Jaded HR: Your Relief From the Common Human Resources Podcasts
Jaded HR is a Human Resources podcast about the trials and tribulations of life in a human resources department….or just a way for Human Resources Professionals to finally say OUT LOUD all the things they think throughout their working day.
Jaded HR: Your Relief From the Common Human Resources Podcasts
HR through Pop Culture The Office: Unpacking HR Nightmares and Workplace Dynamics
Ever wondered how your favorite TV shows mirror the chaos of your workplace? We’re breaking it all down by taking a magnifying glass to "The Office" and its riotous portrayal of HR nightmares. Join us for a joyride through the antics of Season 1, Episode 1, where every awkward pause and cringe-worthy moment holds a mirror to the absurdities of corporate life. From inappropriate pranks to inept management, we're not just reminiscing about Michael's cringes and Dwight's quirks; we're teasing out the HR lessons hidden within the laughs.
Immerse yourself in the pandemonium that is Dunder Mifflin, where we dissect the infamous personalities, like the inappropriately secure Packer and the ever-bewildered temp, Ryan. Discover why Michael’s premature announcement of layoffs is not just bad leadership but a comedic goldmine, and what Jim’s pranks on Dwight say about workplace dynamics. We share our own reflections on how the show’s absurdities aren't too far off from real office life, touching on those precarious lines between humor and bullying.
Workplace romances, fake firings, and casting brilliance — "The Office" has it all, and we’re turning each stone for HR insights wrapped in hilarity. Whether it's discussing Jim and Pam’s undeniable chemistry or how the show’s creators cleverly transitioned some actors from behind-the-scenes roles, we’re revealing the secrets that make this series a timeless commentary on work life. Join us for a walk down memory lane, as we relive the laughs and excavate the lessons that this iconic series offers to anyone navigating the wild world of HR.
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Thank you, welcome to a very special not a very special blossom, but a very special episode of Jaded HR where we are looking, taking a look at HR through the eyes of pop culture. That's probably not what I want to say. Well, we're taking a look at pop culture through the eyes of HR. Yeah, we're taking a look. Most of the episodes are going to be focused around the Office, and today we're starting with Season 1, episode 1 of the Office here. So, yeah, this is a new segment CeCe came up with. I love the idea that we're just various pop culture shows, movies, things like that, that invoke HR, and there's nothing that raises more HR nightmares in my mind than the Office.
Speaker 2:Absolutely.
Speaker 1:And rewatching season one to episode one, I'm like how many fireball offenses could I find in this episode?
Speaker 2:So many and things like that.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's crazy, it's an HR nightmare, but it could also end up being a master class in HR. Who knows what direction this will take with us?
Speaker 2:So yeah, I love it Kick us off. Yeah, so I like to say that I've learned everything I know about working in corporate America, and also working in human resources, from the office. Yeah, and I don't know. I don't know, dear listener, if you are living under a rock and maybe have never watched the Office before, but we're going to take you on this little journey with us and you can watch along, because we'll let you know what we're covering next.
Speaker 1:We'll say, living under a rock. I'm one of those people who I don't watch the hit shows until they're gone. I'd never heard of the Office until like four or five years ago, oh my gosh. And then I started watching it, watching it okay, I just started watching Modern Family last week. I'm like so far behind everything and stuff like that, so I do. You know, I have seen every episode of the Office many, many times. Is that ended up being one of those background shows that, if right, doing the dishes or anything, you can always find it being on somewhere?
Speaker 1:and you just put it on the background and you're doing the dishes or anything. You can always find it being on somewhere and you just put it on in the background and you're doing whatever else and watching it halfway and things like that. So I've definitely seen every episode multiple times. But yeah, I was living under a rock. That Big Bang Theory was that way.
Speaker 2:Oh, that was one.
Speaker 1:I didn't start watching until it was like almost at the end of it. I can probably name a dozen other shows like that that I didn't.
Speaker 2:I was late to the party scrubs, scrubs was that way for me okay, I was late to scrubs back then so then I don't know and we're derailing the conversation already I love scrubs.
Speaker 2:It's one of my favorite tv shows of all times. I didn't realize until about like five, six years ago that the music is different on the streaming services than it is on how it originally aired, because I guess there was no licensing agreement for streaming, so they had to go in and like change a lot of the music, but the show was known for the music. In and like change a lot of the music, but the show was known for the music. So I told this to my husband and I got, like last christmas, the entire box set on dvd with all the original like music as it's intended to be. It's amazing and it's also like really weird to put me, like you know, use dvds again, but anyway, fun fact I don't know if I have a dvd player anymore yeah xbox that's what it is.
