“Tim Cook promised that Apple Inc. wouldn’t change when he took over the company’s helm from Steve Jobs in August,” Jessica E. Vascellaro reports for The Wall Street Journal.
“But the low-key Mr. Cook has already put his operational mark on Apple in ways that suggest the company won’t be entirely the same as under its intense and tempestuous co-founder,” Vascellaro reports. “In recent weeks, Mr. Cook has tended to administrative matters that never interested Mr. Jobs, such as promotions and corporate reporting structures, according to people familiar with the matter. The new chief executive, 50 years old, has also been more communicative with employees than his predecessor, sending a variety of company-wide emails while addressing Apple employees as ‘Team,’ people close to the company said.”
Read more in the full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Lynn Weiler” for the heads up.]
The next few years are going to be amazing. Watching this magical company tune its engines and go forth !
Best of luck to you in the future, Tim ..
You’ve got some big shoes to fill … but,
don’t let that deter you !
I’m quite sure Steve left Apple in very capable hands !
OK.
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Search for the exact title, in double quotes, on Google. At least one of the hits will be the full article.
I don’t know if this works with any other search engine; it is my understanding that Google has agreements with leading paywalled sites that will allow Google hits to link to the full article. Or at least for a limited number of times in a given timeframe.
Can someone who subscribes outline the major changes please. Thanks.
I’m sure Apple’s employees will welcome the breath of fresh air. There’s probably less tension.
Less tension, crappier products? Just asking.
Hope not. Hope even better products.
I doubt that there will be “less tension”. Cook is said to be as adamant and demanding as Jobs, even though cooler-headed.
So instead of immediately killing an employee with a lightning strike anger, Cook would quietly terminate him/her so no one would even remember that that employee ever existed. Different method, same result.
J/k, but you have got the idea. If to talk seriously, Cook still look a bit milder in certain matters. For example, I doubt Jobs would ever arrange additional holidays for employees or himself just because the company was very successful this year, even though the team and Jobs himself certainly deserved it.
I think that communication at this point, with the right message, is exactly the right thing for Tim. He needs to ‘take the helm’ and show to the folks inside that he IS doing his job.
video is over here
Thanks, great link, reading the article isn’t necessary now.
If Cook kills the Mac Pro, as the rumors suggest, he will make his first huge mistake.
Apple needs a Mac Pro, in a rack-mountable form factor, for high end applications.
Why would you pay attention to stupid rumors from stupid people.
The Mac Pro should be continued.
Tim Cook should leave Apple’s cash alone.
He will have his own style but don’t change the Apple culture.
Steve Jobs’ style of secrecy at Apple should stay the same.
Tim is sending a lot of company emails probably to make people feel better in the transition.
Steve had 7 years to turn Apple from a healthy teenager to an adult….and he did.
Buddha, Christ and Abraham died…their legacies continue.
…so will Steve’s.
He should use the cash as needed – that’s why it’s there. I’m sure he’ll make prudent purchases, and not be swayed by anal-ysts calling for dividends or stock buy-backs.
I’m not so sure that comparing Christianity to Christ, Buddha to Buddhism, or even Con Edison to Thomas Edison, ATT to Alexander Graham Bell, etc. is totally all that comforting…… ….I’m just sayin’…. …none are ever the originals and all occasionally lose their way.
Let’s see:
focus on reporting structure (org charts)
attention to promotions
Go “team”!
=
Standard corporate bu**$hit!
I hope there’s a LOT more to Tim Cook’s management than this!!
Oh please. Tim’s been running Apple for the past two years anyway, just no one paid that much attention because everyone looked at Jobs, his health, etc. I very much doubt Tim has changed his style.
After the departure of Bill Gates, Steve Ballmer took over the helm of Microsoft.
Tim Cook = Steve Ballmer.
The Ballmerization of Apple has begun. The launch of the iPhone 4S was boring, predictable and completely bereft of fireworks. Same old, same old. zzzzzzzzzzzz………..
So, given what we now know that the team on stage was aware of, you really expected fireworks?
The 4S isn’t boring, but you are.
