Leadership Techniques In Steve Carell's The Office

Abstract

This leadership paper discusses three supervisory techniques that Michael Scott, the fictional character portrayed by Steve Carell in the television series “The Office”, uses as Regional Manager of Dunder Mifflin Paper Company. It introduces the three techniques and provides examples from the TV series to support my claim that he uses them. Furthermore, this paper will answer questions regarding my opinion on if the techniques are effective or not, what I would have done differently, if anything, and which trait I relate to most.

Michael Scott is the Regional Manager for the Scranton, Pennsylvania branch of the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company. You do not have to watch “The Office” very long to realize that he is lacking the

He works very hard to ensure his employees progress. For example, when he was going to be gone from the office for a while he appointed Dwight Schrute as co-manager and also gave Jim Halpert more responsibilities to give them the experience they needed for their professional growth. Michael Scott also sent Jim Halpert to a different Dunder Mifflin branch to learn more about the company and even assisted Ryan Howard in receiving a promotion at the corporate headquarters. Every time he goes out on a sales call or recruiting trip, he takes an employee with him to mentor them. Even though most of his mentorship is professional related there are instances when he mentors someone in their personal life. For example, he gave Pam Halpert vacation days so she could go to school and talked her into pursuing her dream in design. The biggest mentorship decision he made was when he demoted himself and made Dwight Schrute office manager so that he could gain experience and Michael could mentor him one-on-one. Michael Scott is a mentor first and then a boss. He will do whatever her needs to ensure his team succeeds.

I can relate to all three of the supervisory skills easily. I have been a supervisor for almost five years and luckily had good mentors, like Michael Scott, to help me along the way. Each one of the three supervisory techniques are important and a most have for any supervisor at any company. When I got my first leadership position I was told to always use effective communication with both to my subordinates and superiors, ensure my office has great morale, and always train someone to do your job because one day you won’t be here