Speaker 2:That's what we use I think, yeah, I guess I would be have to, I'd have to use so I do want to say, like, this show did premiere 20 years ago and, as we recap some of this stuff, some things might be spoilers if you've never watched it before. However, it's been out for 20 years, so if you haven't watched it by now, you can't be mad at us. So the Titanic, the ship, you know the ship goes down at the end. So there's a spoiler for you too. So, yeah, so for those who haven't really watched the Office or again, aren't familiar with it, I just wanted to give a little bit of background for those who didn't know. So it did premiere in 2005. So that's 20 years ago. It was an adaptation of an original British show under the same name and it was created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant and it did have a very rocky start. So the show was not popular to begin with. It was kind of always being threatened to be canceled. And it really popped in popularity, probably around like the end of season one, kind of season two, and it really soared in popularity during the pandemic and Netflix and all that kind of stuff, because people were just binge watching it, binge watching it, binge watching it.
Speaker 2:It's known for its mockumentary style, its cringe humor and how it's very relatable. Everyone kind of finds something relatable because it's basically a mirror of everyday life. So why has it been so popular? This is one of my things. I love it. Again. I quote it at least once a day. It's just part of my vernacular. So basically, it's a very relatable show. A lot of the characters and the situations of the show are reflective of the American workplace Things like inept managers or bad team meetings or like the various interpersonal dynamics you might have with someone in the workplace. A lot of it is extremely, extremely relatable. There's a lot of timeless themes in there work-life balance, the monotony of the nine to five. It does use humor as a huge coping mechanism, which I love about the show. There's a lot of things that happen in the show that are very like serious when you're looking at it, especially from an HR perspective. But honestly, again, it's just. You know, if you can't cry, you laugh.
Speaker 1:That's because this is a podcast you can't see. Behind Christina on her wall, along with their SHRM certification, is a Michael Scott quote. I think it's the Michael Jordan quote and then a Dwight Schrute pillow.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:I seem to remember something else I don't see. I thought you had more Office than that in other episodes that I can't see.
Speaker 2:I do have the complete history of the Office as written by oh the guy that plays, oh my gosh, I'm like Kevin Brian Barmerger or whatever Ron Gardner, yeah. So I have the complete oral history of the Office back there.
Speaker 1:Wow, wow, so yeah, so you are like a super fan of the Office and you talked about its beginning. They I did listen for a long time to office ladies. I don't listen to it as much anymore. I sort of fell out of love with that podcast, but I remember that you know them saying like I think one of them was working in a dentist's office, the other was like waiting table. No, kensey was working in a call center for a dental place. Yes, jenna was waiting tables. Neither of them quit their job for until like the second year, because they were always under threat of losing losing their job, which is a theme of episode one a theme of episode one.
Speaker 2:So, and just to let you know the that quote that's behind me, the michael scott scott quote, it's actually I got. I gotta like just make sure I read it right or else I'm gonna ruin it. Uh oh, hr is a breeding ground for monsters, but what I fail to recognize is that not all monsters are bad.
Speaker 1:That's what it is. Okay, I can't see. I thought it was. Every time I see something like that with michael scott I think it's the uh, when he's quoting michael jordan quoting him. He's yeah, you, you miss a hundred percent of the shots you don't take wayne gretzky michael scott michael scott. Yeah, he, anyways, that's that's. That's funny. So where do you want to start with this episode?
Speaker 2:so we can start at the beginning. So here's a couple things at the very beginning. First of all, it starts cold open, basically, with a meeting between Michael and Jim and Michael kind of breaking of the fourth wall and something to describe for people who've never seen it. But the cameramen, or the cameras, are actually a character as well, because they're filming a mockumentary. So michael is very aware that the cameras are there and he's like a ham and he's just like, oh you know, yes, jim, why did you want to see me? And like jim kind of calls him out like no, you, you asked to see me. And then Michael has to kind of like flex his muscles and help Jim close a deal. So he gets on the phone and he does it.
Speaker 2:But what I want to point out here again, as the ultimate connoisseur of the office, is that Michael is good at something and I'm going to refer to this time and time again. Michael is a competent salesman and that is why he got promoted into the regional manager and he loves I think he just loves his management position. So he goes in and he introduces himself, but essentially, like he thinks very highly of himself, he doesn't have a lot of self-awareness, as you'll find out, and he was one of those individuals who was promoted into a management position because they were good at their job.
