Content Warning: The following article contains spoilers for the Apple TV+ show Severance and discussions of suicide.
Only the most powerful characters on Apple TV+’s Severance have access to crucial information about what Lumon Industries is really up to. Most of its severed workers, referred to as “innies,” don’t even have the freedom to move without being surveilled, which often extends to their “outtie” version, too.
Managers and middle managers like Ms. Cobel and Mr. Milchick often have the most control over severed employees like Helly and Mark. The workers on Severance are all operating under the authority assigned to them by the most powerful entity in the sci-fi show, Lumon, or its CEO Kier Eagan himself, whose words are treated as gospel in the company. It’s possible to further examine the hierarchies within the series by looking at the characters’ actions and decisions so far.
Devon
Devon may have main character energy thanks to the way she takes care of Mark and raises critical questions of her own despite not being part of Lumon, but those sadly don’t give her any power over what actually happens in the company. At most, she’s an unwitting pawn being spied on by Ms. Cobel, in the guise of being a helpful lactation consultant.
She may eventually help Mark uncover Lumon’s dirty secrets eventually, especially if her storyline with Gabby Arteta continues. For now, though, she’s on the outside looking in, and is often too busy with her own stressful life to truly invest time and energy into investigating Mark’s shady company.
Helly Riggs
Helly’s innie learns how little power she truly has over her position as a severed employee in the most frightening ways. When writing a resignation request to her outtie and other trivial methods don’t work, she attempts to die by suicide, which still doesn’t faze whoever her persona is on the outside.
Aside from not having the power to quit like most severed workers, Helly is also the newbie in the Macrodata Refinement division, which means she has the fewest perks and is the least knowledgeable about the work. That said, Helly does manage to reclaim a bit of her power by being the spark that influences Mark and her other colleagues to start asking questions and be more rebellious.
Irving Bailiff
Irving is a fan-favorite LGBTQ+ sci-fi character, in large part due to his uncharacteristic courage when it comes to his budding romance with Burt. He’s always been a stickler for rules and is often quoting Kier’s teachings, treating them as gospel – this is why it’s so exciting to see him slowly explore his newfound connection with Burt.
Aside from his slightly rebellious actions (not even reaching the point of “lip-to-lip ”), it’s Irving’s senior position in MDR that gives him more authority over newcomers like Helly. Of course, everyone knows that he actually doesn’t have as much power as he may think, but it’s worth noting that it seems like this may change after Burt’s retirement.
Dylan George
Dylan may be the joker in the office, but it would be a mistake to underestimate how much power he has. While he spent most of the season bragging about his perks and mostly keeping his head down and working, it has become impossible for him to ignore his outtie’s life after meeting his son.
Fans now know how Dylan’s talent for his job can actually be used against Lumon, as he confidently asserts that he can be the one person left behind to do a two-man job in activating “the overtime contingency” for Mark and Helly.
Mark Scout
Mark’s innie and outtie may have started out as distinct from each other, but they’ve gradually found their way on the same path against Lumon despite not being aware of each other’s experiences. The protagonist’s innie version has considerable influence on the severed floor, since he’s the division head for MDR, while his outtie (though he may not know it) holds an important trump card over the company.
He’s still in the dark so far, and it will take cooperation with more powerful characters like Regabhi to gain an actual advantage over managers like Ms. Cobel and even the mysterious Board eventually.
Burt
Easily one of the best characters in Severance, Burt is a lovable senior employee and the division chief for Optics and Design. At first, this may seem like he and Mark are on equal footing, but not only does he manage more severed workers, he also seems to have more responsibilities in the company.
Irving captures Burt’s power well when he marvels at the O&D chief’s role in Lumon. Burt is the first to lay eyes on art, décor, and other items that come into the severed floor. He decides what others see in their daily lives as they walk through the corridors and has access to more controversial secrets (like the painting Irving and Dylan find).
Regabhi
Regabhi could be one of the most powerful women in Severance, but since viewers only recently met her, there’s no telling what the full extent of her influence is. So far, fans know that she’s responsible for putting the integration chips in and is the only one who can take them out.
This is a skill that scares high-ranking characters like Ms. Cobel and even the board, which speaks volumes about how important Regabhi really is. She obviously has a plan that she wants to execute with Mark, which could change everything on the show, but fans will have to wait and see exactly what she does.
Seth Milchick
Middle managers like Mr. Milchick seem to be given a lot of responsibilities, especially considering how he’s the supervisor of the severed floor. He may have appeared as a creepy but otherwise friendly boss at first, but his actions over the past season have made it obvious that he only does what’s best for Lumon (and whatever won’t anger Ms. Cobel).
Not only does Mr. Milchick have the power to send severed employees to the terrible break room, but he also has the authority to wake up their innies outside Lumon through “the overtime contingency.” Of course, he’s still stuck in the lower rung of the company’s managers, so he’s still under Harmony’s thumb.
Doug Graner
Whenever Graner’s name is said among the workers in MDR, it’s almost always a whisper or a threat. They know that as the security chief, he’s always watching them and is quick to confront and punish anyone who is caught breaking the rules.
Graner is also responsible for doing the dirty work for Harmony, which requires a level of trust and authority that not even Mr. Milchick is worthy of. Ms. Cobel knows Graner will do whatever it takes to protect the interests of the company, even if that means having to put himself in deadly situations.
Harmony Cobel
Of course, aside from the unseen board and their mostly absent representative, no one else on the severed floor comes close to Ms. Cobel’s level of authority. She makes sure that none of Lumon’s precious secrets make it out of the office, and she also plays an active part in keeping the employees in check.
Harmony’s power extends beyond the company’s location, as she violates Mark’s outtie’s privacy by constantly monitoring and spying on him. It’s up to her to make sure crucial data that may have been stored in Petey’s chip is recovered, and she also gives orders to middle management like Graner to go outside Lumon to track down dissenters like Regabhi.