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Nachtragskalkulation
Oct 22, 2018 10:03
5 yrs ago
German term

Dabei kamen zwei Entscheide fast einer Majestätsbeleidigung gleich

German to English Bus/Financial Idioms / Maxims / Sayings
This phrase appears on a website update as the company has been taken over by another company and is updating their website. I am trying to find a good English equivalent, that makes sense, thanks!
Proposed translations (English)
3 Of these, two decisions almost constituted high treason.
4 Along the way, two decisions came close to snubbing previous corporate strategy
3 Two of these decisions were tantamount to a (corporate) revolution
2 Thus two rulings/decisions almost declared a lese majesty.
Change log

Oct 22, 2018 11:40: Steffen Walter changed "Field" from "Marketing" to "Bus/Financial"

Discussion

Simon March (asker) Oct 29, 2018:
Thanks for all your suggestions Thanks for all your suggestions, in the end I decided to go for a combination in the text.
Steffen Walter Oct 23, 2018:
Yes, Yorkshireman ... ... aka the proverbial "sacred cows".
Yorkshireman Oct 23, 2018:
Björn .. things that seemed almost sacrosanct (sprich unantastbar), until now.

Seems to hit the nail on the head
AllegroTrans Oct 23, 2018:
All of this is speculation We simply do not know who said this and to whom and in what specific circumstances, nor do we know any of the underlying detail. Only the asker has the full document and context...
Steffen Walter Oct 23, 2018:
@ Björn I tend to agree with your interpretation re. this being a statement in a case study rather than a "rant". What do we actually know without further context, though?
Yorkshireman Oct 23, 2018:
Björn Perhaps:

Among them, were two that "we could almost say" [or if you will] were completely beyond the pale.
Björn Vrooman Oct 23, 2018:
@Yorkshireman I can't see this being an in-house rant. No sour grapes either. As people have already said, and as I've tried to explain below (i.e. "if you will"), it's some kind of not-so-ideal word choice in a case study.

Best
Yorkshireman Oct 23, 2018:
Steffen / Allegrotrans Indeed - is it an in-house rant against changing the status quo, a (purportedly) humorous gibe, sour grapes, or what? Who exactly is it directed at, and, above all, is it for public consumption?
Steffen Walter Oct 23, 2018:
@ AllegroTrans Right you are - there are still some pieces of context missing. Who has actually written this statement, and should it be interpreted as being more on the "aggressive/attack" side or as a more "sober" account of what had happened within the company to turn things upside-down?
Björn Vrooman Oct 22, 2018:
Maybe... ...not the best but possibly the shortest way of expressing this:
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/de/worterbuch/englisch/if-y...
Björn Vrooman Oct 22, 2018:
No, you're not. Also, except for "akin to," I see no suggestion reflecting the main verb, that is, gleichkommen.

That was precisely the asker's question:
"I can't see how the 'Majestätsbeleidigung' fits in to this at all since it's talking about two decisions."

In short, it doesn't fit in. It's not supposed to. It's like saying, "If we were talking about royalty, this would be..."

I believe you call that an analogy.

Best wishes
Lancashireman Oct 22, 2018:
sacrilege I would have posted this, but PS got there first:
In the process, two decisions were made that will have almost seemed like sacrilege.
I think you need to tone down the preceding verb element here to reflect the consciously droll delivery. Or am I the only one reading this into it?
AllegroTrans Oct 22, 2018:
Even with the extra context I find it difficult to decide on the appropriate "tone" of the crtiticism. Between "snubbing" and "high treason" we have a vast range of possibilities. Perhaps the rest of the asker's text will help to decide on the appropriate register here.
Simon March (asker) Oct 22, 2018:
the second decision was: Bisher nahm diese Stellung, seit fast 30 Jahren, der Firmen Printkatalog ein.
Zum anderen war es der Bruch mit der bisherigen Produkt- Struktur, welche über Jahre im und mit dem Katalog gewachsen ist.
Und genau diese, auf die Printausgabe ausgelegte Ausrichtung, verunmöglichte es, die Vorteile moderner Datenarchitektur zu nutzen.
Pallavi Shah Oct 22, 2018:
With this context in mind, the line could mean:
Two bold decisions were made OR
Two decisions that were almost like sacrilege were made.
Steffen Walter Oct 22, 2018:
Second decision And what was the second decision ("Zum anderen ...")?
Simon March (asker) Oct 22, 2018:
More details, context
Here's the phrase in context:
Denn relativ schnell war allen Beteiligten klar, dass der Webshop das zentrale Herzstück der neuen Website werden muss.
Um die bestmögliche Lösung zu finden, wurde auch nicht vor Liebgewonnenem Halt gemacht.
Dabei kamen zwei Entscheide fast einer Majestätsbeleidigung gleich:
Zum einen das klare Bekenntnis, dass der Webshop zukünftig Hauptwerkzeug sein soll, wenn es um Produktsuche und -information geht.

