The workplace version of an unexamined idea: a weak proposal receives an enthusiastic response, becomes a polished memo, and is sent to everyone before anyone asks whether it makes sense.
The prose improves; the proposal escapes examination. An assistant is more useful when it helps identify the missing evidence than when it makes an existing idea easier to circulate.
✳
Definition from The World That Agrees With You: Understanding and Managing Sycophancy in the Age of AI, by Timothy O’Brien. © 2026 Timothy O’Brien. All rights reserved.
See also
- SycophancyAgreement that follows your preference more closely than the evidence warrants. Praise optional.
- Institutional sycophancyWarnings that fail to reach the people approving the decision.