White told Recruiter that since being chosen by Lord Sugar at the end of last year, life “had been pretty crazy” and had “absolutely flown by”.

Referring to his business Right Time Recruitment, White said it had been transformed from just himself back in November to one that now employed 17 staff. He added that the publicity since winning The Apprentice meant that applications to join the company ran into the 100s. “It’s about finding the gems,” he said.

White went on to speak about his relationship with Lord Sugar and what he had learned from him. As well as seeing him at board meetings, he said he talked to Lord Sugar “probably two or three times a month”. However, he said that Lord Sugar “was available at any time of the day” and responded to his emails often for advice “usually within 10 minutes”.

White said he had picked up some valuable lessons from the business magnate. “He is a man of few words and the ones he uses he doesn’t mince, so cutting through the BS is probably what he has taught me,” he divulged. Another lesson was to focus “on what business you should be going after” and not be diverted. “There are a lot of time wasters out there,” said White. “[As a winner of The Apprentice] you get asked to do a lot of things but if we did, we could get nothing else done.”

White said that while he was confident that his business would have been successful come what may, winning The Apprentice had accelerated progress. “The exposure, the help, the money – they have all added to the growth.” He said one benefit had been that the company had been able to invest in a new, more interactive website.

White said the plan was to grow the business to 25 billing staff within the next 12 months. However, he said it also made sense to set up an office in London, and that there were opportunities for international expansion further down the line.

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