The apprentice – Episode 1
October 7, 2010 by Jonathan
Filed under Management
The hype over the new series of the apprentice reached epic proportions and it’s debut last night went off with a bang.
It’s kind of hard to be objective because the show has to cram so much into 55 minutes.
Introduce the characters, pay sufficient reverence to Sralan (sorry Lord Sugar) and the current economic climate, provide entertainment and ultimate have someone fired (although technically, they don’t actually work for him).
As if working a 17 hour shift with complete strangers is bad enough – 17 hours with strangers who all seem to communicate by shouting is a true baptism of fire.
All of this (the task) portion has to be edited into a 25 minute slot for the show.
Even I, the viewer, felt bewildered by the fast moving nature of the show.
Just a couple of observations -
1. I have never met a manager yet who says “This is my management style…”
Most good managers just get on with it.
2. Lord Sugar’s observation that an entrepreneur is not something that you call yourself, it is a label other people give you was a little nugget left in by the producer.
3. My son was slightly surprised that people were working (and cutting meat) and 3:40am.
So the Laws of the apprentice were proved correct again – the project manager on the losing team on the first week was fired.
The viewer was left to get their breath back and I for one didn’t a watch the BBC2 show straight afterwards because I felt I needed a breather.
The only other thing is the low key debut of Karren Brady although Nick Hewer was on form without even saying much at all.
Get a Super NINJA LinkedIn profile. FREE Online Training course. Just jump over to sharp-end-training.net
Two faced, back stabbing, squabbling, short sighted, bullying, bullshitting wannabees lacking any business acumen and with no leadership skills. Yet they all say they are successful. My arse.
Joanna Riley has a conviction for racial abuse, Farrell has a conviction for fraud and concealing dangerous weapons, Self styled surgeon “doctor” Robati has been convicted of professional misconduct.
Allan Sugar should be ashamed to be appearing in the same room as these people. Its the show’s researchers and producers who should be fired as they bury any semblance of the show’s relationship to business by looking for ever more unpleasant characters to fuel the sensationalist appetite of the dwindling and down market TV audiences.
Hello Ann – Sorry to admit that I didn’t watch any of the hype so I just watched the TV show as entertainment. Silly me…
You’re right in respect that it doesn’t bear any resemblance to business.
As part of the Sheffield entrepreneur exchange, I go to schools and talk to kids. Forget actual business and mindset sharing. This is lost as the main part of the education process is that being in business isn’t about walking around shouting and being abusive to people.
There is more to it than idea >> pitch >> trample all over everyone who resists >> retire a millionaire.
The black guy, Tim who won one of the early series still stands out as a person I could do business with. The rest seem forgettable…
Will you be watching the rest of the series Ann ?
I thoroughly enjoyed last nights apprentice. It is made-for-telly and very entertaining as business and boardroom behaviour comes under the spotlight.
The best thing for me was the Your Fired show with Dara O’Briain who I found absolutely hillarious, I haven’t laughed so much for ages.
It’s been great following tweets with #theapprentice too as people blurt out their immediate character assassinations and observations.
I did think that Lord Sugar should have sacked them both immediately rather than listen to all that shouting and carry-on.
Made for TV is right. (But maybe not enough people realise it for what it is).
Our kids watch repeats of gladiators on ?freeview?
10 years plus onwards from Ulrika-ka-ka and it definitely looks the definitive made for TV. Slow & manufactured excitement but the crowd just lap it up. Maybe we are smarter than back then, maybe we aren’t?