Speaker 1:Yes, and that's HR mistake numero uno so many times. Oh, they're good at their role, let's promote them. And even though they don't have any managerial skills, as as michael scott, so, and, and, yeah, I, and, okay, I, I was talking about terminal offenses in that meeting with jim that he called you know that jim needed help, for you know it ends and tell me if I'm stomping on anything of yours with him saying, sir, you're a gentleman and a scholar. And then it's like, oh, that was a woman. She has a very deep voice, she must smoke a lot or whatever it is, she must be a smoker, she must be a smoker and it's just. I don't know. I can see that customer complaint coming in. Your dude just called me a dude. You know, maybe that's not terminable, but that's definitely worth a. We need to talk.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Take a situation.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and he? What is it he loves to talk about how oh, I've asked so many people about how everyone says I'm a great boss and how funny I am, and blah, blah, blah. And I even bought this mug from Spencer's Gifts and it was like, the joke being that he bought his own world's best boss mug.
Speaker 1:Yes, yeah, I didn't pick up on that until I watched it today that he bought it himself, yeah, so yeah, well, I guess what's the next best scene? Well, okay, harassment. Let's talk about harassment. Okay, there's multiple instances of sexual harassment and unfortunately, I guess pam the, the receptionist office manager, is the. He says something. You think she's hot? I'm butchering this quote. You think she's hot? Now? You should have seen her 10 years ago.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:Excuse me, talk about the double whammy on that Gosh. Once again we're getting closer to terminable offenses, but hey, we're not there quite yet. But I mean, we're all. We're only in the first five minutes of the episode.
Speaker 2:So far I I do love his like little gag of oh where are my faxes? And or pam pam gives him faxes and he's like oh, I told you, this goes in a special spot in the trash. Can Like? Ha, ha, ha, ha, like just the way he's just so cringy with all these like really bad dad jokes.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah. And well, that takes us to the sort of the next scene, where Jan the I don't know what her title is she's like a corporate person, she's the VP. Yeah, comes in and drops the news on them that there's going to be some downsizing.
Speaker 2:Oh my gosh.
Speaker 1:Oh.
Speaker 2:Oh, I was going to say go ahead.
Speaker 1:Oh well, you know, and Michael swears the secrecy and everything like that, but I guess you can imagine how long that secret is kept.
Speaker 2:He can't keep a secret. He cannot keep a secret Like yes, terms are coming, you got to shut your mouth about it.
Speaker 1:And then comes the I'm trying to Carol what's his name plays him, who is?
Speaker 2:Oh, are you talking about Packer, packer, packer, that was good.
Speaker 1:Yeah, then comes, while he's in this important meeting about downsizing with the vice president, his number one sales rep, packer, calls, who was. If you go further down the episode, they're buddies and they were both coming up as salespeople together. Michael Scott, like man, crushes on him very hard, I guess.
Speaker 1:Very hard puts on the speakerphone and he is so grossly, overtly inappropriate asking if the vice president's carpet matches the drapes, yep, and all this other like stuff, with the vice president right there on speakerphone listening to it and packard is like and the thing is, I've had to work with people maybe not quite as overt as Packard, but still people are just that dumb. Maybe it's not an essential harassment, but they're just going to do it and he makes me feel you know, we've discussed this multiple times on the podcast yeah, do your number one salespeople get away with more because you don't want to lose them? Yes, and is that the only thing that's keeping Packard there? Is it because he's a great salesperson?
Speaker 2:That is such a good point Because remember spoiler alert a few episodes in, at some point he takes a shit in Michael's office as a prank. And it's such a good point that Packer must be an excellent salesperson, because how is it that he could say that on the phone and take a shit like all this stuff and he still has a job.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and that's only the tip of the iceberg. He mentioned other very inappropriate that he called her what? Hillary, hillary, rodham, godzilla, or something like yes, or something like that, and you know, just going on and on, so, but this really sets up the, the, the context of, you know, michael, and of Michael's not doing the values. Oh, okay, okay, and then I guess he just sort of hung up on him.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah. At first he's like singing his praises like, oh, this is Packer, he's a great guy. And then he hangs up his phone like idiot he's an idiot.
Speaker 1:Oh my gosh. So where do we go next?
Speaker 2:So, after this love, okay, so I'm gonna. I might jump a little bit. So so ryan, the temp is introduced, he walks in for his first day, um, and he's played by, uh, bj novak. I love bj novak. Fun fact, he's also one of the writers on the show. But anyway. So Ryan comes in and he kind of like he just does such stupid, stupid jokes to like welcome him so cringy and he talks about how he loves comedy and then he starts doing like, like, just for shits and giggles. Takes the placard off of Pam's desk just for gigs, shits and giggles. Takes the placard off of pam's desk, puts it against his face like a mustache and then does like the hitler march across the office as if it's like a really funny joke. And it's just so awkward. Everyone's just staring at him, no one's laughing at all and he's just like lighten up.
