Key things you need to know about being a manager can be learned from the movie Office Space
Updated: Dec 11, 2023
Hey, um, whats happening...
Here are 5 nuggets from the movie along with problem and solution for each:
Your employees can collaborate and work against you. Your employees can collaborate and work FOR you. Make sure you foster a culture of good collaboration.
Everyone has 8 bosses that they feel answerable to. Protect your direct reports from these intruders.
Random process changes (like implementing a new TPS cover sheet or increasing 'flair' requirements) are a distraction. Minimize unnecessary distractions and this will allow the team to focus on priority items.
“The fear of losing your job will only make you work hard enough to not get fired”. The key here is motivation. Figure out how to honestly motivate, and you will unleash peoples’ superpowers.
Everyone has their ideal situation, and their current role may not be the one. We do everyone a favor when we help each other find their place.
Stay tuned for our next blog post when we discuss Sales Management:
Reading this made me think back to my first year as a team lead, when I was convinced I could fix everything by “just working harder.” I remember pulling an all‑night sprint to meet a deadline, only to realize the real problem was the endless chain of approvals that slowed us down—exactly the kind of bureaucratic absurdity the movie lampoons. After watching the infamous “TPS reports” scene, I finally asked my boss for a quick stand‑up to clarify which forms were truly necessary, and the whole process became a lot less painful https://www.acma.gov.au/betstop-national-self-exclusion-registertm It also reminded me of the moment I stopped micromanaging and trusted my people to own their tasks; the morale boost was immediate, just like when Peter…
Reading this made me think back to my first year as a team lead, when I was constantly reminded of the “TPS reports” scene. I spent weeks obsessing over a spreadsheet that no one else seemed to care about, only to realize later that the real issue was communication, not the document itself. The movie’s take‑off on pointless bureaucracy hit home when I finally stopped micromanaging the format of our status updates and started asking the team what actually helped them stay on track https://www.tsars.com/ It was a simple shift, but the morale boost was immediate—people felt trusted, and the work quality improved. I also remember the moment when the protagonist decides to quit, and how that sparked a conversation…