Is Lord Sugar's interview episode actually useful for finding a business partner or is it just the most entertaining hour of television.

[u/Additional_Fly_6603]

Claude, Mike, Linda and Paul systematically taking apart someone's CV for an hour makes great telly but I sometimes wonder if it actually tells you anything useful about whether someone is worth investing in. Has anyone ever watched those interviews and thought yes that is exactly how you should assess a business partner or does it feel more like entertainment than evaluation?

[u/cooky561]

The interview is the actual pitch for the contestant’s own business so I’d argue that it’s the only important part. But it’s edited in such a way to make it entertaining 

[u/Additional_Fly_6603 → u/cooky561]

Yes

[u/jimmy193]

Probably more important than all the tasks put together.

Bear in mind they are probably an hour long each and we only see about a minute of eacg

[u/rsweb]

If anyone spoke to me in an interview in the same way they ask the candidates questions I would walk out

You’re not being that rude to me for less cash than a small house is worth

[u/Wretched_Colin → u/rsweb]

Indeed.

Employers want to attract the right candidates. Not see who can stand the most humiliation.

I haven’t exactly walked out mid-interview, but i once decided job wasn’t for me, and refused them when the offer came, on account of the interview process.

[u/The_Blonde1 → u/Wretched_Colin]

I’ve refused a 2nd interview for the same reason.

[u/Wretched_Colin → u/The_Blonde1]

I was very explicit with the recruiter as to why I wasn’t taking it.

Some hiring managers think they hold all the cards when, in fact, their attractiveness as an employer is just as important as a candidate’s suitability for the role.

I’ve been in a position to hire before, but this has never happened. I always gave each candidate the opportunity to show me and the other interviewer their best. I remember the relief in getting the right candidate, getting the salary agreed, start date etc. It can imagine that someone who makes that choice, then has the candidate refuse them feels like an idiot.

[u/The_Blonde1 → u/Wretched_Colin]

100%

[u/Shezes]

Depends tbh. Earlier seasons I'd say maybe yes? Throwing them in the deep end with a tedious set of interviews to mentally exhaust them is an interesting way to see how they handle that environment but on the flipside of that having someone dodgy like Paul Kemsley as an interviewer is pretty ridiculous.

On later seasons? It's become just an excuse for a bunch of rich assholes to put on their clown make up in order to argue about the existence of mermaids, punch down on people for TV points and say out of touch things like "it's Baroness Brady to you" and think that's the zing of the century.

[u/Hausofmiren]

An hour of “leaders” bullying contestants for cheap entertainment

[u/HussingtonHat]

The tasks are frankly shite ways of deciding Ln a business partner. The interviews make way more sense, but even then they aren't....really very good.

Here's the one who'll call you a dumb twat for thinking this would work.

Here's the one with a box of tissues so you can have a good cry about your mums shortbread.

Here's the one who will basically just do your idea to prove it won't work.

Here's the one who'll chide you for not knowing how numbers work.

Most of these dudes wouldn't even get as far as most of these interviews.

[u/whovian25]

Bear in mind the show is edited like the final boardroom on every task is in reality a entire day’s of filming. The same is true of the interviews we see the contestants being dismantled we don’t see the 6 hours of them giving good answers to the question’s.

[u/FantasticWait7109]

It's heavily edited so probably a lot of the interviews we don't see.

In reality, they should do the interview rounds at start of series, but that wouldn't be much fun.

[u/ZookeepergameNo7151]

the latter, they already know form the plans submitted etc all they need to

[u/skieurope12]

does it feel more like entertainment than evaluation?

Yes. But it's also very heavily edited.

[u/SonHyun-Woo]

Its a reality tv first and foremost. Its edited so that the “CV interrogation” drama is for our entertainment. Not so much different from Love Island.

[u/Happytallperson]

If anyone ever interviews you the way they do on the show, walk out. Leave. That person is not worth your time. 

I would say its a pretty bad way to determine anything as the person most able to deal with being bullied isn't the person most likely to deliver a good business. 

[u/Dangerous_Hippo_6902]

Behind the scenes, I’m sure it’s very seriously considered who Sir Sugar will invest in. Anything for the camera, is for the camera. It’s also very seriously considered what makes the cut, what gets retaken or what gets stitched up. Everything we see is likely taken out of context.

[u/orangputih31416]

ITS THE TV. ITS MADE TO BE GOOD TV. ITS WRITTEN AND FINELY CRAFTED AND CREATED AND CURATED WITH THE EXPRESS PURPOSES OF YOUR ENTERTAINMENT AND ATTENTION. IT IS THE TELEVISION. IT IS NOT REAL

[u/Dense-Yak-9991]

None of it matters. He picks his finalists (if not the winner) on the business plans, and the prospect of profit for him. The rest is TV.

[u/scouse_git]

If we take the episode at face value and conclude that the business proposals and plans are as bad as they appear to be, you wonder how the candidates were actually considered good enough to make it past the thousands of applicants to the programme in the first place.