Apple founder hailed by analysts for product innovation, marketing ability and perfectionism
The entrepreneur's entrepreneur, Steve Jobs has fascinated and mystified the tech business community for more than a decade steering Apple from near-bankruptcy to become the most valuable company in the world.
Under Jobs, Apple has become the exception to every business rule, expanding into markets that might have seemed outside Apple's core strengths – not least music, with the iPod and iTunes, and mobile phones, with the iPhone. Its expertise, though, was in understanding and creating consumer electronics in whatever form.
Co-founder Steve Wozniak, speaking to Bloomberg, last night defined Apple's success as being about the way products are developed as much as the products themselves. "Steve had been very disciplined and forthcoming in reasons for running things certain ways. At Apple great products are not the important thing – it's where those products come from and so much of that was down to the way of thinking of Steve Jobs," said Wozniak.
"The people around somebody who thinks in great ways like that and thinks ahead – they admire that and what to be like that … Apple is not going to change drastically or suddenly hit the tubes … I just hope that Steve is happy and feels that apple is in the best possible place for the future. His goal is not money. His personal goal is to be the implementer of technology that would improve people's lives – that's what he was born for, he told me once."
TechCrunch's Saul Hansell described Jobs as "the patron saint of perfectionists".
"We all know lots of people who are nice. We know many people who are smart. We've seen a bunch of corporate leaders who have the rare combination of skills to surf the waves spawned by Moore's Law," wrote Hansell.
"But it's hard to think of anyone besides Steve Jobs who through the sheer force of will, self-confidence, vision and perfectionism could upend the powerful forces of technology to make so many products that delighted so many people precisely because they were improbable."
For those wondering why so much attention has been paid to the departure of one chief executive, veteran Wall Street Journal reporter Walt Mossberg explains:
"Most people are lucky if they can change the world in one important way, but Jobs, in multiple stages of his business career, changed global technology, media and lifestyles in multiple ways on multiple occasions," wrote Mossberg.
"He did it because he was willing to take big risks on new ideas, and not be satisfied with small innovations fed by market research. He also insisted on high quality and had the guts to leave out features others found essential and to kill technologies, like the floppy drive and the removable battery, he decided were no longer needed. And he has been a brilliant marketer, personally passionate about his products."
Ovuum chief analyst Jan Dawson noted that Steve Jobs has been the architect of major shifts in music, mobile phones and personal computer markets, yet also generated resentment and criticism over Apple's proprietary and closed approach.
"The short-term sell-off of Apple shares immediately after the announcement is driven by fears that Apple will not continue to perform as it has, once Steve Jobs leaves the CEO role. However, these fears appear relatively unfounded at least in the short-term … his new role as chairman suggests this will continue to be the case even if he does not sit at a desk in Cupertino for eight hours every day.
"Longer term, however, if Steve Jobs's health is indeed behind his resignation, as many have speculated, and his condition worsens to the point that he can no longer be involved in even occasional decision making at the company, there are reasons to fear that the company will struggle to emulate its recent success. Steve Jobs has provided both strategic vision and personal leadership at the top of the company, as arguably the most visible and well-known CEO of any technology company today. Tim Cook will not step easily into either of these roles, as a safe pair of hands but hardly a visionary or a charismatic figure."
At Gartner, research director Michael Gartenberg said that despite Jobs's influence, Apple is much more than a one-man company. "While this marks the end of an era for Apple, it's important to remember the there's more to Apple than any one person, even Steve Jobs. Continuing as chairman Mr Jobs will continue to leave his mark on both the company and products even as he transfers the reigns to Mr Cook."
Perhaps a hint of Jobs's announcement came last week, technology writer Bob Cringely suggested, when the publication date for the much-anticipated authorised Jobs biography by Walter Isaacson was moved forward from March 2012 to 21 November.
"We know there is such a plan – there has to be, Apple's moves have been too deliberate, if inscrutable, to be some executive random walk. But nobody near the top has ever tried to explain where the company is going, preferring to be mysterious instead. Bill Gates had Nathan Myhrvold write his book for him, but Steve is classier than Bill. I believe Walter Isaacson's book will also function as Steve's technology manifesto, part of his legacy.
"Once we have the grand plan, then it may make more sense just who should lead that plan's execution during what will clearly be Apple's best quarter in its 34-year history.
"Steve Jobs is setting up this (and us) for another grand reveal … just one more thing."
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Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2011/aug/25/steve-jobs-resigns-as-apple-ceo
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