Totally agree, what has Tom actually done?

I think he's brilliant and hope he wins

Tom is the real dark horse, he's great and, with LS guidance will be a successful businessman. I think LS knows that already.

Tom's a proven case, designing, manufacturing, selling and marketing a number of products. Whatever is in his business plan, Sugar likes it or he'd be gone.

Tom does open his mouth - he disagreed with EveryDog for one, but Vincent didn't listen. He and Helen weren't keen on the lad's mag angle but Natasha didn't listen (and got very lucky). He told Felicity the location was wrong for the beauty treatments but Felicity didn't listen. He told Melody to research La Redoute but Melody didn't listen.

Frankly, the people at fault are the ones who don't listen, especially at this stage, where he has been proved right so many times before.

He's not a forceful individual but I'd hire him over someone like Natasha or Melody anyday.

WHAT.

Source please.

Tom was clearly the best performer on his team this week, and there is no way in hell he should have been fired when the failure of the task lay entirely in the hands of the other two. His own performance was pretty solid.

He may not be as assertive as some of the others, but it might shock the OP of this thread to know that you don't have to have a dominant personality to run a successful business, and indeed Tom already does run a successful business.

Given the nature of the prize this year, and Tom's own proven skills as an inventor, it strikes me he is a strong candidate based on that alone.

But Tom can't win if he's going to be a winner running a company with no one listening to him. He's also one of the weakest two left and has the weakest show record. Can you have a 3 month show where its won on some other grounds by the weakest performer?

In the real world, people tend to listen to people that are paying their salary or they get fired!

He needs to go.

I don't see why LS is keeping him in. He never stands up to the mark and I think he is just a passanger in most tasks.

So what if he can spot flaws. No-one listens to him because nobody cares for his opinion. He is like the Lorraine of this series.

If it was based solely on task record, maybe. But he can still be a strong link in a losing team - he was on the losing team for about six or seven weeks before even entering the boardroom.

Natasha has a good record, both as PM and just on the tasks but there's no way in hell, IMO, she's a strong performer.

Tom's stay of execution - for 10 weeks! - does give off the slight whiff of the show being rigged. He may be a talented inventor but he's been on the losing side so many times and been back in the boardroom for the last three weeks. Indeed, Tom almost boasted of that fact when he went back into the house. He's almost untouchable. He is the Mr Bean of The Apprentice. Useless but never goes away.

I agree, if he wins it will be as shocking as when Simon won over Kristina.

In fairness to Tom though, the times he's been in the boardroom were almost unavoidable - the first time he was PM, the second time there was only 4 on the team so odds were he was going back in, and this time, there was only 3 on the team.

In the earlier tasks, he went six(?) times without being brought back - I think that says more about him than the last three weeks.

I wonder if he'll make it to the final? Hmm... taking a guess I'll say yes. He's made it this far!

He has been on the losing team 8/10 times

I aree, he's another one with good instincts but poor articulation and a lack of force.
I suspect that if he is selling his own stuff, about which he has passion, he is very different.

Tom would be incredible .... if he had any kind of backbone. He makes all the right calls, but then can't make them happen, which to me seems a pretty fundamental part of the process.

That made sense in terms of the job on offer - it was selling to people who would look and sound like Simon. There was no reason to think Simon couldn't do what was required even if others had done better on the show. This time he could go for Tom or Susan as the people who have ideas or have set up their own business - but he has a problem justifyng that if the show has shown them as ineffectual or immature?

He seems to always "suggest" solutions.

He never mucks in and becomes forcefull to get his input heard. He would be a terrible winner.

Agree. Tom did well defending himself in the boardroom and definitely deserved not to be fired this week as he was the best on his team. I think he is a dark horse in this competition.

As someone said above Tom didn't do anything wrong on this particular task (in terms of his own performance) but the problem with Tom is that he doesn't do anything of stand out notice in tasks generally either. While there are tasks that I think he's done ok in, sometimes even well in, I don't understand what it is (based on the tasks) that is still keeping him in. If Lord Sugar has already seen his business plan (and I guess there is the possiblity that he hasn't, although I don't really believe this, then he must have a very VERY attractive business proposal that Sugar is eyeing up). And while I do think Tom is a ncice guy, the repetive apologising is starting to grate.

Like his nodding.

I hope he nodds his way out of the boardroom when he is eventually fired (Hopes)

His personality seems too dull for someone like Alan Sugar. I think Sugar wants someone a bit more naturally dynamic and assertive. My own feeling is Sugar may cheat a bit and hire Tom as an assistant. He will hire Helen or whoever it is and then hire Tom to do something else connected to the new business.

I love Tom and can see him doing well after the series is over.