How Toby from "The Office" Destroyed HR's Reputation In the Workplace

This article was written by my son, Matt Filer. If you have seen "The Office", we think you will enjoy this fun piece about HR in the most popular Comedy show in history.

Let me just start off by saying this: I never thought I would sit down and write a piece about "The Office" for work, but here I am. I can tell you this - I do not think I could be more prepared for something if I tried. Malcolm Gladwell talks about how executing an activity for ten thousand hours will make you a master of that craft. I do not think Gladwell had consuming a sit-com about a manager and his employees as a case study, but let’s just say I may have my ten thousand hours studying my favorite show of all-time.

So here we go:

Sadly, a lot of what I thought about the workplace can be traced back to episodes of “The Office”. As a 29 year old, I spent an embarrassing amount of time in high school, college, and even now watching this show. Obviously, I did not think that my boss would act just like Michael Scott. However, if you have seen the show, the stereotypes conveyed about the workplace are somewhat accurate. If you are reading this, and you get offended by the workplace stereotypes coming, I apologize:

• The accountants are uptight, rigid, and not incredibly social.

• The sales team is loud, obnoxious, and thinks they are better than all the other employees.

• The receptionist dreams of any other job they could possibly have besides answering phone calls.

• The manager thinks he is the greatest leader since Abraham Lincoln, when in reality, he offends more people than he helps. For example: He gave himself a “Best Boss Ever” mug (as seen here).

You can stop me if some of this is not a tiny bit accurate about your own office...

However, the most obvious workplace stereotype in the show is the depiction of Human Resources. HR is defined in this show as the rule following police with the mission of sucking the fun out of every room they walk into. If you think this could be an exaggeration by me, here is a quote from the one and only Michael Scott talking about Toby: “Why are you the way you are. Honestly, every time I try to do something fun or exciting, you make it not that way. I hate so much about the things that you choose to be."

So... when I entered the workplace, this actually was my perception of Human Resources. I thought every HR Manager wears a brown suit and an overwhelming vanilla shirt and tie. Their voice would be painfully monotone because that is what Toby is like. I thought HR’s job was to make sure the rules were being followed and the fun was terminated. I thought all of this was true, and my own mother speaks to large groups of people, on the topic of, you probably guessed it... HR.

The writers of the show display that everyone else in the office is fine with Toby when they are just coworkers besides Michael. However, as soon as they are managers for the day or when Michael leaves the show, they turn on him.

For example, when Andy is manager, he begins developing a similar hatred for Toby. Additionally, when Jim is acting manager in one episode, he's annoyed by a simple request from Toby, describing him as "a little bit much".

This is just further proof that the boss is always supposed to be at odds with Human Resources just because their role is now that of the boss. Michael also says, "Thanks to Toby I have very strong prejudice against Human Resources. I believe the department is a breeding ground for monsters." It is hilarious writing, but it really does put HR in a tough light.

Toby from "The Office"

You might be thinking to yourself that I am overgeneralizing the amount of people who took this sit-com seriously and let it shape their expectations of the workplace. However, I do believe that millions of Americans have done exactly what I did, and have probably seen it close to 6 times through, watched the bloopers, and are probably begging Greg Daniels to put together a reunion. With that being said, I really do think people in their jobs view HR as the boring, rule following, and sad people of the workplace. And I believe a lot of that comes from the perception of Toby Flenderson’s character.

However, in my opinion, HR is actually the opposite of the perception that Toby portrays. I will admit to you that Compliance with guidelines and work protocols is not the most exciting thing, but Human Resources is way more than just some rule enforcing robots. The job of HR, especially in small businesses, is to create a culture where people love where they work. HR creates environments where your team becomes a version of your extended family, where they are trained in the values and mission of your organization. The job of HR is to work as a partner to the leader of the business, and they have the responsibility to take the people or paperwork issues in their organizations and handle it. Your HR team should be helping retain and hire the best staff possible and be putting together plans on how to do that going forward. Your HR should be providing feedback plans to your employees to know what they are doing well and how they can improve. I could really go on for days into the role that human resources SHOULD be playing in your businesses.

If your small business views HR like Michael views Toby Flenderson more than what you see above, I recommend you talk to our team. Our two HR experts, Cindi and Karen, will be able to talk to you about your organization and how you can utilize your human resources to affect your bottom line.