[jq-r]

Exactly. And this "IC" thing is a good example of something they call a negative externality. Negative externality in this sense is when you have to pay/are affected by something you don't want like polluted air.

The original author saved maybe couple of seconds to write "Individual Contributor" on the first occasion of the phrase, but made many people here spent many seconds trying to figure out (probably by searching the internet) on what that acronym means.

This is especially pronounced in some companies where the acronyms might be understandable just to a few members of some team, and when when this is communicated to the wider company, it can cause even a greater confusion (as you cannot search for it online) and waste of time for such a small "irrelevant" thing.

So in other words, it can be compressed a bit in: "why should I waste a little bit of my time, when I can waste everyone else's time". Or simply: it is disrespecting your audience.

The original article beside that is quite interesting though.