Does anyone else wonder how people can be so bad on the Apprentice? Basic things like learning how to work in a team, be tactuful with people, listening to others, and presenting to clients seem are skills that I feel most consultants gain after a year, yet the people on the show seem clueless.

However, I think many of those involved realise it is intended primarily as entertainment rather than as a showcase of business talent. Do you?

Does anybody else think that Sugar retained the team leader next week purely because she is such a mentalist that she will be amusing TV?The same people who apply for the Apprentice probably apply for Big Brother too

Surely the question is, if you are truely capable of earning £100k (as candidates clearly "assume" they are) per year why on earth would you want to work for Alan Sugar? He basically wasted Amstrad's sucess and potential to become an massive global technology firm, due to his inability to think beyond his "trader" background. One half baked sucess doesn't make you an 'amazing businessman. In the same vein Mr Branson is widely praised for being an outstanding businessman. When in reality he is a moderately sucessful venture capitalist (3 major sucesses in music, railways and airlines) but a large number of commercial failures (e.g. bridal wear, cola, cosmetics)Don't get me wrong they have both played blinders at the right time, and ultimately that insight and ability is what counts.

I'd say someone who's worth 800mil can probably teach you a thing or 2 if, like most of the contestants, you're in your mid 20's , doing quite well and very money hungry

How much of Sir Alan's wealth do you think is attributable to him being an exceptionally clever businessman who used his sheer intelligence and raw abilities to grow a business empire out of almost nothing?And, how much do you think is attributable to sheer luck and him having been in the right place at the right time?Out of interest, how DID he grow his fortune? I'm guessing he had a flukey streak and made a quick buck a long time ago, and then pulled in some managers who took it from there for him?

He made most of his money via Amstrad, nowdays he gets his wealth from running a property management business. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amstrad

What the hell is Anon on about. how can you describe one billionaire and one multimillionaire as "moderately succesfull business men"??? You sir are a fool and would likely be the idiot producing a project plan rather than doing some work. Good day

I think the real idiots are the contestants on the show. I'm surprised some of them actually function in the real world. How do people like these exist?

Is that a vague Black Adder reference/misquotation?Sounded good anyway.

What's funny is how they all boast about their credentials yet lack a lot of the basic skills most consultants pick up after 1 year.

"I think the real idiots are the contestants on the show. I'm surprised some of them actually function in the real world. How do people like these exist?"Quite a few of the "real idots" from the last series went on to make several hundred £K in appearance fees after the series. Meanwhile, most of us are plodding along in consultancy jobs, earning a lot less whilst deluding ourselves we're better than everyone else. So who are the real idiots?

Anon was criticisng their ability to operate in the real world (by which I would infer they mean real business world). I would also argue that the ability to became semi famous and cash in on it does not really require as much as skill, beyond successfully getting onto the show.I think perhaps the real point you were trying to make was that the contestants aren't really going on the show to demonstrate how good they are at business, which makes sense, as I guess people who are successful in their professional careers feel less of a need to pin their hopes on becoming famous via a tv show.Hence you'd almost expect that it would be the people with less skills who end up applying for the show. ~Logic is the beginning of wisdom, not the end ~