Lord Sugar has explained why he thinks The Apprentice is such a hit even after all these years.
And apparently it’s all down to a lack of gimmicks.
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Speaking at the launch of the new series of The Apprentice today, Lord Sugar explained to Digital Spy that the reason for the show's success is "very, very simple".
“The BBC and the production company and myself are not interested in gimmicks and trying to change things," he said. "If it's not broken, don't try and fix it. It is the consistency of keeping things the same - with slight tweaks such as mixing the [gender of the] teams initially, which we wouldn't normally do.”
Time for a quick dig at The X Factor now…
"But in my opinion, and I say this respectfully to The X Factor, gimmicks don't seem to work. In fact, in my opinion also, the demise of what they call the 'civilian' version of The Apprentice in the United States - they just started doing all silly things and in the end the audience saw through it."
He added: "What's good about The Apprentice and why we keep the ratings is very simple: I'm the same - a little bit older, I suppose, if you look back 11 years ago. But what's not the same is the candidates.
So does Alan have any advice for* X Factor’s* big boss, Simon Cowell?
"He wouldn't listen to me," he joked. "Shave the beard off, for a start!"
The Apprentice returns to BBC One on Wednesday 14th October, 9pm.
Let's meet this year's candidates, shall we?
The Apprentice 2015
1 of 18Aisha Kasim, 30
Aisha ia an inventor who owns a hair accessories business. She's not bad on the music front either - she's penned a jingle for one of her own products: a heated bun that curls your hair.
2 of 18Brett Butler-Smythe, 28
Brett - who has the poshest name in the history of the world, btw - trained as a marine engineer with the Royal Navy before starting his own property business from scratch. The 28 year old prides himself on being trustworthy, and aspires to "work hard, play hard [and] work harder".
3 of 18April Jackson, 26
Former beauty pageant winner (she scooped the Miss Jamaica Universe title in 2008) April now owns a Jamaican boutique in London. But while she was living in her homecountry, she set up an event management company and a children's charity.
4 of 18Dan Callaghan, 23
Dan went into politics after leaving university; working for an MEP at the European Parliament in Belgium. The 23 year old is now based in Manchester, where he's the director of a fragrance company.
5 of 18Charleine Wain, 31
Charleine joined the Royal Navy straight out of school, serving there for 11 and a half years. She now runs an online clothing boutique and a hair and beauty salon in Plymouth.
6 of 18David Stevenson, 25
David owns a sports marketing company and his main aim to get more bums on seats at live events. His proudest business achievement is managing to sell out Wembley for a football match between two women's national teams.
7 of 18Elle Stevenson, 21
Elle is this year's youngest candidate, and says her proudest achievement to date is becoming operations director of a construction company aged just 20. Elle's business inspiration is the woman who took on both Apple Music and Spotify, one Taylor Swift.
8 of 18Gary Poulton, 34
Gary has made his living developing new store sites as programme manager at a big supermarket chain. He says his proudest achievement was delivering the company's largest property development programme in 2010 and 2011.
9 of 18Jenny Garbis, 23
New graduate Jenny aced her Business Studies degree, earning the highest grades in the year. Jenny classes herself as a feminist and admires Emma Watson for using her fame to call for gender equality through the HeforShe campaign.
10 of 18Joseph Valante, 25
Based in Peterborough, Joseph runs his own plumbing company, and his role model is Playboy founder Hugh Hefner.
11 of 18Natalie Dean, 25
Coventry-based Natalie is a corporate account manager in telecoms. When she's not working, the 25 year old plays football for a local women's team and cheers on Sheffield Wednesday.
12 of 18Mergim Butaja, 23
Born in Kosovo, Mergim came to the UK with his family when he was 7. He now lives in Coventry, and works as a sales accounts manager.
13 of 18Richard Woods, 31
Richard says his only regret in life is not becoming a millionaire before his 30th birthday. He runs a digital marketing firm, and already boasts four profit-making companies.
14 of 18Ruth Whiteley, 47
Ruth owns a sales training consultancy, but her background is in telesales. She's previously worked as a court reporter, and even as a DJ on her local radio station.
15 of 18Selina Waterman-Smith, 31
Selina describes herself as feisty, strong and kind. The 31 year old emigrated to Dubai, and says that setting up her events company there is her proudest business achievement.
16 of 18Sam Curry, 23
Sam works as a private tutor. His business inspiration is Richard Branson; arguing that his success shows you don't need to be ruthless or cruel to run a good business.
17 of 18Vana Koutsomitis, 27
Social media consultant Vana has travelled the globe, but settled in Barcelona. Her business inspiration is Ashton Kutcher, because of his eye for a good opportunity (the star has invested in businesses from Skype to Airbnb).
18 of 18Scott Saunders, 27
Scott is a senior sales account manager based in Hertfordshire. He says his biggest obsession in business is making his first million.