What is Ad-hoc?
The term ‘Ad-Hoc’ refers to something that is developed or used for a specific intent, without any planning. For example, an ad-hoc committee refers to a committee that is hastily created to deal with a particular immediate issue at hand, without much planning.
Ad-hoc can be either used as an adjective or an adverb depending on its usage in the context of the sentence. For example, an ad-hoc employee is appointed for a brief period within an organization to fulfill a particular purpose or task.
Once the purpose or task is completed, they are required to resign, since their employment was ad-hoc in nature. In this scenario, the term ‘ad-hoc’ is being used to describe the noun ‘employee’ acting as an adjective.
On the other hand, in the sentence, ‘The team was formed ad-hoc to address the issues.’ we can observe that ‘ad-hoc’ is used to describe the verb ‘formed’, acting as an adverb. Hence, it is evident that ‘ad-hoc’ is used to indicate something that is formed for a specific objective in a disorganized manner.
Contextual Meanings of Ad-hoc
Based on the context, ad hoc has different kinds of usage. While the term itself could be used for something that is put together in a disorganized manner, or for a specific objective, it can be used in a variety of circumstances and scenarios. So, let us look at the multiple usages of the term ‘ad-hoc’ with relevant examples:
➔ Temporary
‘Ad hoc’ can be used to signify something temporary. Let us demonstrate the use of ‘ad-hoc’ for temporary using the following examples:
- During the change of leadership, they created an ad hoc committee to preside over the proceedings.
- They decided to go with an ad hoc leader at the last moment to save costs.
- An ad-hoc solution was developed to resolve the issue temporarily.
➔ Specific Purpose
‘Ad hoc’ can also be used to signify a specific purpose. Let us provide you with some examples demonstrating such use of the term ‘ad-hoc’:
- The ad hoc employees are paid on an hourly basis.
- To save the people stranded, the government has scheduled ad hoc flights.
- The prepaid service provider has ad-hoc data plans for enhanced flexibility.
➔ Exception
The term can also be used as an exception to the norm. Demonstrating the same are the following examples:
- She was provided with an ad-hoc laptop to complete the tasks quickly.
- The board decided to provide ad-hoc bonuses for the development team for accomplishing their tasks before time.
- The ad hoc committee was renowned for this solution from the available resources.
Origin of Ad Hoc
The term ‘ad-hoc’ comes from the Latin language, as it means ‘to this’ in that language. In Latin, the term indicated whether something was built for a specific purpose. Hence, it has similar usage in the English language too.
Over time, ‘ad hoc’ has come to mean several things based on its context. Some of the common meanings include using it as an ‘adjective‘ for describing some nouns such as ‘ad-hoc networks’ where the term signifies that the network is made for a specific purpose and that it is set up without any specific procedures.
FAQs
1. What is an Ad-hoc Payment?
Ad hoc payments are the payments that are provided to an employee, which is outside of their normal payments. It is usually a one-off payment and is undertaken because of some specific tasks the employee performed for the company.
Some of the common reasons for an employee being eligible for ad-hoc payments include:
- Overtime
- Night shift
- Sales incentive
- Petrol allowance
- Diwali bonus
- Service charge
- Gift voucher
- Miscellaneous expenses
- Salary advance
- Salary arrears
- Single-invoice payments
There are certain challenges unique to ad hoc payments, due to which companies usually do not prefer ad-hoc payments. Some of the common challenges include invoicing and associated tax calculations. Disbursing the payment on time is another challenge since it can cost more to transfer the money to an international account.
2. Advantages of Ad hoc Payments
On the other hand, there are numerous advantages of ad hoc payments, such as:
- Improved cash flow with lump sum payments.
- Payouts can be finished as soon as calculations are done, instead of having to wait for the completion of a salary cycle.
- Helps attract more freelance staff, helping you tap into a new talent pool.
- Settles unique payment requests which cannot be clubbed into a category.
