Manila-based Yabut, 27, a University of the Philippines graduate, bested 11 other hopefuls from the region, concluding the debut season of the show inspired by the US reality program starring business luminary Donald Trump. Yabut beat Singapore’s Andrea Loh. He will get the privilege to work with Tony Fernandes and Group Chief Executive Officer of AirAsia in one of his enterprises and will also get a one-year contract with a salary of at least $100,000.
Yabut finished his Economics course at the University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman with Cum Laude honors. He’s a former management trainee of Globe Telecom and most recently an executive of a pharmaceutical company, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) Phils.
Declared the winner of an apprenticeship under AirAsia group CEO Tony Fernandes, the show’s version of Trump, Yabut competed with contestants from China, Singapore, and Malaysia, among others. He and entrepreneur-model Celina Le Neindre were the Filipino contenders. Le Neindre was “fired” in the seventh episode.
Yabut was the recipient of Mansmith Young Market Masters Award in 2012, recognized as one of the top seven Filipino marketers below 35.
