Poker in the Showroom and Flowers in the John

Television often lives up to its billing, surprising as that is to say. Last night’s viewing included several well done reality shows. First up was “boss swap,” where two car dealers exchanged sales managers. The first dealership was, improbably, run entirely by women. The second shop specialized in exotic cars, and was run by an all man crew. Woman sales manager’s first action after arriving at the male run shop was to clean the place up. The bathrooms, she said, were putrid, and there was a mess in the showroom. And they were trying to sell Porsches and BMWs. She brought flowers into the bathroom and purchased new fancier signs. Then she took aim at the circle of gamblers who every day played poker in the showroom. NOT! Gone was the gambling and the bathrooms smelled like roses.

At the all-woman dealership, there were also serious changes afoot. Instead of allowing the gals to saunter in at 9:15 or 9:30, a time clock was installed, and a white board to keep track of sales. A contest was put in place where every one on the winning team would win $1000 in cash. Video monitors were placed in every office, under the guise of safety, but really, to keep people working hard.

At the end, the hardnose tactics of the men prevailed. The ladies loved the strict new rules and the resulting sales, and the men removed the flowers and resumed their showroom poker games.