Is it reasonable to not approve a stapler purchase in three years?

Question

Microsoft has a Windows "honestly" ad about their tablets, where they feature a guy, supposedly an accountant, who brags that he "hasn't approved a new stapler purchase in over three years" (YouTube: The New Windows: Accountant).

Having seen the ad one too many times, I cannot stop myself from having doubts that not approving new stapler purchases is a good way of promoting productivity, maintaining employee morale and increasing (or even maintaining) performance. (In other words, far from being a "good deal".)

Isn't employee time more valuable than saving a couple of dollars on a new stapler? I understand that times are tough, however, in the provided example, no new stapler purchase has been approved in "over three years". Is the portrayed practice acceptable, or does the character in the video show signs of being detrimental to the workplace?

Hey cnst, and welcome back to [workplace.se]. The best questions here are "practical, answerable questions based on actual problems that you face" as explained in the [help/dont-ask]. While questions based on problems not faced by the asker may be okay, "When it comes to workplace problems derived from soap operas, comedies, or other forms of entertainment, the problems faced are entirely fictional, grossly overdramatized, or don't accurately reflect a situation that would present itself in the real world." — jmac, Dec 19 '13 at 05:11
@jmac, thank you for your comment. In this case, this is a very popular 30-second ad that is being quite heavily run on cbs.com (and probably other sites in the US), and I just wanted to set the record straight whether or not the behaviour described is considered reasonable for the workplace. I'm sure the concept of not having a stapler purchase approved is quite real and relatable. Thanks. — cnst, Dec 19 '13 at 05:21
The question isn't about how to get purchases approved (which is a great question), but rather a chatty open-ended question asking us what we think about a situation in a commercial that is likely fictional, grossly overdramatized, or doesn't accurately reflect a situation that would present itself in the real world. Because of the temporary nature of commercials, this is even less likely to be useful in the future. — jmac, Dec 19 '13 at 05:30
Note that a very similar question which was a bit less dramatized was also closed this year. — jmac, Dec 19 '13 at 05:31

The Wandering Dev Manager · Answer 1 · 2013-12-19T10:12:17.677

2

I haven't seen the advert myself (not shown here), but surely the idea is that as everyone is using online collaboration tools by Microsoft, he hasn't NEEDED to authorise a purchase of any tools for hard copy for 3 years (which saves him being distracted all the time from other work by having to approve purchases of staplers etc).

I don't think the idea is buy Microsoft, save on office supplies.

edited Dec 19 '13 at 10:12

answered Dec 19 '13 at 06:07

The Wandering Dev Manager

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Is it reasonable to not approve a stapler purchase in three years?

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