Career coach Corinne Mills casts her appraising eye over The Apprentice candidates as week two brings a disastrous interior design challenge.
Ross
An awkward Project Manager clearly out of his comfort zone: telling Jeff he smelt like a numbers person, and forgetting to cost in for their “time and talent”. The resulting multi-coloured room was less boutique experience, more grubby student digs circa 1982. Yet in the Boardroom he had a moment of magnificence, assertively stopping Lord Sugar’s bombardment in its tracks. Far from incurring his wrath, I suspect he’s won Lord Sugar’s grudging respect. More of this please. 7 (for managing Lord Sugar)
Michaela
We now know she isn’t an arty person. But confronted with the girls’ golf club statement piece, she seemed to have a point. Very down to earth, she says precisely what she thinks – including describing Busra as a “bell-end”. Astutely lending her negotiation skills to the furniture buying, Michaela is a formidable contender. 5
Sarah Lynn
She took a back seat in this task, but the skills we saw last week still shone through. The girls’ presentation to the hoteliers was deservedly torn to shreds. Sarah stepped in diplomatically to retrieve what she could, saying that they had reserved some budget which could be used to accommodate their feedback. Nice move. 5
Anisa
We didn’t see much of her this week apart from enjoying a cocktail with Gerald Scarfe as though this is the kind of thing she does every day. She didn’t cause any fights or eye-rolling – so that’s a plus. 4
Harrison
Although he wasn’t highly visible in this task, Harrison is a strong presence. He cheekily negotiated a further reduction after they had agreed a price. He won’t be a pushover in this competition. 4
Bushra
Aiming for a golf themed art deco concept, her bedroom was truly awful – unless perhaps you’re a golf fanatic who would enjoy using a handy piece of statement art to vent your rage on the cold walls. She tried to patronise the hoteliers that this was “on trend”, but they were having none of it. Needs to work on her relationship building skills. 3
Charles
Last week it felt like Charles was Piggy in the Lord of the Flies as his team unanimously rounded on him. This week he seemed to irritate them far less. He described the boys’ abomination of a bedroom as “class”. That doesn’t say much for his aesthetic judgement, but perhaps he’s learning that team work can pay off. 3
Elizabeth
Grabbing the tape measure, Elizabeth was determined to be ruler of the room – but she had mixed fortunes. She successfully managed the budget within an inch of its life, but as keeper of the measurements her pottiness seemed to overwhelm her. Her irritated colleagues seem to have decided not to spar with her. Probably because they know she’ll sabotage her own chances without any help from them. 2
Elliot
His contribution this week was to insist that a mature cheddar yellow replace the white in the Union Jack themed room. If Elliot wants to remain, he needs to make a more positive impact. 2
James
His over-confidence could be problematic. “I don’t want to be sexist but when we heard painting and decorating we all knew we would get this one.” Yet he ends up in the Boardroom fighting to stay. If he thought the task was only about painting and decorating then his listening skills aren’t great, nor is his judgement about his and other peoples’ capabilities. In addition, his cost miscalculations will ring alarm bells for Lord Sugar. 2
Jade
The Graphene Queen showed some spiky edges this week as she locked swords with Brand Princess Joanna. Jade’s insults had a disconcerting viciousness to them. She will need to watch her emotional controls if she is to prove she has the resilience needed to run Lord Sugar’s new business. 1
Joanna
Joanna’s personal brand seemed to be slightly compromised this week. The spat with Jade left her slightly tearful, which didn’t quite reinforce the cool, confident power woman message she likes to convey. Neither did asking Busra if “there is such a thing as a tree with fur?” She is going to need to reclaim some ground. 2
Sajan
In this task he saw himself as a creative guru. “I give them the fruits it’s now up to them to make the juice.” However, his ideas are largely superficial nonsense. His mood board was less Kelly Hoppen and more toddler collage project. However, he is quite endearing with his warm approach and relaxed manner. If we can see some substance, he might stand a chance. 2
Sarah Jayne
She seemed tight-lipped and unhappy throughout the project. Admittedly she did have a tricky team to deal with, which included Elizabeth and Siobhan, but the overall impression of her was one of joylessness. 2
Siobhan
No accusations of “faffling” this week. Instead, she seemed quite pleased that other people were also finding Elizabeth infuriating. Maybe she has also learned that if she doesn’t get embroiled in personality clashes, she’s less likely to be dragged into the Boardroom. 2
Andrew
The Clark Kent look-alike seemed curiously absent, this week apart from praising the high standard of his bedroom painting. Is he secretly flying off to tackle the Lex Luthers of this world? 2
Jeff
Like your school friend’s attention-seeking kid brother. Desperate to hang out with the big kids. Saying stupid stuff just to get a reaction. Cute only in small doses. Jeff wanted to shine as a creative person as well as a business leader. He succeeded as neither. But he will be happy he showed us his break-dancing. 0
Corinne Mills is a career coach with www.personalcareermanagement.com
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The Apprentice candidates reviewed by a career coach – week one
