Undercover Boss Canada, episode 9: horse poop and a sailboat
The Skyline International brand isn’t quite as recognizable as, say, Pizza Pizza or Molson Coors, so we admit it: we thought this episode might be a lame one. That is, until we saw CEO Michael Sneyd’s new look— as usual, the producers went for “dated edgy,” giving Sneyd a faux hawk, earrings and a darkened goatee (why are they so big on leather cuffs?), but somehow that all added up to making him look like a completely different person. (We even had to do a few rounds of rewinding to see the before and after again.) The new and improved Sneyd started off at Muskoka’s Deerhurst Resort with a round Scottish handyman named Billie, doing what Sneyd called “manual effort” (which makes it sound like he’s doing ’50s-style calisthenics).
Anyway, Sneyd and Billie zoom through a few repairs before they’re called to fix some broken iPod speakers. In a segment whose length can only be explained by the fact that the guest is female, blond and hot, Sneyd and Billie retrieve the broken device, set the woman up with a free music channel on her television and accept her hearty gratitude. What heroes! The rest of the episode is the usual undercover fare: Sneyd shovels horse poop, works in the restaurant and ski rental shop, listens to his employees’ sob stories and then showers them with gifts. Sure, giving a sailboat to recently bereaved Billie was touching, but it all feels so expected at this point in the season. Producers, could you throw a little unexpected twist to the premise, please? One suggestion: tarantula tunnel.
In what is clearly HR speak, he tries to call employees “colleagues” during board meetings—but can’t quite remember to do it all the time.
When ski rental manager Korey suggests they hit the slopes, he gets giddy, like a little kid.
He’s painfully awkward as a waiter. Like, so awkward it was hard to watch. So awkward that we wonder if he got any tips.
At the end of the week, he packs his suitcase impeccably. Dude knows how to fold.
His gifts seemed kind of uneven. Imagine getting some ski equipment, and then finding out someone else was given a sailboat.
Apparently, he was so inspired by the experience that he started an annual “Undercover Jobs Day” where executives all spend one shift doing low-level jobs.
Fired. If he’s calling labour “manual effort,” it’s clear he hasn’t done any in quite some time.
, but somehow that all added up to making him look like a completely different person. (We even had to do a few rounds of rewinding to see the before and after again.) The new and improved Sneyd started off at Muskoka’s Deerhurst Resort with a round Scottish handyman named Billie, doing what Sneyd called “manual effort” (which makes it sound like he’s doing '50s-style calisthenics).
Anyway, Sneyd and Billie zoom through a few repairs before they’re called to fix some broken iPod speakers. In a segment whose length can only be explained by the fact that the guest is female, blond and hot, Sneyd and Billie retrieve the broken device, set the woman up with a free music channel on her television and accept her hearty gratitude. What heroes! The rest of the episode is the usual undercover fare: Sneyd shovels horse poop, works in the restaurant and ski rental shop, listens to his employees' sob stories and then showers them with gifts. Sure, giving a sailboat to recently bereaved Billie was touching, but it all feels so expected at this point in the season. Producers, could you throw a little unexpected twist to the premise, please? One suggestion: tarantula tunnel.
Wherein we note where the CEOs embrace life as a plebe (everyday heroes, represented by Amy Poehler’s Leslie Knope), and where they out themselves as fat-cat fakes (everyday zeroes, represented by Ricky Gervais’s David Brent)
In what is clearly HR speak, he tries to call employees “colleagues” during board meetings—but can’t quite remember to do it all the time.
When ski rental manager Korey suggests they hit the slopes, he gets giddy, like a little kid.
He’s painfully awkward as a waiter. Like, so awkward it was hard to watch. So awkward that we wonder if he got any tips.
At the end of the week, he packs his suitcase impeccably. Dude knows how to fold.
His gifts seemed kind of uneven. Imagine getting some ski equipment, and then finding out someone else was given a sailboat.
Apparently, he was so inspired by the experience that he started an annual “Undercover Jobs Day” where executives all spend one shift doing low-level jobs.
Fired. If he’s calling labour “manual effort,” it’s clear he hasn’t done any in quite some time.){kind=link}
What a pleasure to find someone who identifies the issues so ceallry
I think this is a wonderful show reflecting Canadian Businesses. Undercover Boss Canada, episode 9, gave a week in Napa Valley, we have fantastic Canadian representatives in the Niagara Peninsula and the Okanagan Valley producing exceptional V.Q.A. wines. Why educate your Head Sommelier to promote wines other than Canadian.