the subordinate is IN

Jul 16 2023

the subordinate is IN Podcast artwork

This podcast is about all things work-related; we offer advice and/or perspective on jobs, work and management. Depending on the episode, my co-host and I may choose a particular topic or theme, and then focus on it in some detail. But for others—what we refer to as our "Jam sessions"—things are a bit more candid and free-flowing. As for who the two of us are? Well, let’s just say that’s not nearly as important as what we are NOT. We’re not managers, we're not CEOs (nor have we ever been ), and neither of us has our MBA - and that very much informs the perspective of the show. We like to think we offer insights from the so-called "bottom" of the organizational pyramid, as opposed to the top - although once you dive into this first season, you’ll learn we both have a problem calling it that...

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Ep15: Jam session

Jul 16 2023 55 mins

In this, the final episode of Season 1, my cohost and I look back on the show, defend our decision to remain anonymous, discuss “loerarchy” in greater depth (again), and hint at what’s to come in Season 2...

Ep14: The "honeymoon" is over

Jul 15 2023 48 mins

Most of us have experienced it at some point in our careers: the "honeymoon." That first 6 months or so of relative bliss at any new job. So how might it contribute to our eventual disillusionment with our own managers, and/or the workplace more generally..?

Ep13: Jam session

Jul 14 2023 44 mins

In this episode, my co-host and I again express sympathy for managers—especially frontline managers. We also discuss why managers are often threatened by employees who excel, how management by loerarchy resolves the “advisor-evaluator” paradox (the topic of the previous episode), and why in a hierarchy, you only need to fool one person some of the time...

Ep12: The Advisor-Evaluator Paradox

Jul 13 2023 55 mins

Subtitled “Sympathy for the manager,” in this episode my co-host and I discuss the absolute impossibility of being both an advisor to, and evaluator of, your employees. And yet all managers are tasked with, and expected to execute on these inherently paradoxical responsibilities...

Ep11: Jam session

Jul 12 2023 52 mins

In this episode, my co-host and I engage in another candid discussion about all things work-related. We offer a few additional thoughts on the concept of “team”, agree that you get what you reward, and imagine what it might mean to tie employee compensation to organizational performance...

Ep10: Team? What team?

Jul 11 2023 70 mins

Have you always thought that teamwork and a sense of team are critical to the success of any for-profit business? In this episode, my co-host and I argue that neither of these concepts are as important as you might think...

Ep9: Jam session

Jul 10 2023 47 mins

In this episode, my co-host and I discuss all things work-related in another free-flowing jam session. Topics include the differences between the for-profit enterprise and other types of organizations , why management by loerarchy is an “11”, and Adam Smith and the division of labor...

Ep8: Jam session

Jul 09 2023 47 mins

In this episode, my co-host and I again discuss a variety of work-related subjects (and “loerarchy”) in another free-flowing and candid "jam session." This includes the difficulties involved overturning deeply entrenched ideas about capitalism, the nature of self-interest, and the mentality that the “customer is always right” vs. “let the buyer beware”...

Ep7: Your employees are your boss

Jul 08 2023 48 mins

In a previous episode, my co-host and I argued that managers are more effective—and their organizations are more profitable—when they behave as if their employees are in charge of them, not the other way around. In this episode week, we explain why that works: Your employees actually are in charge...

Ep6: Jam session

Jul 07 2023 56 mins

In this episode, my co-host and I engage in another free-flowing discussion about “loerarchy” and all things work-related: Why good managers don’t always thrive—and are sometimes punished—for doing their job well, and why doing what you need to do to get ahead may involve ignoring your own humanity...