Speaker 2:Ah, we're, we have fun here, we have Like. That was like the whole tone of it I'm Hitler.
Speaker 1:I just don't get it. And he doesn't have a clue why nobody's laughing Right. They just don't get that he is Hitler. They absolutely get that he's Hitler.
Speaker 2:Everyone got it and it's funny because that's definitely termable. That is a little term of all that would. That would be. So michael's already fired by like the first episode but suspension of belief, he has the job the whole time and I have to laugh because I have been in a room where, like, a leader has made a slightly like borderline racial joke and I'm like and no one laughs because everyone's like you say that like it really freaking happens. Is that really?
Speaker 1:and and yeah, so they. I guess he keeps on you and also to pick up man crushes. This begins the man crush that he has with Ryan, the Temp, which we'll be talking a lot about, I'm sure, over the course of these episodes.
Speaker 2:And the funny part is and, like I think the broader gag is, the company's not doing well. They're looking at cutting people and terminating people, but Michael spends the money and brings in a temp A temp. And that is so stupid, so stupid.
Speaker 1:Well, I think it's like the next scene that Michael has an all-hands meeting with everybody and announces that corporate's going to be doing a layoff yes, and then he basically guarantees and, mind you, five minutes earlier he just told Jan the VP, vp, that hey, you know, I'll keep this a secret. And what do you know? He's got all hands meeting letting them know that there's going to be, you know, downsizing, I think is what the term they kept using.
Speaker 2:Downsizing and the thing is like it's funny because at some point, like before, before that meeting people are already like understanding and whispering that downsizing could be a thing Like it's in the air. You know, like we're kind of thrown into this like situation, like as in fresh eyes of like people are already worried about it and they're talking quietly, like even Oscar is like I don't know, you better update your resume. And then Michael just like just throws gas on the fire.
Speaker 1:Exactly, oh, the meat. First, we're going to have a lot of fun talking about Michael and his meetings episode, because there's there's some really good things If you, if you haven't watched, or haven't watched in a while, that happened in his meetings, but anyways, he goes on to have a meeting and announces that yeah, but then Pam who was in the meeting says because he's sitting there guaranteeing that it's not going to happen to him. Well, I was in the meeting and she said we're definitely on the chopping block, I guess.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And once again, terminal offense, sharing that confidential information. Yeah, that's very high on the list of things that Michael could be termed for just in episode one. And then we see the pranks, and yeah, the pranks. Which prank was first?
Speaker 2:let's see, so it was. There was a sales pitch that jim was trying to make and then, while he's doing it, dwight keeps like, just like disrupting him, and I think it was like with the pencil sharpener. So then jim lines his desk up with sharpened pencils to like display a border, like a barricade, like to which you know. Dwight is just like then pounding the pencils through the thing, just being obnoxious and I do want to say he could get hurt oh yeah, that's right because he could.
Speaker 2:He could get hurt, like yeah, that was what it was. We've all worked with a Dwight.
Speaker 1:We can only hope.
Speaker 2:I have to say like I am a big Jim fan, but I am going to say that Jim is a workplace bully. I'm going to say it just constantly, all of his pranks, and not to say, like Dwight doesn't deserve it and he kind of gives it back to him every once in a while, like Dwight doesn't deserve it and he kind of gives it back to him every once in a while.
Speaker 1:But I'm like I feel like Jim should have had a conversation by now with everything, Not only I think Jim is the very first quiet quitter doing the bare minimum.
Speaker 2:Oh.
Speaker 1:And he even talks about hey, maybe not in this episode episode. It's one of the features of the Office. If you're listening to this, I'm assuming you're listening to the Office but they have these where they talk directly to the camera, maybe answering some of the people's questions and things like that future episodes. I'm just doing the bare minimum to get by, or whatever. He says something along those lines later down, but I think he's the original quite quitter, but he's also. He is a bully. A bully because some of it's funny, but it it could be funny. It doesn't take the fact that, but dwight is such the only target, the only person he really targets is, well, jim and Michael Scott.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Or Dwight I should say, and Michael Scott.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:He really targets. He leaves everybody else alone for the most part, as far as I remember. But yeah, I agree, he is a workplace bully. Yeah, and yeah. So we get introduced to, I think in that same scene with the pencil barricade. We get introduced to jello jim putting objects in jello for, and that'll come up again, which I think is hilarious.