I can't see how the 'Majestätsbeleidigung' fits in to this at all since it's talking about two decisions.. thoughts?
philgoddard Oct 22, 2018:
Yes We need several sentences, please.
Majestätsbeleidigung is lèse majesté, but I don't see how it fits here without more context.
Steffen Walter Oct 22, 2018:
Context missing The actual context is still missing: What kind of "Entscheide" is this about, what does "dabei" refer to, and which wording is used in the "surrounding" sentences/paragraphs?

Proposed translations

43 mins
Selected

Of these, two decisions almost constituted high treason.

Assuming a number of decisions being mentioned, and two in particular being highlighted.

Perhaps a little clearer and more modern than than "lèse-majesté"

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Note added at 47 mins (2018-10-22 10:50:58 GMT)
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Just a thought: "Of these, two decisions were akin to outright betrayal" (for instance of corporate traditions/values) might also work

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Note added at 50 mins (2018-10-22 10:54:09 GMT)
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Tantamount to - excellent suggestion on the part of Simon (asker)

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Note added at 1 hr (2018-10-22 11:21:07 GMT)
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On the basis of the new information:

...constituted a perfidious/traitorous/mutinous/ break with long-established/long-standing traditions.

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Note added at 1 hr (2018-10-22 11:36:50 GMT)
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Some more potential adjectives:
despicable, contemptible, disgracious, reprehensible, shameful.

I suppose it all depends who the author is taking a dig at - not very good style if it's on public view and is slagging the new owners/new concept.

...an all-out attack on established structures...
Note from asker:
Or how about, 'these two decisions were tantamount to betrayal'?
Something went wrong...
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
30 mins

Thus two rulings/decisions almost declared a lese majesty.

Hello Simon,

This one sounds interesting. Was it a hostile takeover? Just wondering.
Not sure what message is being conveyed. So I am just guessing.
Something went wrong...
1 hr

Two of these decisions were tantamount to a (corporate) revolution

Two of these decisions were (deemed/considered to be) just a/one step short of a (corporate) revolution.

See http://tranzformgroup.com/so-you-say-you-want-a-revolution/

I'd prefer to steer clear of legal offences in this case.

On a related note, you could work with "sacred cows" (which is common business parlance when it comes to change management) in the context of the sentence "Um die bestmögliche Lösung zu finden, wurde auch nicht vor Liebgewonnenem Halt gemacht." ("No sacred cows were spared [from scrutiny] to identify/implement the best possible solution.").

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Note added at 1 hr (2018-10-22 11:37:33 GMT)
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See https://hbr.org/2011/08/interview-questions-every-chan ("What does the organization wish to avoid at all costs over the next 12-18 months? Every organization has its sacred cows. You may be told “There are no sacred cows. You will have carte blanche to change things as you see fit.” You should interpret that statement as, “We are not yet comfortable enough with you to discuss this issue. But we appreciate that you recognize it as an issue.”").

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Note added at 1 hr (2018-10-22 11:45:42 GMT)
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In my view, the "Majestätsbeleidigung" lies in the fundamental changes to the corporate structure/mindset brought about by these decisions.
Something went wrong...
5 hrs

Along the way, two decisions came close to snubbing previous corporate strategy

The language needs to be modern.Majestätsbeleidigung doesn't translate well into English, if you take it too seriously. Even in German, the wording is less than ideal, IMO..
Something went wrong...
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