Sean Yazbeck is a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

- American businessman. He is the founder of multiple

enterprise software Enterprise software, also known as enterprise application software (EAS), is computer software used to satisfy the needs of an organization rather than its individual users. Enterprise software is an integral part of a computer-based information ...

and technology services companies.Solent University
(accessed 1 June 2024) He is the winner of the fifth season of

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

's reality show, '' The Apprentice''.
Aventura Magazine (accessed 6 October 2016)

Career

After winning The Apprentice, Yazbeck was selected by

to build The Dominick (formerly Trump SoHo) a $450 million, hotel condominium located in

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

.
NYDailynews.com (accessed 1 June 2024) Yazbeck founded the technology services company, Wavsys. In 2011, Wavsys was included in '' Inc. (magazine), Inc.'s'' "500 Fastest Growing Companies in America" list, with over $100 million per annum in revenue and over 500 employees. Yazbeck co-founded Scopeworker, an

enterprise resource planning Enterprise resource planning (ERP) is the integrated management of main business processes, often in real time and mediated by software and technology. ERP is usually referred to as a category of business management software—typically a suit ...

(ERP) software platform, alongside Lieutenant General

David Leakey Lieutenant-general (United Kingdom), Lieutenant General Arundell David Leakey, (born 18 May 1952) is a former British Army officer. He was Director General of the European Union Military Staff in the Council of the European Union, Brussels. In ...

, former

Director General of the European Union Military Staff The Director General of the European Union Military Staff (DGEUMS) is the head of the European Union Military Staff (EUMS) who also serves as Director of the Military Planning and Conduct Capability (Dir MPCC). This position, which was establishe ...

and former Black Rod at the UK's

Houses of Parliament The Palace of Westminster is the meeting place of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is located in London, England. It is commonly called the Houses of Parliament after the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two legislative ch ...

. In 2018, ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...

'' reported that Scopeworker had secured a multi-billion-dollar deal with

Sprint Corporation Sprint Corporation was an American telecommunications company. Before being acquired by T-Mobile US on April 1, 2020, it was the fourth-largest mobile network operator in the United States, serving 54.3 million customers as of June 30, 2019. Th ...

(now

T-Mobile US T-Mobile US, Inc. is an American wireless network operator headquartered in Bellevue, Washington. Its majority shareholder and namesake is the German telecommunications company Deutsche Telekom. T-Mobile is the second largest wireless carrie ...

) to automate supplier services for its 5G network rollout.

Awards and honors

Yazbeck has received multiple recognitions, distinctions, and awards for contributions to business, academia, and public service. * The U.S. government awarded Yazbeck the EB-1 visa green card for "persons of extraordinary ability", recognizing "extraordinary achievement" in his professional field with "sustained international acclaim". * In 2006, Yazbeck won

's, '' The Apprentice''. Throughout the competition he remained unbeaten as Project Manager and his ten task victories tied him with Season 3 winner Kendra Todd for the most wins by any candidate in the 13-year history of the show. * In 2006, the Mayor of

Miami-Dade County Miami-Dade County () is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Florida. The county had a population of 2,701,767 as of the 2020 census, making it the most populous county in Florida and the seventh-most-populous coun ...

, Carlos Álvarez, proclaimed June 20th as "Sean Yazbeck Day" in Miami-Dade County, in recognition of Yazbeck's professional achievements and contributions to public service. * In 2008, Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear awarded Yazbeck the honorary title of Kentucky Colonel. It was "in recognition of noteworthy accomplishments and outstanding service to the nation," for his charitable work with Voices for America's Children. * In 2011, Yazbeck's company, Wavsys, was recognized as an Inc 500 "Fastest Growing Company in America". * In 2014, Kevin McGurgan OBE, the UK's Deputy Trade Commissioner for North America, presented Yazbeck with the 'Entrepreneur of the Year' award at the BritWeek Business Innovation Awards, hosted by the UK's

Department for Business and Trade The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It was established on 7 February 2023 by a February 2023 British cabinet resh ...

(formerly UKTI). * In 2017, Yazbeck was appointed a Visiting Fellow at Solent University in recognition of his notable business accomplishments and contributions to public service. * In 2018, Yazbeck received an honorary Doctor of Business degree from Solent University for his business achievements and contributions to public service.

Philanthropy

Yazbeck has supported various philanthropic initiatives and serves as a patron of numerous British and American foundations focused on arts, education, and heritage. In 2019, Yazbeck donated £100,000 to Solent University to establish a digital innovation centre specializing in software development and artificial intelligence. Yazbeck stated that "British universities are increasingly driving the nation's rapid growth in technology-based industries" and noted that "Britain is perfectly positioned to become the world's next Silicon Valley." Solent University estimated the centre increased graduate employability by up to 15%. In 2025, Yazbeck donated £50,000 to

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

(UCL) to support new research into bacteriophage therapeutics targeting

antimicrobial resistance Antimicrobial resistance (AMR or AR) occurs when microbes evolve mechanisms that protect them from antimicrobials, which are drugs used to treat infections. This resistance affects all classes of microbes, including bacteria (antibiotic resista ...

(AMR). Yazbeck stated, "The UK is widely recognized as a global leader in biomedical research, making it the ideal environment to advance crucial innovations like bacteriophage therapy." Baroness Julia Neuberger, Chair of the University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and peer in the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

, commented that "Sean Yazbeck’s donation represents an important contribution towards addressing antimicrobial resistance, a significant public health threat to the UK." Yazbeck serves as a patron of two Miami-based institutions, the New World Symphony and the Pérez Art Museum Miami." Yazbeck's previous philanthropic activities include contributions to Voices for America's Children, as well as advocacy as a national spokesperson for the charity, which supports children in foster care.

