“In the three years after the death of Steve Jobs, Mr Cook, 54, has held his nerve through attacks from activist investors and a loss of faith among some that Apple could succeed without its late founder,” Tim Bradshaw and Richard Waters write for The Financial Times. “This year has seen Apple’s chief step out of the shadows of his predecessor and imprint the company with his own set of values and priorities: bringing in fresh blood, changing how it manages its cash pile, opening Apple up to greater collaboration and focusing more on social issues.”
“As the new iPhone continues to smash its own launch records, Mr Cook has unveiled products such as Apple Watch and Apple Pay that take the iPhone maker into the realms of fashion and finance, recapturing a spirit of innovation that many feared had died with Jobs,” Bradshaw and Waters write. “In the process, Apple’s valuation this year has grown by almost as much as Google’s entire market capitalisation.”
“Financial success and dazzling new technology alone might have been enough to earn Apple’s steely chief executive the FT’s vote as the 2014 Person of the Year, but Mr Cook’s brave exposition of his values also sets him apart,” Bradshaw and Waters write. “This was never more powerful than when he talked publicly for the first time about his sexuality. ‘If hearing that the CEO of Apple is gay can help someone struggling to come to terms with who he or she is, or bring comfort to anyone who feels alone, or inspire people to insist on their equality, then it’s worth the trade-off with my own privacy,’ he wrote in Bloomberg Businessweek in October… As well as diversity, Mr Cook has championed sustainability and supply-chain transparency, including a commitment to reducing Apple’s use of conflict minerals.”
Much more in the full article, “Person of the Year: Tim Cook of Apple,” here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Readers “Fred Mertz” and “Dan K.” for the heads up.]
Yes.
Maybe in 2015, Tim could get back to doing what is best for Apple and the people that invest in AAPL stock. It may be time to move some of the money invested in Apple until Tim Cook is able to repair all the wrongs plaguing the planet. It would be different if he was being paid to work full time as Apple’s CEO.
Honestly? Are you blind or illiterate?
“Apple’s valuation this year has grown by almost as much as Google’s entire market capitalisation”
WTF??? I, and a whole bunch of others on here, now know where that brown ring around your neck came from!!
My response was directed at Jersey_Trader, not Michael.
Financial Times’ 2014 Person (most deserving to be fired) of the year.
Piss off troll 😡
What a great peace to read, certainly speaks volumes of Tim’s excellent leadership abilities.
He’s certainly on the razor’s edge with statements like this: “We do things for other reasons than a profit motive, we do things because they are right and just,” Mr Cook growled. Whether in human rights, renewable energy or accessibility for people with special needs, “I don’t think about the bloody ROI,”
Human rights? Gosh isn’t that kinda unpatriotic these days?
He’s open up bravely I must say: “It was a rare glimpse into his closely guarded personal life that also put at risk Apple’s brand in less tolerant parts of the world. Mr Cook was driven to take a stand by his experiences growing up in Alabama, where he has talked of seeing discrimination that “literally would make me sick”.”
I certainly can empathize with that, heck just reading about Guatanamo bay makes me nauseous even though many are deluded to think that it’s the patriotic thing to do, and hey if you want to be guided by fear and hate, go right ahead, it certainly does not make for great leadership but does make for good popcorn viewing.
Again his sentiments are that of a true leader, focused on the big picture, not some war mongering attitude: “But internally the spirit is still alive and the company is organising around a less confrontational culture. We have to give Tim credit for that.”
Wow organizing around a less confrontational culture, no wonder the U.S. government is attacking Apple left right and centre.
And finally my favorite: “They were always based on intuition.” or as I like to say “Logic dictates that there is more than itself, and that is intuition.”
Well done Tim Cook you are a beacon of hopeful light in a very dark space.
Hear hear! Well said the RW
Thank you for expressing your sentiments, that goes a long way.
Have a good one.
Patience, Grasshopper.
Time will tell.