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James Watt BBC Who's the Boss

BrewDog boss James Watt dubs BBC Who’s the Boss appearance ‘a bit of a disaster’

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By John McCarthy | Opinion Editor

March 9, 2016 | 7 min read

Scottish craft beer brand BrewDog has suffered a PR backfire after an appearance on a BBC staff recruitment show turned out to be “a bit of a disaster” with the group failing to recruit any staff.

Brewdog appeared on Who’s the Boss on BBC 2 on Tuesday evening looking to fill a regional area manager role via the process of collaborative hiring – i.e. when the staff choose the candidate.

Brewdog, which plies “hardcore, artisanal craft beers for punks”, had a very specific candidate in mind, according to co-founder James Watt and staff: “We don’t want someone in a suit, we don’t want someone who doesn’t like beer and we want someone that looks good”.

The brand’s primetime appearance concluded with co-founder Watt getting on one knee and offering the role to Russ Malone, who has 20 years’ experience as an area manager.

However, it emerged that Malone remained in his current role, creating some embarrassment for Brewdog. Watt acknowledged sentiments that Brewdog’s appearance on the show didn’t quite work out.

Some Twitter users were critical of the botched appearance on the show.

However, BrewDog staff took to Twitter to defend the company culture.

Other's criticised the recruitment agency's failure to shortlist the correct candidates.

The Drum has reached out to BrewDog for comment on the show.

You can make your own mind up - watch the show on the BBC iPlayer via this link.

James Watt BBC Who's the Boss

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