Undercover Boss Episode 3

Saw the preview for Undercover Boss episode 3 at 7-11. The preview seems to indicate more of the same. CEO works with the commoners and discovers how hard they work and the challenging lives they lead.

One clip showed the boss saying "You are on dialysis?" to one of his employees. Maybe the CEO will donate his kidney at the end of the episode....

Comments

  • 29 Comments sorted by Votes Date Added
  • Did anyone watch last night's episode?
  • When the Olympics are on? You're kidding, right?
  • Hey supposedly its America's #1 show! (according to CBS)

    And more than that, in this episode an entirely NEW ceo has a heartfelt experience with an entirely new group of employees in a way that is TOTALLY different from the heartfelt experiences of episode 1 and 2.
  • According to the overnight Nielsen ratings, "Undercover Boss" dropped in numbers of viewers from the previous week, but not as much as you would think. The big loser in that time slot apparently was "Desperate Housewives." Paul, did you watch any of the above? tk
  • I didnt watch Undercover Boss last night. I'll watch it online tonight though.

    If its the same basic story as the first two episodes I am done. This coming from a guy who has watched all 20 seasons of Survivor.
  • I haven't watched it yet, and although I've intended to catch it at some point the series may be over before I get a chance to.

    We are currently without t.v. We cleared out the living room (where our only t.v. resides) to rip up the old carpet, and, as house projects often do, it turned in to a much bigger deal than we thought it would be...suffice it to say that the floor underneath the carpet needs to be replaced also. I don't miss the t.v. too much, but I am going crazy listening to the banging of tools and the swearing of husband and if this isn't done soon I've threatened to move into a hotel. Oh, and we also decided that once we get the floor replaced, before we put down our new wood flooring and put the furniture back, we're going to paint the walls, so the living room will still be unliveable for much of the rest of this week. Hmmmm, a hotel room is sounding more and more inviting all the time...
  • Oh man, this show! On one hand its really frustrating because it feels contrived and manipulative but on the other hand its discussing really important issues that are rarely talked about on television.

    The good:
    - compelling employees
    - the boss seems to really enjoy the experience
    - a fun show to watch

    The bad
    - a cartoonish "I am living zee American dream" russian driver. Awesome guy but he felt handpicked
    - no bad employees? Umm... are the stores and employees picked to weed out the bad ones?
    - the ending was a little mushy

    I'll like this show when they have a TRAINWRECK episode where everything goes bad and the CEO is horribly emberassed.
  • We used to have a member (I think it was Gillian) on here who claimed there were no bad employees. He believed you just needed to change your approach. Since he lived in the country of California, that is saying something. He retired still of the same mind.
  • [quote=Paul in Cannon Beach;719130] This coming from a guy who has watched all 20 seasons of Survivor.[/quote]

    Is it only 20 seasons? Wasn't Jack LaLanne the first winner?
  • Regarding the supervisor Jimbo from Hooters, the producer of Undercover Boss recently explained that the show was not going to focus on individuals but rather policies that need to be addressed.

    In other words, nobody will be fired on Undercover Boss. Bummer.
  • I want to see the episode of Undercover Boss where the CEO has to go sit in the HR office for a day. The day before, the HR Mgr. would send out a reminder to all employees stressing how important it is that they take advantage of the department's Open Door policy.

    :angel:
  • The next episode of Undercover Boss will be "White Castle". According to the CBS commercial it will be an inspiring episode where a white male CEO learns how hard his minority and women employees work.
  • One of my branch managers was a White Castle manager 15 years ago... This episode is her dream come true.
  • We could make this into a drinking game. Everytime the boss discovers that some supposedly-simple task assigned to unskilled high school kids is actually pretty difficult, we drink!

