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This week's assignment:
Six candidates remained in the competition
for last week's episode. Jim survived yet again despite his continued lack
of professionalism and rude behavior. Martha Stewart's task focused on the
importance of executing your plan effectively and sticking with your ideas.
This week's assignment: Create an
innovative car dealership showroom display to launch Buick's new car, the
Lucerne. The team with the most innovative display wins.
Primarius, led by Dawna, was the clear
winner despite Jim and Bethenny's constant bickering. Their elegant showroom
featured large gallery photographs, with the car prominently centered in a
high-tech display. The General Motors marketing executives were so impressed
that they wanted to duplicate Primarius' concept in their U.S. showrooms,
saying the display "took our breath away."
Matchstick, led this week by a delusional
Leslie, lost with a confusing and shoddy display. Ryan's initial idea was
that the car was so nice you would want to invite it to have dinner in a
fancy restaurant with you rather than leave it outside.
Though the idea was sound, Leslie made a
decision to change the concept midway through the task, resulting in a
disastrous dinner table with wrinkled linens and promotional posters falling
down. It was clear Matchstick was in trouble when Stewart asked, "Is that a
table or a bed?"
In the conference room, Stewart scolded
Leslie for saying "petty stuff" in her attack of Marcela. She wasn't
impressed with her reliance on outside consultants, noting she was looking
for someone who "thinks for themselves." Anyone watching the show knew that
Leslie had blown this task in a big way. What was sad was that Leslie
thought she had done a great job, completed the task virtually
single-handedly and should get all the credit for it. Mercifully, Stewart
had a different take on Leslie's performance and sent her home, telling her
"We just don't need you."
Commentary: Jim as Strategist
At the beginning of this week's episode, as Jim and Dawna
awaited the return of their colleagues from Stewart's conference room, Jim
made of point of telling Dawna that he wanted Marcela to stay in the
competition as long as possible, mainly because he felt that Marcela was not
strong enough to be a serious threat to him. Dawna replied that she wanted
the strongest candidates to remain, so that she could prove herself against
them.
On several occasions during the competition, Jim has talked with other
candidates about his strategy. Indeed, during a victory dinner he attended
along with his Primarius colleagues at the end of this week's task, he
delivered a long-winded monologue about his motives and methods. His blather
was obviously disconcerting to the executives from Stewart's firm who
attended.
No one will deny the importance of having a strategy, either in business or
in a made-for-TV competition such as "The Apprentice." But Jim's mistake
comes from his bragging about his strategy openly. His arrogance and
recklessness in this regard cast real doubts about him. Martha Stewart
should be very concerned that Jim might go blabbing to competitors about her
company's strategy.
Regardless of what his strategy is, Jim should learn to hold his cards more
closely to his vest.
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Lessons Learned
FIT
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Keep it simple.
The big idea doesn't have to be complex. What Primarius did well was
come up with a clear idea of elegance showcasing the car. There was no
guesswork required from a customer viewing their display. The star was
the car. Simple and effective.
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It's all about the execution.
Primarius wisely came to agreement on their
concept and immediately began devoting their energies to execution.
The result was an effective display. A good, well-executed idea will
win over a great, poorly executed idea every time.
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Stay focused on the task.
Primarius team leader Dawna knew that Jim was
attempting to position her as being fully responsible should their
team lose. She wisely chose to focus on the win. Her strategy was
sound. If the team won, so would she, regardless of Jim's shenanigans.
Politicking, back-stabbing and positioning requires a tremendous
expenditure of energy. Far better to spend your limited resources on
improving performance.
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Articulate your message
professionally. Ryan did a good job in the
conference room articulating that if his idea had been executed
properly Matchstick might have won. He was professional and spoke
clearly to his contributions to the team without speaking derogatorily
about his team members.
UNFIT
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Recognize that even experts can
have lousy opinions. Successful
businesspeople use caution taking the advice and counsel of outside
consultants. Just because they have an idea doesn't necessarily mean
it is a good one. Leslie relied on the opinion of a PR consultant --
at the expense of alienating her team. The slogan the PR person gave
her, "Those who enjoy the luxury of choice choose Buick's new
Lucerne," was complex and difficult to deliver concisely.
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Not getting buy-in on ideas.
Leslie made an autocratic decision to change the concept midway
through the task. She didn't consult with her team and, as a result,
lost focus, synergy and team buy-in. Her lack of self-awareness that
she didn't have a clear idea resulted in a poorly designed display
with no continuity or clarity of message. When you hear the words
"dictating" and "just trust me," your team could be in trouble.
Effective leaders communicate their decision-making processes and
typically consult with and include their colleagues in decisions.
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First impressions count.
You only get one chance to make a first
impression. Matchstick made a big first impression -- unfortunately,
it was a lousy one. The showroom looked shoddy and unprofessional,
and it made you wonder if they actually used their $65,000 budget.
Stewart thought the showroom was so bad that she joked in the
conference room, "How could you invite a car to dinner to a table
that looked that bad?"
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Professional conduct is
fundamental. Jim and Bethenny's bickering
was embarrassing to watch. Jim continued to rant, rave, belittle and
threaten Bethenny. This is not teamwork. Leaders need to establish
boundaries and communicate clearly the consequences of
unprofessional behavior -- period.
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Connect with the customer.
Time and time again, The Apprentice shows how important it is to
understand one's target audience. There was no evidence that
Matchstick gave any serious thought to the characteristics of Buick
buyers and what types of things they were likely to respond to
favorably. Ryan's idea of being so emotionally attached to one's
vehicle that the car could be a dinner guest was just too far
removed from reality.
The bottom line? Unfortunately, as project manager, and as someone
who runs a marketing research and consulting company in real life,
Leslie should have called time out during the creative process and
asked, "What about the customer?" Other teams in past seasons of the
show took the time to talk to customers to get ideas for tasks that
were very similar to this week's. Why didn't Matchstick?
Handicapping
the Survivors:
Now that half of the original eight
candidates are gone, the "endangered species list" will be replaced by a
roster of the remaining candidates, listed in order of the probability
that each of them will become Ms. Stewart's apprentice:
Gold Stars for This Week's Episode:
Dawna gets a gold star for achieving her third win as
project manager. |
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| The Report Card |
Primarius:
- Effort --
- Performance --
- Creativity --
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"How could you invite a
car to dinner to a table that looked that bad?" |
Matchstick:
- Effort --
- Performance --
- Creativity --
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