Speaker 1:Okay, I've told any number of times we would prank the hell out of patrick now you're making me think I'm a workplace bully but we worked together and like we destroyed his desk. We would when he'd go on vacation you know he hated returning after like the second or third time returning from vacation or or something like that, to see what the hell they'd done to to my, my desk now. But we, we screwed up with with his stuff so much, and one time to find his keyboard. I hid the keyboard in them and it was a treasure hunt. It wasn't his keyboard. He comes back from vacation and you'd find a clue here and then you'd have to go over here to find the next clue. I did this whole elaborate treasure. Now I'm feeling sort of bad because being a workplace bully, but we did, that was all me. I was the maybe not mastermind, but yeah, I was the master, I initiated most of that and then everybody else joined in. But yeah, now I'm sorry, sorry, patrick.
Speaker 2:I think it was like I see, pranks are fun between people who like each other, right? I think it's like this Jim and Dwight-ness, where Jim just does it to get a rise out of Dwight. I think that makes it a bullying situation.
Speaker 1:Especially when Dwight is so easy to push a button.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah.
Speaker 1:Anything will push his buttons, dwight's buttons, and that makes you a target for bullies. So yeah, so yeah. That's a good thing, but I guess the biggest prank of the episode is the jello?
Speaker 2:Oh no, which big prank? Because there's a couple pranks.
Speaker 2:The big one when Mike and Brianrian bring pam into yes, yeah, so so, yeah, they bring pam into the office and michael, with ryan present, just to prove how like fun and pranky they are, quote, quote, unquote pranks pam by telling her that she is fired for stealing post-its, and and she just starts crying because she takes it so seriously, because she was just terminated and and yeah and he goes on to say and because this was gross misconduct, you will not be eligible for any severances.
Speaker 1:I mean he's, he's laying it on really thick and ryan the whole time. New guy day one is just sort of oh, you got this, what the fuck am I getting into? Right look and he's like looking away and you know he's like you just put me in the most uncomfortable situation you possibly could have put me into. So yeah, that was.
Speaker 2:It's also like just bad timing for that. Well, that's a bad prank. To begin with, you shouldn't fake fire someone which, funny enough, happens another couple times, I think, in the series but you shouldn't be fake firing anyone. And second of all, you shouldn't be fake firing someone when you're talking about layoffs.
Speaker 1:Exactly exactly. And you know, in the real world I've said before I was laid off twice within six months of each other, in 2011. I've been on the layoff side of things, both as the person being laid off and I've been the HR person discussing okay, let's make our list and decide how we're going to do this and who's going to be on the list, and things like that. Layoffs are not fun at all they're stressful.
Speaker 1:The second time I got laid off I knew that I was getting laid off because I didn't get invited to that layoff meeting oh no oh yeah, I, I we had weekly meetings.
Speaker 1:I was working that hospital. It lost its license, so our patient count is going down every day and we we were allowed to keep the patients we had, but as people were being discharged we couldn't take new patients in and a lot of the the patients were wards of the state and these agencies were pulling their people out. So you know, there's a in a medical field you have to have so many people working per patient, you would say, and our numbers are going down. So we're laying people off and I'm in those meetings every week. And then I didn't get the invitation to the next meeting. I just went to the director and said I'm on the list, aren't I? And she's like oh, she took it. I was like you know.
Speaker 2:The writing is kind of on the wall.
Speaker 1:Yeah, at some point I was going to be on that list, so I've been there both sides of the story. But yeah, layoffs are not fun, they're not something to joke around about, and things like that. So yeah, so that's Terminable Offense. And why the hell would Ryan come back for day two after seeing the shit show he's walking into with this, with this job?
Speaker 2:I would have called my temp agency and been like get me out of here. I don't care about the bonus. Like get me out of here yeah, exactly, and how did the?
Speaker 1:how did the episode end? What did? What did we have going on?
Speaker 2:I can't remember well, well, pam, like calls him an asshole and like walks out of the room because like and then the office place budding romance I guess that is true.
Speaker 1:Yes, we learned that jim, even though pam's engaged for three years to another co-worker, that jim and pam have a thing going on already they do.
Speaker 2:they're like work besties, but they also are like each other's work husband and work wives but they actually like, actually they're crushing, they're crushing. So I'm I'm so glad you brought that up, because when I was in grad school I actually there was a professor there who her like area of expertise was workplace romance, like, and she did a lot of research around that and I thought it was like super interesting, so okay, so really funny story. I think she started off, like in her career, as doing research with, like, like, air traffic controllers and their workplace dynamics and their workplace satisfaction and morale.