    Any takers?
  • I like it but we need to refine the rules a bit more. You drink anytime:

    - the boss discovers that some supposedly simple task is difficult
    - anytime the boss gives an innappropriate gift or reward to an employee with a difficult life situation
    - anytime a stereotype employee is shown (the hardworking immigrant, the gruff but loveable older lady, the upbeat minority)
    - anytime the boss chokes back emotion
    - anytime the boss is shown in his cheap motel really THINKING about the experience he is having
    - anytime the boss sees something he doesnt like and makes an "emergency call" back to corporate to remedy the situation

    How does that sound?
  • I feel bloating and lots of tinkle runs coming on. (Can I say tinkle runs?)
  • [quote=Paul in Cannon Beach;719158]I like it but we need to refine the rules a bit more. You drink anytime:

    - the boss discovers that some supposedly simple task is difficult
    - anytime the boss gives an innappropriate gift or reward to an employee with a difficult life situation
    - anytime a stereotype employee is shown (the hardworking immigrant, the gruff but loveable older lady, the upbeat minority)
    - anytime the boss chokes back emotion
    - anytime the boss is shown in his cheap motel really THINKING about the experience he is having
    - anytime the boss sees something he doesnt like and makes an "emergency call" back to corporate to remedy the situation

    [B][I]How does that sound?[/I][/B][/quote]

    Sounds like a recipe for alcohol poisoning to me. I missed episodes 2 and 3 but remembered to watch last night.
    I wish they would post updates on these programs they are developing with the employees . . .what does an employee wellness program at White Castle look like? What specific resolutions/action did they come up with at the plant where the supervisor watched the employees work from the break room (and was that a break room where employees were smoking in the middle of a food prep warehouse?)
    I thought this episode was also especially bad for the "inappropriate gift or reward to an employee with a difficult life situation," which seems to be Paul's pet peeve. I can see all the other hard working high school students at White Castle screaming "where's my scholarship?" and certainly many hard working employees with good attitudes have disabled children they need help with. I can see how that could cause some resentment in the ranks.

    Oh, and I like how he made sure to mention his health transformation many times but also took as many opportunities as possible to eat the product on camera.
  • I have to admit this show is pretty watchable even though its contrived. I even choked up a bit at the end when some of the employees were in tears.

    That said, I think this show is has some serious problems. While CEOs and line employees are being elevated and glorified, supervisors are becoming the villains.

    You get the message that most work problems are caused by supervisors who are either lazy (White Castle) or abusive (Hooters).

    That's the only conclusion the show offers. CEOS are compassionate and truly interested in learning. Line employees have hearts of gold and challenging lives.

    Its the dang supervisors who are the bad guys. I think that is really an unfair message. Supervisors are often caught between having to comply with corporate policies while dealing with very real problems in the trenches.

    Not all supervisors on UB are bad. And the "bad" ones always apparently have a change of heart and become "good" supervisors by the end of the show.

    Celeste is right. I would LOVE to read the White Castle Wellness Program. That's just funny all by itself.
  • Celeste, you can watch previous episodes of UB on the CBS.com website.
  • I was able to obtain this from my sources at White Castle. I think this is what you guys are looking for.


    [SIZE=5][B]White Castle[/B][/SIZE]
    [SIZE=4][I]Employee Wellness Memo[/I][/SIZE]


    Dear Employee:

    Never forget to bring your lunch.

    That's all... Now, drop the Stridex pad and return to work.


    Sincerely,

    The Management
  • I watched it for the first time last night and I agree with all the issues Celeste raised. The only thing I can add is that this show is incredibly boring.

    Sharon
  • The show is a ratings success and even topped the Olympics from 9:30 to 10 pm.
  • The good thing about the show is that you can miss episodes and still know exactly what happened. As many of you already stated, all of the shows so far played out exactly the same (only the name of the company changed). And, I agree that giving bonuses and scholarships to one or two employees just because the CEO happened to hear their stories is bad policy. If a company wants to award scholarships or "hard-luck bonuses", they should come up with some criteria and application process.
  • White Castle Wellness Program is an oxymoron. I agree with everything that has been said...but I still find myself sucked into the show! Which I quickly followed with the Marriage Ref. Anyone catch that one?!
  • I caught the Marriage Ref, but recorded the other.

    Hubby and I laughed and laughed. The rest of the night one of us was saying, "I can't. I can't. I cannot. I cannot. I cannot....."
  • We are hosting a conference here for about 250 leadership staff in our industry and I brought up Undercover Boss during lunch. Everyone at my table LOVES the show.

    The agree its a little formulaic but they still think its great and dont miss an episode.
  • This last Sunday's episode of Undercover Boss was a repeat of the 7-11 episode. Which was a repeat of the Hooters episode. Which was a repeat of the Waste Management episode.
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