The Apprentice star Mike Soutar has shared his top tips for those vying to become Lord Sugar’s next business partner.
The business mogul is set to appear on TV screens this Thursday for his regular spot interviewing the finalists on the hit BBC business show.
Mike, who grew up in Glenrothes, has appeared on the show since 2011 after coming to the attention of Lord Alan Sugar – who was impressed by his entrepreneurial experience in the publishing industry.
He is encouraging more Scots to put themselves forward for the show – which has not had a Scottish winner since it first aired in 2005.
From DC Thomson to The Apprentice
After starting his career in Dundee at DC Thomson as an editorial assistant for a teenage magazine, Mike Soutar went on to move to London where he began a career which would see him go on to launch his own magazine publisher, Shortlist Media.
The Apprentice researchers originally reached out to Mike hoping to utilise his business in a task on the show which would see candidates create free magazines and secure advertising.
But after making his TV debut, Mike was asked by Lord Sugar if he’d be willing to join the interview panel.
Now the V&A Dundee board member has become one of the most feared interviewers on the show – famed for the forensic research he carries out on each candidate and their business plan.
Mike said: “I didn’t really expect to be called back but I was called back the second year – and I’ve been there ever since.”
Speaking ahead of Thursday’s episode, Mike said there may be a surprise in store for viewers of the show.
“There might be one or two little surprises, we’ll just have to see what makes it on scene won’t we.”
Plea to Scottish entrepreneurs to apply for next series
Since the programme was first aired in 2004, no Scot has ever went on to win the series.
But Mike, who will be returning to Dundee on March 27 for the Courier Business Conference, is hoping to inspire more Scottish entrepreneurs to take the leap and apply for next year’s show.
“Next series will be the 18th season of The Apprentice – I mean, we’ve got to get a Scottish winner over the line,” Mike said.
“I would say to all the Scottish entrepreneurs out there, the people who have got entrepreneurial spirit and got good ideas – get applying.
“I am so committed to entrepreneurialism in Scotland I think it’s the absolute answer for Scotland as a country.”
Mike’s top tips to becoming Lord Sugar’s next business partner
But what does it take to become a successful candidate? Mike shared his top tips of what he believes Lord Sugar looks for in a promising entrepreneur.
Mike said: “It’s a really tough process.
“None of it’s acting, nothings made up in there, basically as a candidate you get a realistic business task which you have to complete in a very tight time frame and it’s the time pressure that tends to bring out the best and worst in all of the candidates.
“So, if you’re going to be one of the candidates you have to balance up two things: you have to be a really good team player and at the same time you have to really stand out.
“The people who tend to rise to the top in those tasks are people who have an inner confidence but not an arrogance – there are some people who just take up all the oxygen in the room and they don’t tend to last very long.
“Neither do the ones who are wallflowers – they get spotted.
“It doesn’t surprise me the people who ended up winning the process because those people are confident and they’re really solid people but they don’t try and dominate everything.
“A good investor backs the person first and the idea second and Alan wants to invest in people.
“Especially in start up businesses, start ups are there to be nimble and to pivot – the thing that never ends up changing is the person.”
Conversation