schism

Vocabulary Word

Definition

A 'schism' is like a devastating break-up, but instead of two people, it's a large group - maybe a team at work, a political party, or a church community. The split happens when there is such strong disagreement that the group can't stay together.

Examples in Different Contexts

In corporate environments, 'schisms' can emerge due to strategic disagreements. An executive might observe, 'The schism between our sales and marketing teams over the campaign direction needs immediate resolution.'

Practice Scenarios

Business

Scenario:

There's a growing divide within the board on future company strategy. It's causing friction and slowing down important decisions.

Response:

I'm worried that this could lead to a schism that would be detrimental to the company's growth.

Tech

Scenario:

The debate between using open-source or proprietary software is intensifying in the programming community. It's definitely making it harder to set universal programming standards.

Response:

I agree. We need to find a middle path soon, or this schism will be detrimental to our code standards initiative.