“It was a bittersweet year for Apple. In 2011, the company broke sales records and pulled in its biggest profits ever, but lost CEO and co-founder Steve Jobs, who passed away in October,” Josh Lowensohn reports for CNET.
“Jobs began the year by taking what would be his last medical leave of absence from the company, once again leaving COO Tim Cook in charge,” Lowensohn reports. “Jobs maintained his position as CEO for most of the year, emerging in public only to help launch the iPad 2 in March, and iCloud and iOS 5 at Apple’s WWDC event in June. His last public appearance was to pitch Cupertino’s city council on the company’s plans to build a second campus.”
Lowensohn reports, “Jobs stepped down as CEO of Apple in August, with the company’s board electing to put Cook in charge, and name Jobs as its chairman. Jobs died at home on October 5, the day after Cook and company took the wraps off Apple’s newest iPhone.”
Read more in the full article here.
RIP Steve. Ya done good.
I think all in all, Apple along with a host of other industries and so many individuals from every walks of life across the globe, will mark/reflect back on the year 2011 as the year of a sad and irreplaceable loss, both professionally and personally.
I just completed Isaacson’s “Steve Jobs” in the wee hours this morning. Most painful was the penultimate “Round Three” chapter of his final days at Apple. Following his resignation, we find this:
“That evening, he stressed to me that his hope was to remain as active as his health allowed. “I’m going to work on new products and marketing and the things that I like,” he said. But when I asked how it really felt to be relinquishing control of the company he built, his tone tuned wistful, and he shifted into the past tense. “I’ve had a very lucky career, a very lucky life,” he replied. “I’ve done all that I can do.”
Reading that I just felt the tears welling up inside. Still do.