Whether they're willing to admit it or not, almost everyone is an Apprentice junkie at some level. So for its sales incentive meeting in New Orleans, FoxHollow Technologies, Redwood City, Calif., hired Ovation Corp. (www.ovationcorporation.com) to create its own version of the popular TV show, using the sales reps, about 80 in all, as the cast.
After the group was divided into eight teams, FoxHollow's CEO, dressed like Donald Trump, emerged from a limo to brief the teams about their missions (which included everything from selling soft drinks and shoe shines to performing in the street). They had an hour to plan their strategies, and then they were set loose on Bourbon Street for the two-hour show.
A video of the day's antics, complete with personal “confessions” in which individual team members described their experiences (which were often hilarious), was presented to the entire group the next evening, followed by an awards ceremony for the winning teams.