I don't know about anyone else's experience, but all of my bosses were rude. I can't say if that was accidental or intentional--it was the nature of the boss/employee relationship that I never knew if this was their clever management technique or just stupidity. But I can't think of any boss in any work situation who wasn't rude--sometimes to the point where I would have reported them if I thought it would be safe to do so.
Lena shadowing people at Catco makes sense to me. I'm sure not every business does thngs this way, but I have heard of corporate execs wanting to be hands on and see for themselves how the operation works rather than entrusting it to a lowly. It's the Charles Foster Kane technique.