Thoughts on The Apprentice...

A recent article in the Independent on Sunday questioned whether The Apprentice represents the antithesis of what modern business is really about and if it's time to promote business in a better way on mainstream TV.

Here are my thoughts but please feel free to comment and add your own...

I don’t know any serious businessperson or entrepreneur that would disagree with The Apprentice being the antithesis of modern business. I’m sorry Lord Sugar but even you can’t deny that it’s just good prime time entertainment, less-real business and more show business!

Its remit is without doubt to entertain and it certainly does but I think it’s a stretch to suggest the candidates represent the top young business talent the UK has to offer. Any serious young entrepreneur (having said that some of the candidates aren’t that young) wouldn’t be distracted with thoughts of self-promotion or capitalizing on short-term fame. Unless an appearance on the show, however brief is a premeditated, strategic, fame-hungry move that is?

As a genuine thought leader and speaker myself I can tell you that the speaker circuit is ‘flooded’ with ex apprentice contestants now hungry to impart their extensive business, strategic, leadership and motivational expertise. A few are exceptional, like Tim Campbell from series one for example. Others seem more focused on capitalising on the opportunity of a radio or TV career that a momentary appearance on the small screen creates. However, should we really condemn them for that?

Unfortunately we live in a society that values the opinion of a celebrity over that of a true expert. So, I think it’s time to ‘fire’ the apprentice and make way for the true experts to be given a platform to impart real knowledge and insight into what it’s really like to run, lead and grow successful, dynamic and agile businesses. Understanding ‘real-world’ subjects like leadership, engagement and innovation will help our public and private sector organizations rescue our economy, repositioning the UK as the economic powerhouse it should be.

On another, more topical note, maybe ‘firing’ The Apprentice will free up some much-needed budget creating the financial breathing room for BBC Director General Mark Thompson to deal with his issue of not being able to offer ‘commercial salaries’? And maybe the new director of BBC Vision will breathe a little innovation into the institution and create a business programme with real substance. Get in touch and I’ll host it if you want? Just don’t condemn me for wanting my five minutes of fame!

An overview from my keynote on innovation culture at MI EXPO...

Love, hate and desire drive innovative cultures, says Beswick!

Only 3% of businesses can consider themselves to be truly innovative, according to Cris Beswick, innovation, strategy and leadership expert. Addressing  UTalkMarketing’s MI Expo, Beswick said that despite the fact “businesses are all competing for the same things”, only a few can say that they offer something truly unique to customers.

“In business, we are all here to differentiate, yet the reality is we all compete for similar things, in similar ways and at similar prices,” said Beswick.

“The ones [businesses] that don’t subscribe to this notion and step outside of it – the Googles and the Apples of this world, are the ones that innovate. I believe that any person in any organisation has the potential to do amazing things. Average companies do not innovate – fact.”

Beswick said he believes that the key to becoming an exceptional brand is to create a “culture of innovation” by employing the right people and by focusing on the three emotions that drive the success of a business – love, desire and hate.

“Everybody in an organisation has to love what they do. Managers cannot contractually make staff become energetic and inspired – it’s about having people working in a company that they believe is going somewhere,” he said. On the point of desire, Beswick cited the example of people queuing for hours to get hold of new Apple products.  “That’s desire – people buying with their hearts and not their heads. There are comparable products out there but people have fallen in love with that round little Apple symbol,” he said.

“And hate, [that’s about] your competitors hating you guts. You want to have them scratching their heads and saying ‘how did those guys do that?’”

Beswick outlined seven key traits that he believes can drive innovation in business; strategy, people, community, communication, environment, creativity, risk and leadership; and cited Richard Branson as an innovate individual, illustrating the point that it is often people’s quirks that allow them to innovate.

“Branson was dyslexic at school and a bit of an outcast – look at him 30 years later”, he said. “It’s often more eccentric people, who might not appear to quite fit in, or who look at the world in a different way, that have the ability to innovate,” he said.

He also stressed the importance of an organisation working as part of a team, and working flexibly, to achieve goals. “Create a team spirit, create as flat a structure in your organisation as possible,” he said, adding that getting rid of departments and silos is one of the ways organisations can encourage innovation.

“In terms of innovation, too many people want quick wins. It’s bloody hard work and won’t happen overnight,” he concluded.

How well do you know your customers?

Over the past decade, I’ve been preached to time and time again by MDs and CEOs about ‘customer-centricity’ and how ‘we know what products and services our customers like and we even know what they want us to improve upon and which of our new products they’ll like’. My response: “I rest my case. Haven’t you’ve just told me all about your ‘stuff’ and nothing about your customer?

Being truly customer-centric isn’t about showing them what you’ve got and asking them if they like it. It’s about looking at the world from their perspective and appreciating the problems and tensions they face and the things they aspire to. Without the right insight it’s more likely that what you do will be more about what’s best for your organisation rather than your customer.

When you really know your customers you’ll go beyond trying to sell them products and start to focus on solving their problems and that’s when you start to fuel innovation and differentiation. In the modern fast-paced commoditised world we operate in, it’s no longer about ‘what you do’ it’s about ‘how you do it’. Your competitors can copy products along with everyone else but they wont be able to do it like you do!


“We have only two sources of competitive advantage. The ability to learn more about our customer faster than the competition and the ability to turn that learning into action faster than the competition."


Jack Welch, former chairman/CEO, GE.


There are two points when customers talk about your business. When you’re pretty ‘Poor’ at what you do your customers will let everyone know about it. In the middle sits ‘Good’ but no one really mentions this as ‘Good’ has become the new ‘Average’. At the other end of my scale is ‘Exceptional’ and people talk here of brand loyalty, recommendation and constant endorsement, even Love!

The customer-centric organisations that sustainably differentiate do so because they understand the symbiotic relationship they have with their customers. The benefits for both are obvious but never the primary focus. In adopting this ‘Strategic Mindset’ you move beyond the traditional lip service or at best superficial attempt at customer focus. However, this means creating a different organisational approach to how you do what you do and involves being what I call ‘People-Centric’. Striking the right balance between customer pleasure and shareholder return will always, always be done through your people.

To do this, everyone in your organisation needs to understand how to collaborate on solving your customers’ problems in order for you to provide an exceptional end-to-end customer experience. So, in the same way your customers aren’t ‘Transactions’ your people aren’t ‘Resources’. Create a true relationship with your people and inspire them to be exceptional. Then passionately forge a relationship with your customers by replacing a ‘product-centric’ model with solutions as the fundamental part of your value proposition. Differentiation, innovation and shareholder return will be your natural by-products.

Good luck!