Speaker 2:air traffic controllers have the lowest morale, so fun fact about that I heard it's the highest stress job it is, it's the highest stress job and like morale is really low and it's just like really stressful, so hated that. And then she fell into like this whole workplace romance thing and but yeah, she's like the leading expert in studying that and apparently like I think it's really interesting that the office kind of touches on it, because we've all been in situations where we know the people, the couple that's getting too flirty or this or that. I've been in situations where one like two people were working in the same company together and the woman found out that he was also dating somebody else in the company and it was like a little bit of an altercation. But yeah, like this is it's such a recognizable, relatable thing that I love that they interweaved it in the office. Plus, you have to have that for a hit TV show. There needs to be a Sam and Diane.
Speaker 1:Sam and Diane. Well, it's so crazy that while they're crushing on each other, you know she's engaged to someone who works down in the warehouse.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:And so that's it. But you get to meet that and then so, oops, you get to meet Roy and he doesn't want to go out to drinks with them, and things like that, and I don't know so.
Speaker 2:Roy is an idiot. I hate Roy. Well no, I love the actor. The actor is pretty funny, but Roy himself, he's a schlub.
Speaker 1:Yeah, he keeps it interesting there. But all of them, you know I love the dynamic of all these people and how crazy and different and everything they are. I I think it's such a well cast show. And okay, phyllis, you know she, she was hired to not to be on screen talent, she was a casting person on the show. And then Toby and Ryan and oh gosh, kelly, the writers of the show they end up from listening to Office Ladies. They were moved to the back, the annex, very quickly because they're still having to write. They're sitting there in the annex areas, actually they're, they're still having to write. They're sitting there in the annex areas actually, where they wrote, apparently, and they're writing while they're filming in the other side and they didn't need the.
Speaker 1:You know they didn't need to be in there, they couldn't be in every shot and stuff like that.
Speaker 2:So it's so it's crazy. I thought it was really interesting too that, like I think it was the director who insisted that the three of them be part of the show so that they understood the flow of the show and they understood the characters and the dial, and it would give them better ability to write better for the show if they were in the show, and which I loved. And Toby, oh god, who plays him? Paul Lieber plays him. Paul Lieberstein yes, so Paul Lieberstein actually hated to be on camera, so any episode that he produces he's not on camera, he like purposefully doesn't write himself in because he hates being on camera.
Speaker 2:But what I was going to say was so I, my team, is doing something very interesting this year under the same, I think, under the same guise is like everyone on the team has to be working together, and I like the idea of like the writers had to be on the cast too, so they understood. So my, our talent management team, we are starting to kind of trade projects now. So I think it's interesting, because my boss from a previous company was like we used to do this thing where someone would take something on for three years and then pass it on to someone else on the team and one of those. There's a couple of projects now that I'm being given that someone else on the team had before, and I think it's really interesting. First of all, my little ADHD brain is like yes, variety, let's do this. So I'm like stoked, you know.
Speaker 2:But it's also very interesting where listen, I may have done it in a past, I haven't done it here, but now I'd like to take this and iterate on it, and then it just everything that we do as a team, like we're cross, like cross-pollinating for real, and I feel like there's something so good about, like so healthy about that. And I think, even as we're talking about a show like the Office, I think that's one of the things that made that show so popular. It's because they were like the director demanded that of them, like you need to do these things so you understand it, so that that will make you better, and we're like real world application. We're doing it on my team right now, which I think is something to throw out there.
Speaker 1:Well, that's one thing I was hoping. I didn't think we got too much of it in episode one, but that's one thing I was hoping to get out of this. The series we're doing is on the offices. There are some real hr takeaways. Maybe not this episode. We can.
Speaker 1:You know I'm teasing about all the terminable offenses yes, the whole the whole show, but there are some actual good hr takeaways that I, as we go through some future episodes, is I've I've thought about it in the past. I don't know what episode they are by season and episode number, but there are some really good HR takeaways in the show and I might get a learning opportunity out of this. I don't know.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you know, as I was like thinking today, I was like going through like these archetypes of, like these people that work in the office and oh, I've worked with someone like that, or I've worked with someone like that, or I've worked with someone like that I was especially thinking about Michael and how he's just like the person that was just promoted because they were good at their job. But, spoiler alert, ryan becomes the opposite of that and they demonstrate in the office the dangers and the opposite of that, because Ryan gets promoted as Michael's boss in later seasons and he's only promoted because he got his MBA but he has no work experience, he's never made a sale and like, literally, we see that shit show fall apart. So it's funny because, as I'm like sitting here, I'm like, oh, like I never even clocked that either and that they were very like smart in the way that they wrote this show because it was very real. Like some of these, this stuff is very real, like we combat it every day.
