September 2011
Featured in this insight: Financial services, IT & telecommunications, Media & publishing
UK business decision makers slam reality shows like Dragons Den as false: A new poll by officebroker.com, which asked decision makers at 200 UK firms whether they believed the reality shows such as The Apprentice and Dragons’ Den offered an accurate portrayal of the business world, has revealed that these types of broadcasts are not generally viewed as helpful
Despite being loved by the viewing public, reality shows could be damaging to UK business. In total, 75% of those polled did not think they provide a realistic portrayal, with 52% of respondents saying they believed the shows served more as vehicles for creating celebrity business figures than truthfully educating the public on how to successfully develop their own enterprise.
One business leader commented: “The shows have had some great moments over the years but are increasingly being used as a vehicle for those involved to indulge their egomania.”
Another respondent said that heavy editing and unrealistic tasks were to blame for creating a warped perception of what being in business actually entails: “The average job is not a series of challenging tasks, each judging you on different skills. Most people do pretty much the same thing every day, so programmes like The Apprentice lead young people to think work is constantly different, leaving them sadly disappointed with the truth.”
A further senior manager stated: “Success in modern day business is about creating long-term trust in your brand, not about hard 'selling' of time-limited consumer products.”
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