Alumnus is runner up on "The Apprentice"

He’s fired. James Sun (BA 1999) was the unfortunate final recipient of Donald Trump’s infamous dismissal, issued in the waning moments of “The Apprentice” season finale which was taped live at the Hollywood Bowl Sunday night.

Having proven to be one of the strongest, most creative candidates of the current season, Sun entered the finale battling three other finalists to secure the reality show’s ultimate reward: an executive position in the Trump Organization. Trump quickly fired the first two, who failed to impress in the final task. In the end, Trump chose to hire a corporate attorney who was Sun’s partner throughout the 14-week competition.

Sun will return to his ongoing position as CEO of the company he founded, Zoodango.com, a web-based professional networking company that encourages face-to-face meetings and the exchange of expertise.

His rags-to-riches story resonated with Trump. When Sun was four, his family immigrated to the United States from Korea. They arrived with $35, knew no one and spoke no English.

But the family eventually flourished. Sun, a born entrepreneur, began reading The Wall Street Journal at age 13, and created a small technology investment fund at 18. By the time he graduated from the UW Business School with honors, he had turned an initial investment of $5,000 into $2.3 million.

Sun then worked for Deloitte Consulting and traveled extensively, all the while studying human interactions in this age of ubiquitous information technology. These observations provided the spark for Zoodango.

In sending him packing, Trump offered this to Sun: “You’re terrific in every respect. You’re totally creative, and I love creative people. You’re an outstanding guy. I really think you’re going to be a big success. But for now, James, you’re fired.”

Return to May 2007 MBA Alumni News