Everyday Office Jargon · Associate level

"Reinvent the wheel"

"Reinvent the wheel" means to build or design something from scratch when a working solution already exists, wasting time on a problem that has already been solved.

Say this instead: redo what exists

How "Reinvent the wheel" shows up at work

Usually appears as a warning shot in planning meetings, aimed at the engineer or PM who wants to build custom when an off-the-shelf option exists. Occasionally used to shut down a genuinely better idea.

Buzzword

We don't need to reinvent the wheel here; other teams have already solved this.

Plain English

We don't need to redo what exists; other teams have already solved this.

Corporate Rank: Associate · Category: Everyday Office Jargon

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