In corporate meetings and project planning, this means to connect a new idea or schedule directly onto an existing one. It borrows the concept from woodworking, where interlocking joints create a strong connection without fasteners. Office workers use it to validate a colleague's point before introducing their own agenda, often to make a pivot feel cooperative rather than disruptive.
Heard on the job
I want to dovetail on what Sarah just said about the budget and look at our Q3 projections.
Insider tip
Using this term frequently in meetings can make a speaker sound overly rehearsed or reliant on corporate buzzwords.
Also heard as
- piggyback