Assistant to the Regional Podcast
By Assistant to the Regional
Join them as they break down each episode, highlighting the laughs, lessons, and sharing sales stories along the way.
Assistant to the Regional PodcastAug 05, 2020
Dwight's Speech
Chris and James talk about the importance of public speaking and break down Dwight's speech line by line revealing the famous dictators Dwight plagiarized for his conference speech.
Meet the CFO
LeaderSHIP
Michael and the team head out for Dunder Mifflin's first-quarter leadership retreat, a harbor cruise of Lake Wallenpaupack.
Leader… ship. The word “ship” is hidden inside the word “leadership,” as its derivation. So if this office is, in fact, a ship, as its leader, I am the captain. But we’re all in the same boat. Teamwork!
This week Chris and James explore the high seas to discuss everything from Andre the Giant to motivational speaker Tony Robbin's and find Michael, Jim, and Dwight feeling lost and out of place.
Christmas Party
Michael informs the documentary crew that he received a Christmas bonus of "3,000 g's" ($3,000) for firing Devon. He decides to hosts a Christmas party for the staff but his gift-giving plan goes awry when everything gets swapped.
Chris and James discuss how the office felt when they found out about Michael's bonus and ponder if people in Sales Ops and Accounting feel the same way about seeing the BIG commission checks paid out to Salespeople. Chris and James talk about whether or not Michael should have shared the bonus given the reason for said bonus and they also share their thoughts on Holiday Parties.
Email Surveillance
Chris and James discuss the pros and cons of employee call and email monitoring.
Performance Review
Michael uses his discussion with the staff about their performance to steal ideas for his meeting with Jan. Chris and James discuss the challenges of talking about money from commission to raises. Chris tells a story about asking for a raise gone wrong and provides advice to SDR's/BDR's who are trying to figure out if they should leave for a promotion.
Sellin' at the Chili's
Michael and Jan try to land a new client by taking him out to Chili's.
Chris and James talk about the Art of Relationship selling. Chris tells a story about helping a prospect’s son do their homework in a meeting.
ATTR Update
ATTR is moving to every other week for now.
We have enabled ads and the ad money will go to charity at the end of every month.
We have skipped season 2, episode 6 titled The Fight in which Dwight challenges Michael to a bit of martial arts combat.
We all have had a boss we'd love to fight but there wasn't any sales content so we saved you all the trouble of listening to our voices for 30 minutes.
Thanks for all the love and support and we'll see you soon!
The Price of Loyalty
Michael waits until the last day of the month to fire someone. Meanwhile, Jim and Pam decide to post Dwight's resume on the web. When a new company Cumberland Mills calls Dwight to set up an interview - Dwight starts to consider his loyalty to Michael and Dunder Mifflin.
Chris and James talk about the difference between Loyalty and Naivety while debating if there is anything wrong with salespeople being loyal to the highest bidder.
Michael Scott’s 10 Rules of Business
When Ryan expresses his interest in starting his own business someday, Michael takes it upon himself to teach Ryan the "ten rules of business".
Chris and James talk about which is better an MBA or a degree from the School of Hard Knocks, advice from Kevin Dorsey on how to find a mentor and Chris tells a story about a Lamborghini because in Business, IMAGE IS EVERYTHING.
Office Olympics
When Michael and Dwight head out for the day to close a big deal, Jim rallies the staff together for office games.
Chris and James explore how Dwight could improve his friendship with Michael by using sales psychology and have a lively discussion on gamification in the workplace.
Don't be a Todd Packer
Corporate headquarters orders Human Resources representative Toby Flenderson to conduct a review at the Scranton branch of the company's sexual harassment policies.
Dunder Mifflin’s traveling sales rep Todd Packer spends a day in the office much to the dismay of everyone.
Chris and James talk about toxic sales cultures and why your company culture is who you hire, fire, and promote and what to do if you have a Todd Packer on your sales team.
Link to our Dundies GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/f/attr-podcast-supporting-the-naacp-legal-fund
Link to the article by Dr. Cameron Sepah: https://medium.com/s/company-culture/your-companys-culture-is-who-you-hire-fire-and-promote-c69f84902983
The Dundies
Chris and James talk about the good, bad, and the ugly when it comes to company awards. They also touch on what makes a company event a success and what makes it more like "The Dundies". Chris wraps up the episode by sharing a story about the most ridiculous ending to a company event he's ever attended.
The Great Incentivizer
Welcome to the “Assistant to the Regional” podcast. Each week your hosts, Chris and James will discuss everyone’s favorite TV show, The Office...from the point of view of a salesperson!
Corporate informs Michael that a sales incentive program (SPIFF) has been set up where the top Dunder Mifflin sales representative will be rewarded with a prize of up to $1,000.
Chris and James trade stories around the best and worst SPIFF's, knowing your customer base like Michael Scott, misguided office perks and the importance of listening to your sales team.
Basketball
Welcome to the “Assistant to the Regional” podcast. Each week your hosts, Chris and James will discuss everyone’s favorite TV show, The Office...from the point of view of a salesperson!
Michael Scott comes into work prepared for a team-building exercise that pits the office staff against the warehouse in a game of basketball, with the losers having to work on Saturday.
Chris and James talk about top salespeople being associated with ex-athletes, the pitfalls of the ego-driven "rallying the sales troops" leadership approach, and a story about an aggressive VP on a Go-Kart track.
The Alliance
Welcome to the “Assistant to the Regional” podcast. Each week your hosts, Chris and James will discuss everyone’s favorite TV show, The Office...from the point of view of a salesperson!
Episode 4 opens with a harsh reality: downsizing rumors have not ceased. Dwight Schrute feels particularly threatened by the impending crisis, and, in an act of desperation, forms an alliance with his office nemesis Jim Halpert.
Chris and James talk office alliances, loving to win or hating to lose, and the mistake in promoting salespeople to leadership roles.
Michael's Big Surprise
Welcome to the “Assistant to the Regional” podcast. Each week your hosts, Chris and James will discuss everyone’s favorite TV show, The Office...from the point of view of a salesperson!
Michael is tasked with picking the new healthcare plan, unable to make the hard decision he delegates his responsibilities to Dwight and on his way out the door promises the office a surprise at the end of the day to help boost morale.
Chris and James talk about the reality of being motivated in your sales role, ego-driven sales leadership, and misguided sales events at Golden Corral.
Jim's Commission
Welcome to the “Assistant to the Regional” podcast. Each week your hosts, Chris and James will discuss everyone’s favorite TV show, The Office...from the point of view of a salesperson!
Chris proclaims that this is his favorite "sales" episode from Season 1.
Jim has one big deal that he counts on closing every year. He's even got a bottle of champagne in his drawer. Chris and James talk about comp plans, why using the end of the month to create urgency isn't fooling your buyers, and the danger of overbooking your calendar at the end of the quarter.
World's Best Boss
Welcome to the “Assistant to the Regional” podcast. Each week your hosts, Chris and James will discuss everyone’s favorite TV show, The Office...from the point of view of a salesperson!
This week Chris and James get an introduction to the staff of the Scranton branch of the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company, managed by Michael Scott.
In addition to picking apart Episode 1 of Season 1 from the POV of a salesperson, Chris and James talk about QBRs, believing in what you sell, downsizing, and the need to be liked (a common theme with this cast of characters)!