Regardless of whether you admired him or despised him, Steve Jobs was, and still is, and always will be, an iconic figure at Apple and in the computer industry as a whole. So it came as a surprise, but not a great shock, that Jobs resigned as Apple’s CEO Wednesday evening. It wasn’t a shock simply due to the events leading up to this announcement. The man clearly isn’t well, and doesn’t feel that he can fulfill his duties at Apple to his own lofty standards. He had a great run at Apple, both before and after his exile, and now he is stepping down.
However, Jobs’ decision isn’t really what I’m writing about. It’s the mechanism around him, and the other management members- Apple itself. See, we all knew this day would come. Either Jobs would get tired of the gig and retire (unlikely, his personality won’t let him), or he would face the same fate as all of us, and would sit at that post until he passed (No. I am not suggesting he’s near death. I’m merely stating that we all die, and sooner or later Jobs would have to be replaced for that reason). Undoubtedly his health is what spurred this decision, but that’s his business, as it should be.
What intrigues me most, is the worry and speculation around this decision. It seems that the public believes Steve Jobs is Apple, that he forges each computer with an anvil and hammer, while also developing software and handcrafting pixels. The reality is that Jobs created Apple, and the way it behaves. The company has an all-star management team, brilliant engineers and designers. They are the ones that make the great products we all love, not Jobs. I’m not saying that to lower Jobs’ prestige, but rather to give the rest of the company the credit they deserve, and often do not receive.
I’ve stated all of that in the service of one point- Jobs even being the remarkable businessman he is, is replaceable though not completely. There is only one Steve Jobs, and when he leaves he will be sorely missed. He can be replaced though. Especially in a machine like Apple. The management team has been thinking about this for some time. This was an orderly transition, and we’ll see little difference in the way Apple operates.
But that’s the thing. I believe Jobs spent the last fifteen years of his career, starting with his return, transforming Apple into a sustainable company. One that could carry on with or without him, or any single person for that matter. He has crafted a culture at Apple that expects everyone involved to piss excellence and nothing less.
Enter Tim Cook. He came to Apple from Compaq in 1998. His job at the seemingly unstoppable computer-maker, was much the same role he assumed at Apple- logistics and operations. Apple has one of the most well-greased manufacturing machines in the world, all thanks to Cook. For years he worked quietly behind the scenes as their Chief Operating Officer. Then slowly, as Jobs without reason began to allow the other bigwigs at Apple take the stage during press keynotes, Cook gained public attention. A few years later, Cook was filling in as CEO while Jobs was on extended sick leave on several occasions.
Cook was always the plan. He was the appointed successor, and has been for some time. No one else in the company could come close to filling the spot. He had done great things cleaning up Apple’s messy operations from the mid-90s, helped them improve profit, and had filled in for Jobs, on and off, for the past two years. There simply couldn’t be someone more prepared for the job. Wall Street, to everybody’s amazement, didn’t seem to mind the leadership change at Apple. There has been no major price dip in Apple’s stock since the announcement.
That’s not to say that Cook is a product-oriented guy like Jobs, but Cook has shown he knows who to listen to. The teams at Apple are more than capable of handling their own. Just this year, those teams have rolled out revisions to such products as the iMac, MacBook Pro, iPad, everything, all without Jobs directly at the helm.
In summary, after Apple fell into trouble in the mid-90s and Jobs returned, he reformed the company to be a self-sustaining enterprise. Look at how Pixar turned out even as Jobs left his day-to-day duties there to run Apple. That company continues to produce great moves on an annual basis, much like how Apple continues to create stellar products released on an annual cycle. I believe much the same will happen as Jobs’ role diminishes at the company. But there in itself lies another valuable point- Jobs did not leave the company. He is still there, and undoubtedly will be very active in it’s operations. He is simply no longer their CEO.
Cook is a fine replacement, for a company whose management and teams all expect great things. Jobs fostered this idea, and it has since sprouted into a corporate culture, and it doesn’t look like that culture is going anywhere any time soon. For that matter, it doesn’t look like Jobs is in a hurry to go anywhere either.
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TAGS: Steve Jobs, Tim Cook
