Fictional bosses to aspire to

1. Harvey Specter from Suits

He hired a guy with no past experience and a cheat who claims to have a degree from Harvard even though he's never even been on campus. Harvey Specter is the epitome of the cool boss, suave, detached unless needed, and he's the Batman of corporate lawyers. Like someone else on this list, he has that inspirational streak that can affect almost anyone in the corporate world, from learning the correct number of buttons to wear on a suit, to winning negotiations and getting what you want, in any way possible.

2. Dr. Gregory House from House

Obsessive, intrusive, utterly devoid of any sympathy for the societal norms that regulate the world, House is the kind of boss the world needs, not wants. Imagine a corporate scenario where an employer just wants things done, irrespective of the means and consequences be damned; House would be the greatest boss in the world. His madness is methodical, and you can learn a thing or two about keeping your employees in check while pushing them to go even farther.

3. Hannibal Smith from The A-team

He loves it when things go according to plan. Hannibal Smith knows how to pick a team, compartmentalise work and play to their individual strengths, to the point where every single plan is pulled off seamlessly with pin-point accuracy. While that may be crucial in covert-ops, the practices can be replicated in a work environment if you know how to pull it off.

4. M from James Bond

MI5's iron lady is many things, but the way she moves forward with planning and execution leaves no room for errors or the occasional rogue agent. Her grip on her values and tactile sense may have driven agents to the point of plotting world domination just to get back at her, but then what boss is a boss without inciting some pretty deep feelings in her employees? We love M, but honestly, I think many of us are pulled towards the character because of her fantastic portrayal by Dame Judi Dench.

5. Tony Stark/Pepper Potts from Iron Man

Stark Industries' main man may keep morale in the company high by putting on an exoskeleton suit and fighting bad guys and aliens, but Tony Stark would be nothing without the cool headed Pepper Potts managing everything while Iron Man does his thing. She's the woman behind the scenes, working tirelessly so that Stark can play with soldering guns and metal alloys in his basement.

6. Leslie KnopE from Parks and Recreation

Leslie Knope is the heart of Pawnee. Without her, many a playground would be taken over by the bullying bulldozers on the payroll of supermarket chains, and kids would have to give into to the soda and chips fuelled greed of Capitalist America. Leslie is funny, incredibly smart, and the one bright point of hope for America. Knope We Can, indeed.

7. Jane from IT Crowd

As far as clueless blonde bimbos go, Jane is the best of them all, because she isn't all that clueless, she isn't that blonde, and she definitely isn't a bimbo. Managing a pair of socially awkward IT guys from the basement of a firm run by a misogynistic man-child, she is the all-important bridge between brains and the real world. Some could even say she's the Wheatstone bridge (an electrical circuit used to measure an unknown electrical resistance by balancing two legs of a bridge circuit) of the world, but then she has no clue what it is, and it really doesn't even matter.

8. Don Draper from Mad Men

Where to start? Don Draper is the effortlessly cool ad man from Madison Square Garden, the focal point of America's obsession with billboards and Superbowl breaks. He does it all with a glass of the finest whiskey in his hand, and the charisma emanating from him really gets things done.

9. Malory Archer from Archer

Tasked with keeping her son and top agent in check, Malory Archer taps into her immense vat of energy and patience, the reserves of which run short pretty quickly when faced with the bumbling agents of ISIS (the fictional spy agency, not the terrorising terrorists). The threats would only have an effect when there is sufficient respect for the woman in charge, and usually it does, except for her son, Sterling, who has built up an immunity to her endless rants.

10. Liz Lemon from 30 Rock   

Probably one of the strongest characters on TV, Liz Lemon takes pride in her work and she does it well, despite the idiots surrounding her. She's the prefect boss because she's the filter between what her idiot boss wants and what her idiot employees are willing to do, all the while managing an infantile celebrity and stopping him from ruining his career. Incredible strength and perseverance is a trait we like to see in bosses, and she has it by the boatloads.

11. Darth Vader from Star Wars

Well, he's Vader. What else do you need except the ability to Force choke employees and use Force mind tricks to get them to do stuff? Pure intimidation doesn't get any better than a raspy voice, audible breathing, and a shiny evil helmet.