Undercover Boss Australia

Undercover Boss Australia is a localised version and third incarnation of the Undercover Boss franchise,
the first series premiered on Network Ten on 18 October 2010[2] with the CEO of Domino's Pizza
Australia, Don Meij.[3][4] Each episode depicts a high-ranking executive or business owner acting as an
entry-level employee to discover the problems in their company.[5]

On 15 November 2010, Network Ten renewed the show for a second series.[6] The second series began
airing on 12 September 2011
Format[edit]
Each episode features a high-positioned executive or the owner of a corporation going undercover as an
entry-level employee in their own company. The executive changes their appearance and assumes an
alias and fictional back-story. The fictitious explanation for the accompanying camera crew is that the
executive is being filmed as part of a documentary about entry-level workers in a particular industry.
They spend approximately one week undercover, working in various areas of the company's operations,
with a different job and in most cases a different location each day. The boss is exposed to a series of
predicaments with amusing results. They invariably spend time getting to know the people who work in
the company, learning about their professional and personal challenges.

At the end of their week undercover, the boss returns to their true identity and requests the employees
they worked with individually to corporate headquarters. The boss reveals their identity and rewards
hard-working employees through campaign, promotion or financial rewards. Other employees are given
training or better working conditions.
Episodes[edit]
Main article: List of Undercover Boss Australia episodes
The first series premiered on Network Ten on 18 October 2010 with the CEO of Domino's Pizza Australia,
Don Meij. The episodes that followed included the CEO of Boost Juice, Janine Allis, and Peter Murray,
National Director of Operations of Veolia Environmental Services.[4] A second series was broadcast from
12 September 2011.[7]



Series Episodes Originally aired
Series premiere Series finale
1 6 18 October 2010 22 November 2010
2 8[8] 12 September 2011[9] 31 October 2011
Production[edit]
Network Ten planned an Australian version for airing in 2009, however the production never took off
and instead, was delayed one year.[10] Ten's Chief Programming Officer, David Mott stated "Weve
defined a few iconic Australian companies. It's a great series. It's a real eye opener. It's a little ripper.",
hoping the series will become a ratings success to similar to that of Masterchef Australia. He also
explained the Australian version will be based on the American version, not the British version "We saw
the UK version, but thought it needed to be upscaled a little bit,"....."That's what the American version
was."[11]

International broadcasts[edit]
Selected episodes of Undercover Boss Australia air in the United States on TLC and OWN, as part of
Undercover Boss: Abroad.[12][13]


List of Undercover Boss Australia episodes
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Undercover Boss Australia is the Australian incarnation of the Undercover Boss franchise. The first series
features 6 episodes and premiered on Network Ten on 18 October 2010.[1] A second series is planned
for 2011[2] which began airing on 12 September 2011.[3]