Speaker 1:Absolutely, and I just really. I think you know, in HR, I think it does have a special resonance with us, but no matter what you've done, you do in an office environment, whether you're a warehouse person, the receptionist, accounting there's someone. You've worked with these people and I can pretty much say I've worked with a Stanley, I've worked with a Phyllis, I've worked with every single one of these type of people to some degree or another. And if you've been in the workplace more than a couple of years, you probably have too, and that's what makes it so relatable and so you know followable, and then, of course, you know the storylines develop and it keeps you entrapped too.
Speaker 1:But yeah, you've worked with these people, you've been in these situations and and things like that. Oh, one other thing I wanted to bring up about season one of the office kevin's voice. Kevin uses his real voice in season one and I think there was like a nine month break between season one and season two and then he starts using the the stranger, weirder voice is something I've picked up multiple times before. So yeah, he started. I think it's season two he'll start using the weird voice that's funny.
Speaker 1:I've never noticed that and I've watched the show so many times oh, watch, watch episode one again and then go back and watch something from the later seasons and when he, when he does, yeah, they change his, his voice in there.
Speaker 2:So that's so good. Well, I will just say that you know, as the the one thing I do like how the show just kind of ends, is that michael. Michael is feeling bad. He's just ruined the morale of the entire office with his stupidity and his big mouth. But Jim does end up putting his mug in the Jello and I always consider so here's kind of what we're talking about. Is Jim being the bully? I think he's a bully toward Dwight, but I think when he pranks Michael it's out of like, love, like because Michael, I think Michael can communicate at that level and if you prank Michael to a certain extent, like he like he either doesn't get it so it goes over his head, or if he does get it, like I don't know, it's kind of like he's there for the jokes, he's there for the good time. So that's why I'm like when Jim does it, it's almost like he's doing it out of an empathetic way, like putting his jello in there and like it'll probably put a smile on his face the next day.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'm thinking he's doing it because he doesn't want Michael to feel left out too. I think he's got a soft spot for Michael, because if Michael's feelings get hurt very easily and we're going to see many accounts of that but before we get to that final mug in the jello there's a scene where Michael's talking directly to the camera and he says I'm their friend first. He says I'm their manager. Second, he says I'm their second, their manager second. And then I'm an entertainer third.
Speaker 2:That's what it is.
Speaker 1:Yes, and we've all been with maybe a manager. Either we've had a manager or an HR.
Speaker 1:We've had to deal with managers who want to be people's friends first yes, and that is sort of the crux, beyond promoting somebody because they're good at their task or their job to a manager, that's sort of the crux of the whole show. He cannot be an effective manager because he wants to be their friend, he wants to play with them and yeah, how does yeah? Exactly. He wants to be their friend first and that's we've. You've either been there or you've been hr. You've dealt with somebody who. That's what their, their goal is and yeah, that sort of describes michael scott that you're going to, we're going to be covering the whole, the whole way through.
Speaker 2:so yeah, and we learned we do learn later that his old manager, Ed Truck, he didn't like his old manager at all because his old manager was a leader who-.
Speaker 1:Was a manager. He was a manager.
Speaker 2:He had accountability. He was there to clock in, lead his team, lead them well and clock out. And Michael Did not like it. And it's just funny because, you're right, he just wants to be their friend and he has no boundaries, so yeah, Yep, no boundaries.
Speaker 1:Yes, that's another reoccurring thing no boundaries at all period, end of story. I think that goes through the whole show. A lot of the characters, no boundaries. But yeah, I think this was a really good first episode of our first take at the Office rewatch, and so I'm assuming we're doing episode two next week.
Speaker 2:Yes, next month, I should say Next month.
Speaker 1:It'll be the third episode of every month will be one of these rewatches, so episode two. I don't see.
Speaker 2:Episode two is diversity day, so that's diversity, okay.
Speaker 1:Is that the sexual harassment one, or is that diverse? I don't remember diversity day.
Speaker 2:I know I'm pretty sure the second one is diversity day and they have to like wear the cards on the head yes yeah and now, okay, disclaimer here they do a lot of things that you know.
