Wankernomics: A Deep-Dive Into Workplace Bullsh*ttery - THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

by James Schloeffel, Charles Firth

*** THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER 2025***
*** Perfect Christmas gift, fun stocking filler and hilarious secret Santa gift for coworkers and work colleagues ***

READERS LOVE WANKERNOMICS:

'Laugh out loud funny.' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Reader review

'I'll be buying more copies for friends and family at Christmas.' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Reader review

'Brilliant! This book is hilarious for anyone in the corporate world of nonsense.' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Reader review

'I am now better positioned to deliver scalable, low-noise, high-impact verbal outputs - at pace.' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Reader review

THE HILARIOUS, MUST-HAVE HANDBOOK FOR ANYONE WHO HAS HAD TO ENDURE THE BULLSH*T OF THE MODERN WORKING WORLD.

Are you a total failure at work? Do you struggle with simple tasks like using the phrase "moving forward" in every email? Have you never used the word "synergies" in a LinkedIn post? You need W*nkernomics.

Picture the scene. You're sitting in a meeting at work. Your colleagues are deep in serious discussion. Terry says he wants an end-to-end, digital-first solution by COB Friday. Fiona says she'll have to take that offline and circle back later. And then quite suddenly, you catch yourself thinking, 'hang on... what the f*ck are they talking about?' Like, seriously, what do those words even mean?

W*nkernomics is for anyone who has ever been told to reach out, touch base, drill down, or optimise their ducks on the same songsheet. Learn how

* Navigate endless meetings
* Master passive aggressive emails
* Outmanoeuvre your colleagues with nothing more than an obnoxious LinkedIn profile, a pack of Post-it Notes and the phrase 'circle back'.

W*nkernomics will help you navigate workplace hell like a boss.

Genres: Audiobook, Comedy, Nonfiction, Humor, Business

310 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 7, 2025

Reviews

[Bianca · Rating 5 out of 5]

James Schloeffel and Charles Firth are two Australian comedy and satire writers.
I've loved their outcomes on various platforms, in different incarnations, over several years.

This book is right up my alley in so many ways. I abhor corporate jargon and all the wankery that's infiltrated the office world. I blame this on the Americans, on the corporations, and the white men in the world of consultants and hedge funds. Fortunately, the industry I'm currently operating in is mostly made up of women, and so they're less likely to use BS words like "circle back", "going forward", "end-to-end solution by COB today"; "core values", and so on.

The authors teach us how to acquire the wankery jargon, which is useful if one is keen to get a promotion in the white collar world.

They also take on the big corporate wankers' platform LinkedIn, in the funniest ways. I had no idea that there was such a thing as LinkedIn influencers. (Please don't take it personally if you're on it, if you work for the corporate overlords. I'm not on the platform; 15y+ later, I still hold grudges against LinkeIn due to the sheer amount of spam emails I used to get. )

This book was short and sweet and very Aussie (in a good way). I'll try to get tickets to their show next time they're in town.

[Sarah Wang · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everyone who works a corporate job needs to read this book. I’m embarrassed at how many times I chuckled out loud to myself while reading this

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

particularly enjoyed the linkedin section

[Sam Still Reading · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you’ve ever wondered what some of the workplace speak actually means, or you just want see how much useless jargon you can fit into a sentence, Wankernomics is the book for you. It’s hilarious, and sometimes just that too close to reality that it’s awkward. Think of it as the TV show Utopia in book format.

The book is written from the perspective of Australian workplaces, but I suspect that it will be applicable to anywhere – once you understand the title (as the authors say, if you’re American – think about it as ‘jerkonomics’). It covers all aspects of corporate life from decoding email (the part about the meaningless opening phrase and sign off is all too true) to LinkedIn and the meeting cycle. There are sections on vision statements, mission statements, brand stories and the why. It is all far too true amongst the laughter! (I did Google ‘the customer is at the heart of everything we do’ and yes, it does come up on many organisations in Australia, from real estate agents to shopping centres, optometrists to liquor stores and even giant corporate organisations. It seems that no business is immune from it, especially when they add phrases like ‘customer journeys’ and ‘touchpoints’). The only thing missing from Wankernomics is an option to play bingo with these phrases during an endless Town Hall meeting!

