Do you still laugh every time Michael Scott asks Toby Flenderson, “Why are you the way that you are?” Well, you’re not alone.
In honor of the 20th anniversary of the premiere of The Office, we asked HR leaders (and Paul Lieberstein) for their thoughts on the show.
We found that not only has The Office had a profound impact on the HR community, but several people leaders empathize with Scranton’s own HR contact.
“The Office employees routinely dismissed Toby despite his role being designed to create a more productive, safe, and enjoyable workplace—the cruel irony being that their rejection of HR undermined the very environment he was trying to build. His quiet dedication to improving their work lives went unappreciated, highlighting how even well-intentioned HR professionals can become scapegoats when company culture resists positive change.”—Tracy Avin, founder, TroopHR
“What I love about Toby is that he has integrity and is always trying to do the right thing, even when it’s hard. That’s one of the many wonderful qualities of the HR community. But unlike poor Toby, most HR folks are viewed as valued partners by their colleagues across the business, and I also think we have a lot more fun” —Ashley Goldsmith, chief people officer, Workday
“Toby makes HR seem like the hall monitor of an office; someone nobody likes and who ruins the fun parts of working in an office. In reality, Toby would never exist in that office because an on-site HR rep for a regional office with about 20 employees is just redundant. I started watching The Office when I was in middle school, so Toby certainly didn’t stop me from pursuing HR.”—Logan Milford, total rewards analyst, Verra Mobility
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“People think HR is where joy goes to die, but in reality we’re just trying to prevent the Michael Scott’s of the corporate world from getting the company sued. Toby Flenderson is living proof that HR matters and exists to clean up everyone’s messes while getting zero credit and all the blame. I started watching The Office before my HR career began, but let’s just say it hits differently now when you’ve actually had to deal with real life Michael Scott’s!”—Leigh Elena Henderson, founder, HRManifesto, co-host, HR Besties Podcast
“I have watched the show at various stages of my career—at the early stages of my career working outside of HR, I thought his [Toby’s] character was just a false exaggeration of a HR role. Then, as a business manager having to work with HR, I saw how much of the character was actually true; and now being a leader inside of HR, I work very hard to make sure that my team and I are not anything like Toby.”—Su Joun, principal, Diversity at Workplace