Few Executives Eager to Work for Trump, Poll Shows
Thu Apr 15, 2004 02:52 PM ET
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Real estate magnate Donald Trump might project himself as a much sought after boss in the reality TV show "The Apprentice," but many executives say they'd be reluctant to work for him.
A third of corporate executives polled by Clark Consulting, an employee compensation firm, said they would not work for him at all, while 32 percent of the 357 executives surveyed said they would need to be paid an annual salary of at least $250,000.
"The Apprentice," starring Trump, has been a popular prime-time series on NBC Television in which group of young people test each other's entrepreneurial skills to win a prize job of working for Trump. The first season's contest ends on Thursday.
Tom Wamberg, chief executive of Clark, said that a lot of executives who said they would not work for Trump thought he didn't have enough money to pay them.
While Trump's show has remained popular and his flamboyant lifestyle gets him tabloid coverage, his casino company Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts Inc. has been facing a cash crisis. Its auditors Ernst & Young even raised concerns last month about its ability to continue operating.
Wamberg said the survey results did not surprise his team. "The respondents in our poll were real executives and senior employees of serious public companies. In contrast, the people competing on 'The Apprentice' are really looking to become television stars, not business executives," he said.
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