands.
battery 1. In law, hitting, beating, or negli-