Contents [hide]
1 Summary
2 Series 1: 2010
3 Series 2: 2011
4 Ratings
5 References
Summary[edit]
Series Episodes Originally aired
Series premiere Series finale
1 6 18 October 2010 22 November 2010
2 8[4] 12 September 2011[3] 31 October 2011
Series 1: 2010[edit]
No. Title "Boss" Original airdate
1 "Domino's Pizza Australia" Don Meij 18 October 2010
Don Meij, Chief Executive Officer of Domino's Pizza Australia goes undercover and returns to where he
started out in the business at various entry-level jobs.[5][6]
2 "Veolia Environmental Services" Peter Murray 25 October 2010
Veolia Environmental Services Director of Operations, Peter Murray, returns to the entry level jobs
where he started his work for Veolia.[7][8]
3 "Boost Juice" Janine Allis 1 November 2010
Janine Allis, founder and CEO of Boost Juice, goes undercover and works in Boost Juice bars and a
mobile van as well as the company's latest venture, Salsa's Fresh Mex Grill.[6][9]
4 "Big 4 Holiday Parks" Ray Schleibs 8 November 2010
Newly appointed CEO of Big 4 Holiday Parks, Ray Schleibs, temporarily steps down from his position to
go undercover in his business.[10][11]
5 "Toga Hospitality" Rachel Argaman 15 November 2010
Rachel Argaman goes undercover in hotels which Toga provides staffing for.[12][13]
6 "Ritchies IGA" Fred Harrison 22 November 2010
Fred Harrison goes undercover in Ritchies IGA stores across Australia. At one location he is sacked due
to poor performance.[14][15]
Series 2: 2011[edit]
No. Title "Boss" Original airdate
1 "Great Southern Railway" Tony Braxton-Smith 12 September 2011
CEO of Great Southern Railway, Tony Braxton-Smith, goes undercover where he will be unloading
luggage, cleaning, making beds, cooking in the kitchens and serving guests in the restaurants.[3][16][17]
2 "Hog's Breath Cafe" Brett Dryland and Rodney Winkleman[4] 19 September 2011
Brett Dyland, Hogs Breath Cafe MD, and Rodney Winkleman, Hogs Breath Cafe OD, head
undercover.[18]
3 "Ella Bach" Pippa Hallas[4] 26 September 2011
Ella Bach CEO, Pippa Hallas, decides to go undercover in her own firm.
4 "JBS Australia" Iain Mars[4] 3 October 2011
Iain, JBS Swift's rock star CEO, is giving up the high life to go undercover.
5 "Staging Connections" Tony Chamberlain[4] 10 October 2011
CEO Tony Chamberlain heads undercover in Stage Connections.
6 "Sodexo" JohnPaul Dimech[4] 17 October 2011
Sodexo CEO and father of four, Johnpaul Dimech, is inspired by staff when he goes undercover.
7 "YMCA" Nick Cox[4] 24 October 2011
YMCA CEO Nick Cox goes undercover and is inspired by the people he meets along the way.
8 "Hutchinson Builders" Scott Hutchinson[4] 31 October 2011
Hutchinson Builders CEO, Scott Hutchinson, goes undercover.
Ratings[edit]
No. Episode Viewers
Metro Cities Rank Notes
Timeslot Day Week
Series 1
1 Domino's Pizza Australia / Don Meij 1,314,000 1 4 6 [19][20]
2 Veolia Environmental Services / Peter Murray 1,134,000 1 7 21 [21][22]
3 Boost Juice / Janine Allis 1,268,000 1 4 21 [23]
4 Big 4 Holiday Parks / Ray Schleibs 1,188,000 1 7 18 [24][25]
5 Toga Hospitality / Rachel Argaman 1,192,000 1 6 10 [26][27]
6 Ritchies IGA / Fred Harrison 1,039,000 2 9 20 [28]
Series 2
1 Great Southern Railway / Tony Braxton-Smith 764,000 2 13 45 [29][30]
2 Hog's Breath Cafe / Brett Dryland and Rodney Winkleman 669,000 2 14
59 [31][32]
3 Ella Bach / Pippa Hallas 796,000 2 10 44 [33][34]
4 JBS Australia / Iain Mars 578,000 3 19 77 [35][36]
5 Staging Connections / Tony Chamberlain 795,000 3 15 52 [37][38]
6 Sodexo / JohnPaul Dimech 531,000 4 22 N/A [39]
7 YMCA / Nick Cox N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
8 Hutchinson Builders / Scott Hutchinson

Undercover Boss
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Undercover Boss is a television franchise series created by Stephen Lambert and produced in
many countries. It originated in 2009 on the British Channel 4.
[1]
The shows format features the
experiences of senior executives working undercover in their own companies to investigate how their
firms really work and to identify how they can be improved, as well as to reward hard-working
employees.
Contents
[hide]
1 Format
2 Franchises
o 2.1 Australia
o 2.2 Austria
o 2.3 Canada
o 2.4 France
o 2.5 Germany
o 2.6 Israel
o 2.7 Italy
o 2.8 Norway
o 2.9 Spain
o 2.10 United Kingdom
o 2.11 United States
o 2.12 Future
3 International broadcasts
4 See also
5 References
Format[edit]
Each episode features a high-ranking executive or the owner of a corporation going undercover as
an entry-level employee in his or her own company. The executives alter their appearance and
assume an alias and fictional back-story. The fictitious explanation given for the accompanying
camera crew is that the executives are being filmed as part of a documentary about entry-level
workers in a particular industry, or a competition with another individual with the winner getting a job
with the company. They spend approximately one to two weeks undercover (one week being the
norm in some editions, such as the U.S. version, and two weeks in some other versions, such as the
Australian edition), working in various areas of their company's operations, with a different job and in
most cases a different location each day. They are exposed to a series of predicaments with
amusing results, and invariably spend time getting to know the people who work in the company,
learning about their professional and personal challenges.
At the end of their time undercover, the executives return to their true identity and request the
employees they worked with individually to travel to a central locationoften corporate
headquarters. The bosses reveal their identity, and reward hard-working employees through
promotion, or financial rewards; while other employees are given training, better working conditions,
or, in extreme cases, termination.
Franchises[edit]
Australia[edit]
Main article: Undercover Boss Australia
The Australian version of the franchise premiered on Network Ten on 18 October 2010
[2][3]
The show
ran for 2 seasons.
Austria[edit]
The Austrian version of Undercover Boss premiered on ORF eins on 16 January 2013 with the CEO
of ASFiNAG, Klaus Schierhackl.
Canada[edit]
Main article: Undercover Boss (Canadian TV series)
The Canadian version of Undercover Boss premiered on W Network on 2 February 2012 with the
CEO of Toronto Zoo, John Tracogna.
France[edit]
Patron incognito is broadcast on M6.
Germany[edit]
The German version of Undercover Boss premiered on RTL on 28 March 2011 with the CEO of
Eismann, Mika Ramm.
Israel[edit]
Main article: Undercover Boss Israel
Italy[edit]
The Italian version of Undercover Boss is Boss in incognito. The show premiered in January 2014. It
is broadcast on Rai 2.
Norway[edit]
Main article: Undercover Boss Norge
The Norwegian version of Undercover Boss premiered on TV2 on 8 March 2011 with the CEO
of Rimi, Thor Linge.
[4]
Ten episodes are scheduled.
Spain[edit]
Main article: El Jefe Infiltrado
The Spanish version of Undercover Boss premiered on 11 June 2011 on Antena 3 named El jefe,
but it was canceled after 3 episodes by bad audience figures. Three years after Atresmedia adapt
the program again, but this time on its other channel laSexta, premiered on 3 April 2014 and
named El jefe infiltrado.
United Kingdom[edit]
Main article: Undercover Boss (UK TV series)
The original UK series produced by Studio Lambert started airing in June 2009 on Channel 4 and
returned for a fifth season in July 2013, the third series featured the bosses of Best Western, Jockey
Club, Harry Ramsden's, Npower andPoundworld, amongst others.
[5]