Personal life

Yazbeck was born in the

Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (often known by its initialism as RBKC) is an Inner London, Inner London borough with Royal borough, royal status. It is the List of English districts by area, smallest borough in London and the secon ...

in London to a Lebanese Maronite Christian father from the

Chouf Chouf (also spelled Shouf, Shuf or Chuf; ) is a historic region of Lebanon, as well as an administrative district in the governorate ( muhafazat) of Mount Lebanon. Geography Located south-east of Beirut, the region comprises a narrow coastal stri ...

and an Irish mother. He attended

William Ellis School William Ellis School is a voluntary aided secondary school and sixth form for boys located in Gospel Oak, London, England. Admissions The School is located near Hampstead Heath in north London. It is situated just east of Parliament Hill an ...

Highgate Highgate is a suburban area of N postcode area, north London in the London Borough of Camden, London Boroughs of Camden, London Borough of Islington, Islington and London Borough of Haringey, Haringey. The area is at the north-eastern corner ...

, London, and graduated with a First Class Honors Degree from Solent University,

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

. Yazbeck is a U.S. citizen and resides in

Miami Beach Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Miami metropolitan area of South Florida. The municipality is located on natural and human-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean an ...

, Florida. He plays

polo Polo is a stick and ball game that is played on horseback as a traditional field sport. It is one of the world's oldest known team sports, having been adopted in the Western world from the game of Chovgan (), which originated in ancient ...

for the Grand Champions Polo Club in

Palm Beach, Florida Palm Beach is an incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. Located on a barrier island in east-central Palm Beach County, the town is separated from West Palm Beach, Florida, West Palm Beach and Lake Worth Beach, Florida, ...

. He is a member of YPO (Young Presidents' Organization), a global network of young chief executives.

''The Apprentice'' season 5

Yazbeck was selected to appear on ''The Apprentice'' because he had been awarded the EB-1 visa green card for "persons of extraordinary ability". Yazbeck and

Piers Morgan Piers Stefan Pughe-Morgan (; O'Meara, born 30 March 1965) is an English journalist and media personality. He began his career in 1988 at the tabloid ''The Sun (United Kingdom), The Sun''. In 1994, at the age of 29, he was appointed editor of ...

are the only non-Americans to have won

's '' The Apprentice''. Both are British. Throughout the season, Yazbeck remained unbeaten as Project Manager and he achieved ten task victories, tying him with the Season 3 winner, Kendra Todd, for the most task wins by any candidate in the 13-year history of ''The Apprentice''. He was chosen by Trump to be the winner during the show's live finale in Los Angeles. According to Trump, Yazbeck overwhelmingly won the national vote, the first ever conducted for an ''Apprentice'' finale. In the final task, Yazbeck successfully organized and managed a charity concert featuring the

Barenaked Ladies Barenaked Ladies (BNL) is a Canadian Rock music, rock band which was formed in 1988 in the Toronto suburb of Scarborough, Ontario. The band developed a following in Canada, with their Barenaked Ladies (EP), self-titled 1991 cassette becoming th ...

charity concert. Sponsored by Pontiac, the event raised funds for the

World Wildlife Fund The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) is a Swiss-based international non-governmental organization founded in 1961 that works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. It was formerly named the ...

. For winning the final task and being hired as Trump's ''Apprentice'', Yazbeck chose to manage the development of the Trump SoHo project in New York City, a role accompanied by a one-year contract exceeding $250,000. He was also given a new Pontiac G6 hardtop convertible, mirroring Kendra Todd's reward of a

Pontiac Solstice The Pontiac Solstice is a convertible sports car that was produced by Pontiac (automobile), Pontiac from 2005 to 2010. Introduced at the North American International Auto Show#2004, 2004 North American International Auto Show, the Solstice roads ...

. Following his victory, Yazbeck returned to the show as a boardroom judge on '' The Apprentice 6''. He later hosted his own show, ''Reality Trailblazers'', on the TV Guide Channel. Additionally, he appeared as a judge at the

Miss Universe Miss Universe is an annual international major beauty pageant that is run by a Thailand and Mexican-based Miss Universe Organization.Natalie Tadena (July 2, 2015"Donald Trump's Miss USA Pageant Lands on Reelz Cable Channel". ''The Wall Stree ...

pageant, and was featured on numerous television shows including'' Live with Regis and Kelly'',

MTV Video Music Awards The MTV Video Music Awards (commonly abbreviated as the VMAs) is an award show presented by the cable channel MTV to honor the best in the music video medium. Originally conceived as an alternative to the Grammy Awards (in the video category ...

, '' 1 vs. 100'', '' Soap Talk'', '' Identity'' and

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

's '' From G's to Gents''.IMDB Filmography(2009)

IMDB.com (accessed 7 June 2009).

References

External links

*
''The Apprentice'' Yahoo! Bio

''The Apprentice'' NBC Bio
*
''The Apprentice – Where Are They Now?'' at NBC.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yazbeck, Sean Living people 21st-century American businesspeople 21st-century British businesspeople Alumni of Southampton Solent University British business executives British chief executives British construction businesspeople British expatriates in the United States British people of Irish descent British people of Lebanese descent British businesspeople in real estate British telecommunications industry businesspeople Businesspeople from London Businesspeople from New York City Participants in American reality television series People educated at William Ellis School The Apprentice (American TV series) winners The Trump Organization employees Year of birth missing (living people)