Karen made an interesting point that Tom had only done well in the tasks with Helen as the organiser and facilitator. Maybe a partnership with three partners?
Tom was a worthy winner, and his little story about Wal Mart seemed to seal the deal for him. Had Helen gone into the final round with a credible business plan for her bakery business from the outset (that sounds very similar to Greggs...), she could actually have walked away with it IMHO. She really shot herself int he foot with this bizarre life organiser thingamybob. I honestly don't see why I'd need someone to make a dental appointment for me for example.
To me, Tom winning kind of says that you don't need to do well in the tasks to win. This, in my opinion, sends out a confusing message. What was the point of the tasks then in this format, if all his lordship wanted was a "product man" in his own words?
This is a criticism of the process rather than the winner, since Tom seems to be a great inventor and a genuinely nice guy, but I am not sure this year's format was suited to this, because it aimed to test a variety of skills in business. For Lord Sugar though, he was a clear choice because of his skills in product development and desire to see them through unlike many inventors.
If it was the job format, Helen would have got it 100%. Her first idea does appeal to a small amount of people, however companies already exist to do this. Her bakery business did sound a little like Greggs, however I'd have suggested it followed a continental concept of
"self-service bakeries" selling fresh sandwiches, coffee, freshly baked breads and desserts, which I have yet to see in the UK. However, you'd have to differentiate clearly from supermarkets.
I had no idea what Jim's idea really was (e-learning) and loved to see him squirm in the interviews! As for Suzie, well, she fell down on her finances. She had an idea everyone could understand, but she was very naive to think the cosmetic giants wouldn't be protective over their market.