United States[edit]
Main article: Undercover Boss (U.S. TV series)
The first episode also produced by Studio Lambert premired on 7 February 2010 after Super Bowl
XLIV and featured Larry O'Donnell, then-President and Chief Operating Officer of Waste
Management, Inc.
[6]

On 9 March 2010, CBS announced it had commissioned Undercover Boss for a second
season.
[7][8]
On 28 July, CBSannounced four company executives from NASCAR, DirecTV, Chiquita
Brands International, and Great Wolf Lodge, Inc.had signed up for the second season of Undercover
Boss.
[9]
The second season opener was the Choice Hotels CEO, Steve Joyce on 26 September
2010.
The series was a ratings success for the network, with its premiere episode receiving 38.6 million
viewers and a share of 32%.
[10]
The first season was the most popular new show in any genre in the
200910 television season with an average audience of 17.7 million viewers.
[11]

CBS's premiere of Undercover Boss on 7 February 2010, immediately following the network's
coverage of Super Bowl XLIV, delivered 38.6 million viewersthe largest audience ever for a new
series following the Super Bowl since the advent of people meters in 1987, the largest audience ever
to watch the premiere episode of a reality series, and the most watched new series premiere overall
on television since Dolly on 27 September 1987 (39.47 million). It was also the third largest post-
Super Bowl audience behind Friends Special on 28 January 1996 and Survivor: The Australian
Outback on 28 January 2001.
[12]
Repeats of Undercover Boss have been picked up by TLC,
beginning 25 July 2011; and OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network, beginning Fall 2012.
[13]
TLC has also
picked up selected episodes of the UK, Canadian and Australian versions, which air as Undercover
Boss: Abroad; this series debuted on Monday, 13 February 2012, with TLC broadcasting the series
most Monday nights, and OWN slated to show the series on Tuesday nights beginning 13 March
2012.
[14][15]

Undercover Boss won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Reality Program in 2013 and
2012 having also been nominated in the same category in 2011 and 2010.
[16]

Undercover Boss has been criticised as a "reality show" for presenting scenarios and situations
which rarely happen to employees in real workplaces and are in fact dramatic tricks.
[17]
Others point
out that CEOs in real life workplaces do not typically go out of their way to provide gifts and other
extra benefits to front-line employees at the expense of the bottom line.
[18]

The fourth season premiered on 2 November 2012 on CBS. On 13 March 2014, CBS announced the
sixth season renewal of Undercover Boss.
[19]

Future[edit]
Localized versions of the show format are being produced in Denmark, Turkey, Sweden, Belgium,
and the Netherlands.
[20][21]

International broadcasts[edit]
The American version has been broadcast on a variety of international networks:
[22]

The network in bold indicates that they also air their own version of Undercover Boss.
Country Network
Australia Network Ten
Austria ORF eins
Brazil GNT and Fox Life
Canada CTV and W Network
Finland MTV3
France M6
Germany RTL
India BBC Entertainment
Indonesia B-Channel
Italy RAI 2
Argentina FOX Life
Netherlands RTL 4 and Veronica
New Zealand TV One
Norway TV Norge
Panama Fox Life
Philippines 9TV
Poland BBC
Portugal Sic Radical
Singapore Channel 5
Slovenia Kanal A
South Korea MBC
Spain Antena 3, la Sexta
Sweden SVT
Thailand TrueVisions
United Kingdom Channel 4
Israel Channel 2
In addition, international versions have been aired in the United States on TLC and Oprah Winfrey
Network, under the umbrella title Undercover Boss Abroad.
See also[edit]
Back to the Floor (UK TV series)
Back to the Floor (Canadian TV series)
Secret Millionaire (UK TV series)