Goal is to ‘continue the magic’ while Jobs gone
Tim Cook, Apple’s temporary man at the helm, is a workaholic and perfectionist. He’s already transformed the company in a multitude of ways—quietly behind the scenes—but now his role is about maintaining an incredibly successful status quo.
Still, whether we are looking at the first or seconding coming of Steve Jobs, imaging that someone could stand in for him at any given time might seem nye impossible. Yet, that’s exactly the position we find ourselves in as Apple’s dear leader steps aside to sort out his medical issues.
“Tim is an amazing, brilliant mind when it comes to operational excellence and is really a master of execution. I worked at Federal Express for 14 years. I know what world-class operators look like, and Tim Cook is right at the top of the list,” said Mike Janes, who worked with Cook as general manager of Apple’s online store for five years (via Bloomberg)
Magicians succeed when we suspend our disbelief or, in the case of Jobs, fall under the spell of his reality distortion field. He is a master of manipulating our emotions, of evoking a carefully cultivated and calculated response.
However, Tim Cook is not that sort of a manager. By all accounts, Apple’s Chief Operations Officer is calm, cool and always collected—it is said that he never raises his voice and that his analysis of situations is coldly efficient.
Since arriving at Apple back 1998, Cook has been charged with and succeeded in making Apple a world leader in inventory management and cost control. Also, he has been the lead negotiator with wireless carriers worldwide, yet another area where Apple has shown a proven ability not only for getting what it wants but also in being flexible when needed.
“The products coming out of Apple, out of tech companies, have a long tech pipeline…they work their way through for a year, year and a half … Those products are in the pipeline, they’re not going to be disturbed,” said Steve Wozniak according to News.com
Regardless of what some analysts, journalists and bloggers say, it seems to me that the company could not be in better hands given the situation.
Yes, we will all breath easier when Steve’s back at the helm. Still, Apple’s millions of fans (and investors) can rest easy knowing that Tim Cook’s steady and capable is on the wheel…
What’s your take?
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