For Randal Pinkett, being an apprentice to Donald Trump seems to come with endless possibilities.

Already a successful entrepreneur with a resume not easily trumped, Pinkett’s world of opportunities has grown immensely since he won Season Four of “The Apprentice” last December.

Playing a key role in the rebuilding of Trump Entertainment Resorts, the real estate mogul’s three-casino operation in Atlantic City, Pinkett is heavily involved in Trump’s attempt to expand his empire through a possible gambling venture in Philadelphia.

And when he’s not making deals in the boardroom, Pinkett’s stature continues to rise. He’s now a national spokesperson for Autism Speaks, the non-profit organization he raised money for during his final "Apprentice"-winning task, a pitchman for Outback Steakhouse restaurants and Verizon, and sitting on the 12-member transition team for Cory Booker, the recently-elected mayor of Newark, New Jersey, who like Pinkett is a Rhodes scholar.

Yes, life is good for the married, 35-year-old Pinkett, who admitted he didn’t exactly need to be in Donald Trump’s inner-circle to be a success. But being a card-carrying member of Trump’s executive staff doesn’t hurt.

“Being on ‘The Apprentice’ -- and more important, winning ‘The Apprentice’ -- has been an incredible boost to my career,” Pinkett told BlackAmericaWeb.com. “I’m a Rhodes scholar, and that takes precedence, but you can’t put a price tag on the exposure and notoriety that has been a result of this experience.”

Monday night, Pinkett will be in Los Angeles for the live season finale of Season Five of “The Apprentice.” And, while water cooler talk about the competition may not be as great as it was with past cycles, Pinkett believes the show is still very worthwhile, both for viewers who tune in each week to learn the art of wheeling and dealing and for the contestants who have
an opportunity to work for one of the best business minds in the game.

The most-watched show by people earning $100,000 or more a year, “The Apprentice” has attained a measure of longevity that some reality shows never see, Pinkett said, ensuring its place as a favorite in many households.

And if the winner plays his or her cards right, life after “The Apprentice” can be anything you make it, said Pinkett, who is still CEO of his Newark-based company, BCT Partners, a technology management and consulting firm. A graduate of Rutgers University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Oxford University, Pinkett said his company has also been boosted by the golden touch of “The Apprentice.”

But Alfred Edmond, editor of Black Enterprise magazine, said if all Pinkett is remembered for is his apprenticeship with Trump, than he obviously did something wrong.

“Randal was successful before he got on 'The Apprentice,' and Randal was going to be successful whether he won or not,” Edmond, a fellow Rutgers alum who knew Pinkett before he became a household name, told BlackAmericaWeb.com.

“If we look up 10 or 15 years from now and say the most important thing he did was win ‘The Apprentice,’ then he was a failure,” Edmond said. “But I don’t see that being the case because this is not the end all and be all for his entrepreneurial aspirations.”

Edmond has regularly contributed weekly columns to blackenterprise.com analyzing the performance of contestants. He said most people see past winners like Bill Rancic sitting in on the decision-making of who stays and who gets “fired,” but people need to realize that the winners don’t necessarily run the show when they become project leaders with any of Trump’s
enterprises.

“We do have to step back from this and realize that (winners) are not literally going to be running a division of the company,” Edmond said. “You’ll be involved in projects, but shouldn’t get that confused with the hype.”

But Pinkett has managed to make the most of his "Apprentice" experience with Trump’s Atlantic City playgrounds. He’s overseeing a $110-million renovation and has put his engineering and technology background to good use, taking on the role of inputting an entirely new computer information system for the 1,200-employee operation.

He’s also working with public and community relations efforts as Trump tries to seek a license to develop a resort in the heart of inner-city Philadelphia. He’s working closely with an investment group for the venture that includes Boyz II Men and former 76ers executive Pat Croce. The deal, which has been met with some resentment from residents in the city, could be a major boost to the local economy via the creation of jobs and a clear opportunity for the state to generate new revenue for tax dollars, Pinkett told BlackAmericaWeb.com.

His one-year apprenticeship, which came with a $250,000 salary, has been more than Pinkett imagined, he said. And while he doesn’t meet with Trump on a daily basis, Pinkett has been able to keep in regular communication with the ultra-confident, real estate mogul-cum-television star and has been appreciative of Trump’s willingness to allow him to do more than what was originally included in the deal.

“It’s been more work than I anticipated,” said Pinkett, who also serves as an ambassador for "The Apprentice," who is participating in casting calls for Season Six and planning to appear in upcoming episodes.

But it hasn’t been all work and no play for Pinkett, who, along with his wife, Zahara, have been given star-treatment whenever they hit the scene. Whether at the NAACP Image Awards or the Kentucky Derby, Pinkett said he and his wife are having a lot of fun these days.

“I think she’s enjoying it quite well,” Pinkett said of his wife Zahara’s reign as the woman beside "The Apprentice," often sharing the perks of celebrity status along with her husband. “She’s had the chance to meet celebrities, and it’s just been a very enjoyable time for both of us.”

Pinkett likely will stay on with Trump after the expiration of his contract next December, he said, but he is definitely looking forward to taking what he’s learned from Trump and applying it to his own growing enterprise. He’s working on two books -- The Campus CEO and Black Faces in White Places -- reads that are geared towards aspiring collegiate entrepreneurs and helping blacks learn how to successfully navigate through predominantly-white environments in academia and corporate America, respectively. Both books are due out in 2007.

Pinkett enjoys his ability to help people learn how to take it to the next level. When he speaks to young people, especially young people of color, he regularly encourages them to reach beyond their wildest expectations. He has an eye for potential and that’s a big reason why Cory Booker, a 37-year-old former Newark city councilman, tapped Pinkett to prepare a plan for the economic development of the struggling city. Having known Booker since their days at Oxford, Pinkett is excited about the chance to help bring the city along. But for the meantime, he’s enjoying working with Trump and learning how to take his own game to the next level.

“I really want to level my experience with Mr. Trump and have it grow my own company to become a multi-million dollar enterprise,” said Pinkett, who like Trump is becoming inundated with public speaking engagements, including serving as commencement speaker at his alma mater, Rutgers, last month.

“I’m really just trying to learn everything,” Pinkett said, “so that I can and take full advantage of this opportunity.”