I love to write about HR people finding ways to squeeze administrative work down to the lowest possible percentage of time so they can spend time on what matters.

But let's face it, sometime S*** happens.  And then, you've got to protect yourself.  That's why I'm priming the pump today with some MBA one-liners for why the work didn't get done, then we'll find some pure play HR versions.  More from VentureBeat:

"The key to getting away with not getting everything done is to talk like a businessperson. MBA degrees are optional, but helpful. Pull out those banal MBA one-liners and you can circumnavigate your way through any missed deadline or incomplete spreadsheet. Whether you’re too busy or just a little lazy, here are ten surefire lines that will cover your butt and earn you some corporate cred to boot:

1. I didn’t have the bandwidth this week
2. We were trying to boil the ocean
3. I had to prioritize other deliverables
4. It wasn’t the right high-level strategy
5. It fell below the line this week
6. It’s really a time and distance problem
7. There were other low-hanging fruit to attend to
8. It’s just not quite in my wheelhouse
9. It didn’t make sense to reinvent the wheel
10. The problem was that we were working in silos
11. It’s an issue of scalability"

So that's the MBA world.  Got any from the HR world?  Here's my short list, hit me with yours in the comments:

1. Four letters and a word:  EEOC suit.
2. You want me to put out the fires or work on succession planning?
3. I value recruiting.  I just value not getting sued more.
4. Remember that technology we didn't invest in?  I was conducting the orchestra via forms as a result.
5. Interrogations on bad stuff was my entire week.  I feel like an overworked cop from "The Wire".
6. Our comp plan is not competitive.  That's why time to fill is up.
7. I could get my team around the mission a lot faster if they were bonus eligible.
8. The last time I avoided these employee relations issues to do the fun stuff, the person in your role before you got canned.
9. I can't get anyone to respond to basic requests for information.  Can we have the CEO send out an email?

Boom.  That's what I got.  What other one-liners are gold for HR Managers, Directors and VPs to say they didn't get the work done and live to tell about it?  Put it in the comments.

Let's crowdsource this sucker.