Phil doesn't completely know or understand what goes on above or under him in the company hierarchy, but he is really, really, really good at keeping his proverbial plate absolutely empty -sparkling clean, really- at all times.
He's a pretty slick, smooth, socially competent master delegator who doesn't mind being the bad guy, and when he does take the heat from his boss he does it with a huge awkward smile only an upper manager could love.
He's into professional self-improvement and knows all the lingo. He's also secretly into personal self-improvement, and knows all that lingo. There aren't many good pictures of him, it's like he has an unphotogenic curse. Or perhaps he's constantly dealing with a crippling, face-twisting impostor syndrome where his very soul tries to cry for help by coming out of his facial features through microexpressions that can only be captured by a camera. But doggone it, people like him!