The authors have a great eye for detail in being able to see exactly how ridiculous some of these terms and procedures in the workplace really are. Who hasn’t experienced the endless recurring meeting invite that nobody can cancel because the organiser is on long term leave? Or the opening line of an email, ‘I hope this finds you well’. Or the term, ‘circle back’ and having no idea what it is referring to? The part on pointless acronyms was spot on too.

I think this book is best read a chapter at a time, just so you don’t end up in a spiral about how your 9 to 5 is full of this (except for the chapter on HR). It’s a clever and witty read that is all too true. Read it by COB, build a deck and then discuss it at stand up tomorrow morning. (Just make sure you’re not on mute).

http://samstillreading.wordpress.com

[Caroline Hibberd · Rating 5 out of 5]

The most painfully accurate book - every page feels like a mirror held up to the absurdities of corporate life and its pointless jargon. Brilliant observations by the 2 creators of W*nkernomics ✨

[Rosemary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delighted to announce that I’ve just finished reading this brilliant new book that outlines the best-practice strategies for achieving success in an ever-changing working world. Satire = 🤌

[Susanna Bloderer · Rating 5 out of 5]

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Criminally hilarious ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Will make you whinny like a horse ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Read this in public at your own risk ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Accurate and life-changing ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

I hadn't heard of "Wankeronomics" before and didn't know what I was getting myself into, but thought the concept sounded funny. I am glad I kept an open mind, though.

(On that note: I wasn't really sure whether it would be apt to categorise the book as "Self-Help", but this will do wonders for the crippled corporate soul that is just longing for clear, direct communication)

What I loved most was the serious, faux-professional underlying tone of the entire book that is divided into "Units", as if you're actually attending a school for business speak, with its contents so painfully accurate.

My favourite parts were:
‣ the company slogans/motto creator, I couldn't stop myself from laughing far too hard at how nonsensical yet spot on that analysis was
‣ the "translating classic movies into corporate speech" part that I wish had been longer
‣ the farçe and one-upmanship of LinkedIn
‣ applying corporate language in your daily life (how to diaper-change in corporate left me in tears)

Many legendary sentences were uttered, but "could you please action the dog poop" is probably my favourite.

Some books find it difficult to balance the fine line between being overly silly/childish and pure comedy excellence, but "W*nkernomics" had just the right amount of absurdity - paired with important political statements that weren't presented in a lecturing way but clever and witty (such as using stock images of women and people of colour on your website but only having white men in upper management or when you're a man: ignoring women and repeating their opinions as your own to take credit for their ideas)

I predict that this book will become a modern classic and I have the hope that it will change the (corporate) world - for the better. Even if it will put the consultants out of business (if you've read the book you'll know what I mean).

[Jenifer Lavery · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brilliant look at the workplace

I've never laughed so hard . It was if I was reading about my organisation. As I looked at our goals strategies and mission statement I thought yes this is it. However I work in service improvement so am well on my way to becoming a wanker, assuming I survive the next team bonding icebreaker session

[Emma Ludlow · Rating 5 out of 5]

I mean, it's just spot on. I can picture the company I work for and my colleagues so clearly in these pages. It's hilarious, full of great tips, activities and ways to enjoy your meetings from now on!

[Janelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Had to read this on a Monday morning to really make sure my synergies were in alignment for the week going forward.

I always go to the Shovel's Wankernomics shows in Melbourne, and it's great to have this on demand when I just need to laughcry at corporate BS :')

[Christopher Hynes]

I do find their little video clips amusing, but a full-on book was just too depressing even though it is fun mockery. Couldn’t make it through. Won’t rate it because I don’t think that’s fair to judge it on how little I read. :) Just happy to not be in that world anymore.

[Amy Simons · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can’t think of a better book to read on Labor Day. There were moments I actually laughed aloud. As Homer Simpson say, it’s funny because it’s true!

Thanks to Libro.fm for the ALC through its educator program. This was everything I needed today!

