Whilst wistfully imagining an outstanding spin-off show featuring Nick Hewer named 'The King and Eye (brows)', thoughts drifted towards Episode 3s lessons. Still, the thought of Lord Sugar’s erstwhile informer shopping for top hats with the King of Tonga proved understandably distracting.
Series 7 finally found it's rhythm in this episode with the perennial buying task that has previously brought us kosher chicken, 18th century magazines that are actually London cabbie revision guides and so many more classic Apprentice moments. Yet, each and every series the candidates make the same basic errors time and again. Thankfully it was an episode that also widened the candidate base and gave us a flavour of many more of this year’s intake.
The discount buying task always makes good TV, and you get the feeling that of all the tasks that are devised on The Apprentice, Lord Sugars hand was perhaps most firmly behind this one. As critics will point out, a strong and lasting business could not be built on the kind of rash (and particularly desperate) negotiating and often rudeness that punctuates this episode. However, one thing this episode does highlight is those candidates who think on their feet, are prepared to just get on with it and can negotiate. Three key attributes that Lord Sugar holds dear. It wouldn’t surprise me to learn that the top performers in this task over the last few series have either won the main prize or been close to it.
That’s why this episode may give us our first real hint at the potential winners. Lord Sugar will undoubtedly play a ‘silent partner’ brief within any business setup on the back of this series, and perhaps for the first time we got an idea of just what kind of person he thinks he needs to work with.
On paper, Gavin, a young man who successfully set up and runs opticians was a real contender. Yet in the heat of this task he crumbled. Ok he had the more difficult team, but he was trumped the cool, calm and impressive Susan Ma. She certainly understood that time and quick and decisive decisions were key to this task. Fair enough, some of those decisions, such as which parts of London to do the cheapest shopping, were equally poor. Frankly anyone who has been subjected to those long, often fractious family monopoly games could’ve pointed her away from Mayfair for a Lord Sugar shopping trip.
Still thanks to Jedi Jim getting an extra £10 off an already impressive negotiation, Susan pulled in the win. She was perhaps the most impressive PM so far with a well organised team. Even if their locations and negotiations were far from it. It goes to show just how important it is to understand the challenge, get organised and get on with it. Gavin’s biggest failing was ‘dithering’ which lead to his team being badly organised and unable to complete the task in time. He was very nearly saved by his teams selection of leads and negotiating skills in what was after all only an £8 victory.
Most of the time as leaders we don’t have the answers. But the best leaders are able to organise their teams effectively, assign roles and give people responsibility and accountability. In so doing, especially when decisions need to be made under pressure, the outcome often takes care of itself.
In the meantime I’m wondering just who else Nick Hewer goes shopping with...
Star of the Week: Jedi Jim as always, but a nod this time to Ellie Reed who was impressive.
Got Lucky: Natasha Scribbins - what she was doing phoning a competitor only she knows...
Heading for a Fall: Natasha Scribbins - ...and her negotiations of the sign when she absolutely had £20 to spend before settling on £80 and then claiming she could’ve got better, and she already has an enemy in Zoe...in fact it isn’t looking good for her.
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