Apprentice star to inspire entrepreneurs of tomorrow
Published On Thu 21 Feb 2019 by Jonathan Watson
He may be best known for grilling candidates on TV’s The Apprentice, but one of the country’s top businessmen says that he is “thrilled” to be giving a lecture at the University of Dundee.
Mike Soutar, who has interrogated potential employees and business partners on behalf of Lord Sugar for the past eight years, will return to his home city to address students, graduates and the wider public as part of the University’s Entrepreneurship Week.
The co-founder of Shortlist Media will deliver the third annual Public Lecture in Entrepreneurship on Wednesday 27 February as part of this year’s line-up of events, hosted by the University’s Centre for Entrepreneurship.
“I’m thrilled and honoured to be asked to come and give a lecture in my hometown at the University of Dundee,” he said.
“Dundee has for centuries been an outward-looking, ambitious, enterprising city and over the last few years it has become a hub of dynamic, modern, creative industries. Dundee is blazing a trail of transformation and I’m so excited to help celebrate the amazing people and ideas that are building such an optimistic future for the city.
“Dundee’s unique character comes from its people: down-to-earth, witty and always on the lookout for a new opportunity. I was born in Dundee and it is where, at 17, I began a career that has taken me all over the world. I can’t wait to return to tell my story and share some of the business lessons and entrepreneurial insights I’ve picked up along the way.”
Having started his career at DC Thomson and subsequently Virgin Records, Mr Soutar’s career in publishing has seen him at the helm of era-defining magazines, including Smash Hits and FHM.
In 2007 he transformed the media landscape with the launch of “freemium” title Shortlist. The ground-breaking distribution model, providing premium content free of charge, proved so successful that a sister title, Stylist, followed two years later.
In November 2018, Mr Soutar stood down as Chairman of Shortlist Media to focus on his passion for assisting start-up businesses, though he remains on the board of the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO).
His appearance on campus will be one of the highlights of this years’ Entrepreneurship Week, which begins on Monday 25 February. Hosted in conjunction with DUSA, the event is open to all and features workshops to assist start-up businesses, as well as talks from a range of leading business figures.
Entrepreneurship Week also features the final of the University’s Venture 2019 competition. The £27,500 competition supports new business ideas among students, staff and recent alumni, who are competing for prize funds.
Tickets for Entrepreneurship Week events, including Mr Soutar’s lecture, are free of charge and available online.
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Jonathan Watson
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University of Dundee
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Email: j.s.watson@dundee.ac.uk