[Linda Amos · Rating 4 out of 5]

The world of work has changed drastically in the last decade - not only where and how but also the language. The title is perfect. The irreverant Australian humour is perfect. If ever there is a case to say what you mean this proves it. Perfect.

[K Harper · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superbly leveraged deep-dive into corporate synergies and blue sky thinking. I’ll socialise this book around my key stakeholders and then talk to a deck, creating value-driven,cascaded ideations.

[Margaret-Ann McClean · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very funny read which anyone working within an organisational structure can relate to. Heartbroken that the chapter about HR was blank! Highly recommend for a good laugh.

[Derek · Rating 4 out of 5]

Scarily relevant and relatable. I feel I need to socialise this book and its message!

[Lindsey stansfield · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book very funny but I found myself fast forwarding because for such a short book, it was painfully repetitive.

[James Reed · Rating 5 out of 5]

Be prepared to both laugh and cringe at the accuracy of this book!

[Lucy Melton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shockingly relatable and 100% accurate! Very funny to boot.

[David Abbott · Rating 5 out of 5]

The most factually correct book ever, factual and hilarious from cover to cover.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny and helpful

[Tamer Sadek · Rating 5 out of 5]

Laugh-out-loud funny and essential reading for anyone who ever thinks they're the only sane person in a corporate/NHS world.

[Andy Lou · Rating 4 out of 5]

a great read. way too close to the bone!

[Robbie Tyrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Guaranteed to make you laugh. It confirms what you already know about your workplace. I particularly liked the section on HR.

[Reader · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is inspired by Bullshit Jobs by David Graeber and both books reek of economic illiteracy.

[Tanya Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favourite chapter is the purpose of HR!

[T.O. Munro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having seen a few excerpts from the authors' stage show on Instagram, and knowing I probably wouldn't get to see them live, this was a handy book to pluck off the shelves of Belfast Waterstones.

Having been through the mill of school leadership training (giving and receiving) there is much in this book that resonated and brought a smile to my lips.

Schloeffel and Firth bring a sharp wit to puncture the bubble of bullshit (not an appealing image) around corporate culture, jargon, and timewasting.

Mission/vision/why statements come in for some well deserved barbs with the authors taking aim at Spotify as an exemplar of absurdity.
Spotify's Why for example, isn't the obvious 'To achieve super profits through the use of a near-monopoly platform that exploits musicians by paying them virtually nothing.' it isn't even 'to allow people to access millions of songs.' No, Spotify's Why is 'To unlock the potential of human creativity.' Because before Spotify, human imagination and artistic endeavour were inaccessible. It was waiting for an audio streaming company to come along

The book is full of helpful don't say/do say pairs that translate plain English into opaque corporate speak eg

Don't say: 'Our customers will hate this.'
Do say: 'From a consumer perspective, we may need to tweak some of our offerings.'

It is clear that the authors have drawn heavily on lived experience in the corporate world. Anyone who has sat in meetings with people who insist on using ten words where one would do will find plenty of validation for their frustration within these pages. (Should I just have said 'You'll like it.'?!)

Having worked in schools which were all doing essentially the same job, it was frustrating how much time and effort went into devising and promoting a school's USP (Unique selling point). The free-market mantra of a Thatcherite world was that the road to school improvement lay in setting every institution in a ruthless cut-throat competition for pupil numbers - running schools like agile rival street food vendors. The idea that resourcing each school so that every family's geographically convenient local school was good enough was alien to a conservative culture that saw every essential service as a profit making opportunity.

As a head teacher in training the NPQH course led me through a lot of this vision/mission/why stuff and working in a team with fellow trainees to promote a fictional school, my proudest moment was pulling together the essential values and imperatives that would drive our fantasy establishment. TI forget what the words were, just that we chose them to ensure they spelled out the acronym PIGSCRAP.

[Chrys · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliantly funny

[Hannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely hilarious! If you work in the modern corporate world and have a sense of humour, I highly recommend reading this book.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hilarious. And also depressing when I think how much of my life has been wasted listening to or reading corporate drivel just like the examples presented in this book!