Yesterday, Aug 24, 2011 the ifamous CEO of Apple - Steve Jobs resigned. This was a breaking news to many and yet it was expected. Jobs had not been keeping health well in recent past. And for the 3rd time in 7 years he took medical leave from duty. On the surface there is a flutter in the media about this announcement. However like it or not, the man was not going to be there forever. So he made the right decision.
The important thing however is that this is not really about health. This is about Business. The announcement was made after the stock markets in US had closed for the day on a warm sunny day in August. August is usually the quiet time of the year for apple. All major announcements are either in the beginning of the year (Jan) or during June. This year was a bit different. There were no big and groundbreaking announcements this year. There were product launch delays aswell. Whether that was by design or circumstantial is another thing. Yet, there is no denying that the company is quiet well in Business. Making money and keeping the interest in its i-eyerything product line. So the timing was fine. You dont want to look embarrassed if you decide to leave or your stockholders kick you out. Rather you want to look like a winner and someone who delivered more than what was promised.
That said, look at Jobs. College dropout, fired from the same company he founded only to return 12 years later and lead it for the next 14 years. He is not an engineer or inventor. Rather he is a highly creative and visionary personality who has his say. That he has good sales skills doesnt hurt either. If you notice apples products are neither the cutting edge inventions nor cheapest ones but rather a good mix of aesthetic appeal, strictly controlled hardware+software and pure marketing. And Jobs has a big hand in this. He brought the life back to a dying company and converted it into a highly profitable one. If he didnt have some talent in him he would not have been able to do it. He knows his strengths and weaknesses and uses them well. Thats his secret. The computer industry has definitely benefited from his thinking. And thats about it. The computer industry must now look beyond and find newer ways of re-inventing itself. There is a lot of potential yet to be tapped for sure..
The important thing however is that this is not really about health. This is about Business. The announcement was made after the stock markets in US had closed for the day on a warm sunny day in August. August is usually the quiet time of the year for apple. All major announcements are either in the beginning of the year (Jan) or during June. This year was a bit different. There were no big and groundbreaking announcements this year. There were product launch delays aswell. Whether that was by design or circumstantial is another thing. Yet, there is no denying that the company is quiet well in Business. Making money and keeping the interest in its i-eyerything product line. So the timing was fine. You dont want to look embarrassed if you decide to leave or your stockholders kick you out. Rather you want to look like a winner and someone who delivered more than what was promised.
That said, look at Jobs. College dropout, fired from the same company he founded only to return 12 years later and lead it for the next 14 years. He is not an engineer or inventor. Rather he is a highly creative and visionary personality who has his say. That he has good sales skills doesnt hurt either. If you notice apples products are neither the cutting edge inventions nor cheapest ones but rather a good mix of aesthetic appeal, strictly controlled hardware+software and pure marketing. And Jobs has a big hand in this. He brought the life back to a dying company and converted it into a highly profitable one. If he didnt have some talent in him he would not have been able to do it. He knows his strengths and weaknesses and uses them well. Thats his secret. The computer industry has definitely benefited from his thinking. And thats about it. The computer industry must now look beyond and find newer ways of re-inventing itself. There is a lot of potential yet to be tapped for sure..
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