Tue, 9 Dec 2014 | By Nicola Sullivan

FROM DECEMBER 2014'S RECRUITER MAGAZINE

Ricky Martin, founder of science and technology recruiter Hyper Recruitment Solutions, has been reminded of how gruelling the experience of being a participant on TV’s The Apprentice was when he recently returned to the show.

This time, instead of vying for the privilege of working for Sir Alan Sugar, Martin was on the other side of the desk, interviewing the most famous and arguably stressed out job candidates in the country.

Martin, who won The Apprentice in 2012, came face-to-face with the final five somewhat frazzled candidates who had the daunting task of presenting their business plans.

Martin told Recruiter: “As soon as I sat down for the interview, the first person that was sat in front of me I looked straight in their eyes and thought ‘man, this person is pretty beat — this person has been through a heck of a process’.” He added: “Bear in mind, it was week 11 of a 12-week process — they would have spent 11 weeks living and breathing The Apprentice and trying to get the investment.” 

Martin relished the opportunity to grill the candidates because as a busy recruiter he spends a lot of time in HR interviewing. “To go on there and do my day job on The Apprentice rather than learn new things was actually in itself something that was a really good experience.”

Martin’s role on the show was to assess the personalities of the candidates to see whether they would be able to work with Lord Sugar. “We have got some very talented people in the process. I think what everyone might have seen on TV is a snippet of really what they are all about,” he said.

The person can make or break a business plan, said Martin. Even the strongest business plans will fall apart if it is being delivered by someone who is as “dull as dishwater”, he added. “If a business plan is not specific enough then it is very hard to assess it.” 

It is recruiters’ ability to address two customers — the client and the candidate — that can give them the edge when competing on The Apprentice, said Martin. 

“Any recruiter is like a business owner because you have got a desk of clients, a desk of candidates and financial performance that needs to be delivered. A recruiter needs to market their jobs and come up with strategies.”