Ballmer, you are a sales monkey.
Cook is an operations geek.
Big difference. After, Jobs said when the sales guy is in charge, companies go downhill. Or bean counters, as in GM.
Im going to give the guy a good 2 years on the job (and it would need to be bad) before I went that far.
Ballmer’s big issue is that he thinks he needs to “protect” windows when he should be trusting the people with great ideas at MS and working his tail off to bury windows with something better because Apple sure dosen’t see it as a threat and is dominating a change in computing that can and will destroy MS if they continue down same ‘ol windows lane.
Tim Cook watched Jobs take big gambles that put their existing products at risk and he’s seen the results of throwing your nuts down like dice. As long as he doesn’t shift into a role of protecting the old guard and lets the people at Apple make more “bet the company” risks he’ll do great.
Sorry, I just got the 4s yesterday, and siri is flat out unbelievable! Looking at it, no visible changes, inside, huge changes. In 2 years, people will be considering all those small keyboards on BB’s and Androids a thing of the past. Siri is amazing, and is going to grow very very fast to do most everything you need a phone to do.
Ballmer was illl-equipped to take control of Microsoft; a company that has made an art-form of resting on their laurels and clinging to the status-quo. Apple is not that kind of company, nor Cook of the same “sales guy” ilk as Ballmer.
And of course, Steve’s insights about “putting the sales guy in charge” are as true today as they were then. Keep in mind that Steve’s decision to have Cook at the helm was likely as well-considered as any of Steve’s other decision.
Even if Gates’ decision to choose Ballmer was as well-considered by Bill, there would be plenty of reason to doubt it’s wisdom. Because in the end, Bill is no Steve, and Microsoft is no Apple.
I’m actually hopeful some things will change. For instance, Apple’s support of legacy products sucks. It’s a brazen slap in the face when Windows Vista users can use new iCloud services while newer OSes like Snow Leopard, and Tiger are denied for no good reason *while* also losing key sync services they were promised when they bought their Macs. (Imagine if MicroSoft decided not to make Office compatible with XP, or worse told XP users Office and networking services would no longer work past July 2012).
My only worry is that Apple is a business lead by innovation and forward thinking creativity and that must stay that way.
Apple needs someone on the board that is a creative person with vision – like Jonny Ive.
Jonny cant replace Steve but he worked with steve very closely.
Apple also need to keep up their very high standards of work and product too. If this drops then in 10 years time they will be irrelevant.
And I hope to god that never happens as I love apple products and what they do.
Please Tim, promote jonny Ive to member of the board so that theres a creative person at board level too who can help reinforce the apple creative vision and innovation!
Tim Cook will do fine. He will have his own style.
The corporate philosophy and principle’s will be the same.
I don’t know whether the Mac Pro will be continued or not. If it is not continued, I would guess that Steve was on board with that.
Tim, if you read this, PLEASE don’t go into the sole iOS-only way! Don’t kill the “pro” level and the Mac Pro product line! Of course, Apple will sell looooooots of iThings, all over… But Apple’s base of power users will leave the boat if Apple leaves serious matters behind.
iThings are nice toys and can be used as complementary within workflows, but “truks” (workstations) and real PRO apps will make the real job!
À “super-corporate” approche to managing Apple is a terrible idea. We’ve already seen the deployment of iOS 5 has been difficult. To be the best, you must know there is a price to pay for coming up short. “Team” is about the worst way I can think of to address people. In fact, the love of “teamwork” is killing American business dominance. Passion, impatience, dress-downs and perfectionism are what made Apple drear and Microsft mediocre. Careful, Tim, too much respect for people creates comfort that us destructive. I doubt HTC and Samsung CEO’s are as warm and fuzzy?
From Tim:
“Team, (…)
Tim”
From Team:
“Tim, (…)
Team”
Tim Cook promised that Apple Inc. wouldn’t change…”
Get a clue, Jessica! Cook was referring to the fundamental nature of Apple and its focus on customer experience, superior design, and technological innovation rather than just profit. Did you actually think that Cook was going to flip on the stasis field and freeze Apple like a snapshot?