The new CBS show "Undercover Boss"

Checked out the first episode of Undercover Boss after the Superbowl. I have to say it was a decent reality show to watch as the president and COO of Waste Management went undercover as an entry level employee to see what is going on. This weeks episode is the CEO of Hooters.

I was thinking how cool it would be to have the show with one of the CEO's of an amusement park company like Shapiro or Kinzel going undercover to see what is going on. Could be an interesting episode if it happened.

From what I saw of the preview for that show, the point was to get the CEO on the front lines to be more in touch with what's happening there. The problem at Cedar Fair is that the CEO spends too much time there micro-managing in the first place and failing at the bigger picture things.

^OK, so Kinzel wouldn't be a good candidate for this show. Shapiro might work though. I know most enthusiasts know what he looks like, but the average SF employee probably doesn't.

It was a little difficult for the Hooters CEO as he usually arrives at the grand openings of new stores so he had to change up his look quite a bit.

If anyone hasn't seen the show, check it out, it's very interesting on alot of levels.

I wasn't sure what to make of that show. First of all, my town had Waste Management contracted for years to collect our trash, and I never felt the urge to run out and hug them or make them little gifts like they showed people along that one woman's route. BTW, where do the male employees pee while out on the trucks?

They showed 4 or 5 fantastic devoted employees who all got raises, promotions, appointed to this or that committee to help fix problems, and one over-bearing manager who eventually saw the error of his ways. Not one sign of a goof-off, screw-up, or malcontent. It's not exactly investigative reporting, so it won't show any major negatives about any of the companies involved. Just enough so everything can be wrapped up in an hour and everyone is happy.

Yeah, the WM service where I lived in Ohio was pretty terrible.

RatherGoodBear said:
It's not exactly investigative reporting, so it won't show any major negatives about any of the companies involved. Just enough so everything can be wrapped up in an hour and everyone is happy.

It's entertainment - like any reality show. You film a gazillion hours of footage and edit to a neat 44 minute package and create stories with the usual arc that make the average middle american smile in the end.

What's even funnier is that I didn't see the first one (and had no interest), but my wife wanted to watch the Hooters episode tonight and I sat through it and your description of the WM show:

"They showed 4 or 5 fantastic devoted employees who all got raises, promotions, appointed to this or that committee to help fix problems, and one over-bearing manager who eventually saw the error of his ways."

also describes the Hooters show perfectly. It taps into all the usual stereotypes - the CEO who's out of touch, the workers who aren't appreciated, the sob story of that one worker on the front lines - it's pure storytelling.

Of course they are editing the crap out of it, but I must say, it's a decent reality show and I would love to see someone like Shapiro do this..

Isn't "decent reality show" an oxymoron? :)

^Depends who you ask I guess. :)

I personally can't stand most reality shows. For some reason, this one caught my interest.

The show did really well in the ratings last night.

Right around 16 million people watching (in comparison the Olympics had 29 million) and pull a 5.5 rating and a 13 share in the 18-49 demo. (compared to the 8.0/19 the Olympics did)

I didn't watch last night, but I remember seeing the trailer. I guess there were a lot of people who wanted to see what that jerk manager would make the girls do to be able to leave early. Wasn't it even called "reindeer games" or something? A coincidence going up against the Olympic Games?

Awhile ago, a colleague of mine and I went to the local Hooters for lunch, and our waitress was telling us some stories. There was the usual complaint that the hostess and bartender get a percentage of each waitress's receipts, not tips. For the month of November, the waitresses were told each day to dress up either as a Pilgrim or Native-American, and they had to buy their own costumes. How do you pull off a sexy Pilgrim anyway? And right before the holidays, they hired several dozen new girls and cut back the hours of the more experienced workers.

Maybe some of it was a sob story to try and get a bigger tip. But it doesn't surprise me to hear about stuff like that in the restaurant business.

Lord Gonchar said:
The show did really well in the ratings last night.

Initial ratings dont tell much of a future, just initial interest or lack of other things to watch.. Jay Leno had slightly stronger ratings than that and we see where that went.. I see this show starting strong, and like most reality shows, tanking stronger..

On a long enough timeline the survival rate for everyone drops to zero. ;)

--

Seriously though, I totally agree, Ken. I don't see how CBS thinks this thing has any legs. Then again, if the masses continue to watch the manufactured stories and emotion of something like Extreme Makeover, then this is pretty much the same crap just packaged under the idea of the workplace issues instead of home issues.

Yeah.. Sadly some timelines are much longer than others.

Lost is still kicking strong but I gotta admit, a morbid part of me wishes for the "disappointing" Sopranos type ending just to piss the masses off.. :)

I thought it was a load of fluffy crap. Anyone in middle management knows you're headed for disaster if you start giving people raises or promotions because they 'need it more' than someone else, which is just what the guy did in the first episode. It's a can of worms he opened up and left the local manager to have to explain why everyone else can't get the same deal.

Shapiro probably wouldn't work. He looks young, but I don't think he'd be able to pass off as a ride op. Don't even think about Kinzel.

I spent a day with Shapiro at SFGA a couple of summers ago and all of the managers we came across knew him. Unless Shapiro's schedule has changed, he's always visiting his parks and he would really have to go into makeover mode to slip unnoticed.

I still think it would be great for us to watch. I think it would be great publicity for any chain (in attracting parkgoers and recruiting hires), but it could also backfire if the film crews catch crews slipping up and prompting regulators to be more watchful.

Oh, and of course this show doesn't have legs. It's in the Borat camp. It will get to the point where the show can't approach a company because workers will be able to smell it out right away. I enjoyed the WM episode. Haven't caught the Hooters one yet. Still, I'm surprised CBS devoted the prized post-Super Bowl slot for a reality show that can't have more than a season or two in it.

Rupaul's Drag Race? - now there's a show with legs!

^Too gay even for me.

From what I gather, Shapiro is already fairly familiar with the front lines of his company, anyway.

There is some decent reality shows out there. "Ax Men," Deadlist Catch & Ice Road Truckers come to mind.