*** The Apprentice 6 ***

I understand that the interviewer screwed up there. But I can see he was getting hot under the collar and I can only think that perhaps it was a slip of the tongue (protocol instead of provider). Most people know what ISP stands for and this includes the non-techies.

I do agree that the interviewer should've been more careful when stating what the acronym stands for, but given the heated circumstances, I can well understand why the wrong word slipped out. I refuse to believe that the interviewer does not know what ISP stands for. It was clear, that the interviewer wanted to take Stuart apart and was getting more irate and hot under the collar, the more Stuart defended his position (which he was right to do).

With regards to Stuart incorrectly describing his company as a telecoms company: I strongly disagree with this. He stated that he is running a telecoms company. Correct me if I'm wrong, but if you are an ISP and people can make phone calls over the internet, using technologies such as Skype, would he not be right in saying that his company is indeed a telecoms company?

He may not offer the entire suite of telecoms products, in the same way that a giant such as BT offers, but IMO he certainly isn't wrong in stating that his (ISP) company is a telecoms company.

What do you guys think?
 
I suppose it depends on the definition of "telecoms company", Stuart claimed his company was a "fully licensed telecoms company".

The interviewer (Viglen guy) took "fully licensed" to mean the same as your Manx Telecom, O2, Orange etc., not a small company selling ISP services.
 
Vampire said:
I suppose it depends on the definition of "telecoms company", Stuart claimed his company was a "fully licensed telecoms company".

The interviewer (Viglen guy) took "fully licensed" to mean the same as your Manx Telecom, O2, Orange etc., not a small company selling ISP services.
Click to expand...

Don't forget that Stuart's company does have an ISP license.
So his company is a licensed ISP company, which offers internet services, via which people (using Skype or VOIP), can also make phone-calls.

IMO, (assuming I have understood this correctly), Stuart was and is absolutely right in what he wrote on his application form. I would've stuck to my guns and agreed to disagree with the interviewer on the definition of "licensed telecoms company".

At the end of the day, in an interview, you have to talk yourself up. You are after all, selling yourself. On a program like the Apprentice it seems odd that selling yourself is discouraged and you can potentially get fired just because your definition of a set of words differs to that of an interviewer.

Lee, in the last series, lied on his CV in order to look more impressive than he actually was and he didn't get fired.

Stuart should've been fired, but in a previous episode - not for having a different understanding of the phrase "telecoms company", but for poor performance. Liz was definitely a better candidate and got fired, because she didn't sell herself enough.
 
Quickly copied and pasted from the sun.

During Stuart's interview with Mr Tkachuk tonight, he confronts the hopeful about his CV, saying: "It says here, 'I formed BlueWave Communications, a fully licensed telecoms operator on the Isle of Man.

"So if I said to you I spoke to a certain gentleman who is the licensing and compliance officer of the Isle of Man government, I'm assuming he would know."

Despite Stuart insisting his claims are correct, Mr Tkachuk continues: "He confirmed that BlueWave does not hold a licence for mobile or fixed communications.

"BlueWave only holds an ISP licence for broadband. Stuart, you're blagging.
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Baggs may have just worded it the wrong way, or it may have been intentional, only he knows ultimately. If Tkachuck checked and the law and relevant authorities says for a company to be fully licenced it needs x or y paper/special sticker/gold star, thats the end of it. If BlueWave doesn't have it, then Tkachuck was right to conclude 'this is wrong' and confront Stuart with it.

a) It may have been completely intentional, and Baggs got found out and owned

b) He simply worded it incorrectly on his application and it was a genuine misunderstanding, knowing full well his company only had an 'ISP Licence' and was not a 'fully licenced' company in the eyes of the relevant authorities, as Tkachuck pointed out.

Unfortunately his abilitity to remedy the misunderstanding and explain what he wrote, was lacking. Getting flustered and defensive didn't help. The interrogators weren't there to give him the benefit of the doubt if he made a mistake. If he had explained calmly what his company actually had, he may have gotten off scott free.

the lesson learnt ladies and gents? Don't assume someone will interperet the words on your cv the same as you, and make sure you know what the stuff on your cv actually means, and you are able to explain it objectively if there is a crossed wire.
 
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sunama said:
A lot of the contestants from the show are top business/sales people.
They may well argue that in the real world, these people have and will last long. ;)
Click to expand...

It depends on how you define "top". The best people are too busy out there already making lots of money and not some wannabe here today and gone tomorrow TV contestants. They probably have as much business acumen and talent as a virgin on her first night in a brothel. ;)

The whole thing is just too funny to be taken seriously. :D
 
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