Speaker 1:The show aired 20 years ago yes, thank you things that they would not do on tv today unless it was like on, you know, hbo, like behind a paywall. You're not going to do this on on-the-air TV anymore and we're going to cover some of these things that are maybe not politically correct or have aged very poorly over years as sensitivities has changed, but we're going to cover it and just know we're covering the show and not making any social context of it. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:And thanks for pointing that out, Because there are, like Diversity Day is. It is very cringy because you're right, if that was filmed today, it would have been filmed very differently. At the same time, like remembering, we're watching this through the lens of 2005,. So things have changed, but it is, at the same time, just a classic episode. So I don't it is.
Speaker 1:It is a classic episode so, yeah, I hope you've enjoyed it. Give us your feedback on this episode and if there's any input, uh, you know already that we're going to be covering episode two in a month from now, so get in contact us on all sorts of ways. Are in our the, the show notes, the, the links to get in touch with us on instagram, email us, text us all those fun things. I think this is going to be a great way to be interactive with y'all a little bit more, and if you're on patreon and support us on patreon, you can put a chat. I've been trying to look at that every week, at least once a week, to see if there's anybody else putting some information out there. So, uh, yeah, please, please, check it out. But this is, this has been a lot of fun. This is. I hope this will just continue to blow up as well as I.
Speaker 2:There's gonna be some great hr implications here, yeah yes and like, if you have anything else, you want us, you want us to like look at, just send us a, send us a request. I do, I'm I'm chomping at the butt to do office space at some point, because that is a great movie one, one scene we did not bring up, and I think it's really important michael's doing this.
Speaker 1:He brings up the six million dollar man oh my god and then he goes that sounds like a good salary for me. And and Pam goes yeah, we could. She says something I forget exactly.
Speaker 2:We could all use a raise.
Speaker 1:You could all use a raise.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so innocuous.
Speaker 1:If you have a problem with your compensation, you can take it up with HR. And that hearing that again today was sort of a trigger for me, because that's what bad managers do. That's not an HR thing.
Speaker 1:Hr does not determine salaries, it does not we might set the range or provide the range what it is, and if they go outside, sometimes that happens, but we provide the range. But the individual managers are the ones saying sorry. And to hear a manager say, if you have a problem with your compensation, talk to hr versus. Oh well, you know, once again we're. We're putting real world, trying to put real world common sense into michael scott, but oh, you want to. Would you like to have a further discussion? What can we talk about about this?
Speaker 2:yeah, put time on my calendar if you like to have a further discussion. What can we talk about? About this?
Speaker 1:Yeah, put time on my calendar if you want to talk about it. Yeah, put time on. Don't send a fax, don't send a fax. Oh, and that's another thing, Because it's 20 years ago. There's so many dated references. We're going to have Faxes being one of them for these dated references.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:It's going gonna be interesting, yeah, very interesting. Like and here's the funny thing, though and I don't know if you ever like thought about this, but I think this is true of this show and then of like, also like seinfeld comes to mind like there are certain plot points that will not, could not be able to happen in today's day and age, and like, I think of, like if they would ever do a workplace comedy and a corporate thing like it's like some of this might not resonate with some younger viewers because they started working and yeah, and like. That's the thing that like blows my mind and I was thinking about that today like if someone was on the band I know, I know friends is very big right now with Gen Z, which, by the way, I hated friends, I'm gonna say it. I thought it was a stupid show, but whatever one of my favorites.
Speaker 2:I watched it wasn't one of my favorites, it was a little boring, but whatever but yeah, if you've never worked in an office, some of this may not be relatable, but I think a lot of the other stuff is like the annoying co-worker, the inept manager, like that stuff. But those interactions that you have in the office and like office olympics, for example, like that stuff could never happen if you were like to make this in this day and age.
Speaker 1:So it's just something, something to think about yep, yep, I think we'll end it there yeah and, uh, remember to send us your feedback for episode season one, episode two, and we'll have some gems in there and every once in a while, like I said, we might throw in a different type of thing. We'll let you know in advance, I think that the week before we'll, if we're, we'll announce, I think, the the episode, the regular episode, before we'll say, hey, next week's episode we're covering whatever it is, because we may skip some episodes because not all of them are going to be, you know, hr relatable in a way that we can talk about, or we might, I don't know we may skip some episodes, not saying we will, but we may Because there's what? 10 seasons or 15?, I forget how many seasons.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we're doing one a month and there's 10 seasons or 15, I forget how many seasons. Yeah, we're doing, we're doing once, one a month and there's 10 seasons. So we're gonna we're gonna have to be a little. We're gonna have to pick and choose yeah, exactly, exactly.
Speaker 1:I'll be retired before we hit them all at one a month, uh so, but hey, maybe this takes off and this becomes the primary show, I know right. Well, thank you for listening. As always, we're here to help you survive HR. One what-the-fuck moment at a time, yeah,
