Recently, I’ve been watching the show ‘Undercover Boss‘ mainly because it’s after football. The plot involves a CEO of a well-known, national corporation going undercover as a potential employee. Traveling cross-country, the CEO experiences all sorts of jobs offered at the franchises, including the not-so-glamorous ones. After realizing their cushy office situation is infinitely greater, the CEO rewards a few exemplary employees they met along the way. It’s actually quite touching.

This show gives me conflicting emotions, though. First, I’m disheartened at how little contact shareholders make with their employees. It’s not shocking. Everything is facts and figures for shareholders and the less emotionally attached they are, the easier it is to make decisions based on profits. It reminds me of a caste system and the employees, peasants, are far too low-class for shareholders to engage with. It takes an over-the-top TV stunt for the CEO’s to realize how invaluable the employees are, and how poorly they’re treated.

Conversely, the CEO’s return to their board of directors and families with a renewed sense of respect and humility. The first thing they do is report their findings and suggest plans to improve or highlight certain aspects of the business. It’s a shame a costume was necessary to get such vital information but I suppose the positive note is that the stunt worked. Also, some of the life stories the employees share knock the wind out of me. The show is able to shed light on how similar shareholders and employees can be.

Personally, I think this is proof of how beneficial open communication between shareholders and employees can be. The nice part is you don’t need to embarrass yourself on TV, that’s already been taken care of.

Related articles

• Johnny Rockets’ ‘Undercover’ Boss Is Recognized (VIDEO) (tvsquad.com)
• “Undercover Boss”: Lying to Tell the Truth (oup.com)
• TV’s Undercover Boss: Invaluable Experience or Just Hype? (ybpguide.com)

Tags: CBS, Chief executive officer, Corporate social responsibility, Employees, Employment, public relations, Reality television, Social Responsibility, Undercover Boss

This entry was posted on December 16, 2010 at 2:21 pm. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Posted in Corporate Social Responsibility Public Relations Social Responsibility by Gabe Chesman 1 Comment