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How Apple's Organizational Structure and Policies Contribute to Company's Strict Secrecy
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autrefois
macrumors 65816
OP said:
Read: "Please don't post hundreds of comments saying that we're 'spoiling' the book for you, like you did when we posted news about Steve Jobs' upcoming biography."
Um, if you're going to use the caste system as a metaphor, then in that context "untouchable" means the exact opposite of what was intended.
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How, exactly, does Apple oppress you?
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How, exactly, does Apple oppress you?
What else are Apple going to do with their enormous war reserve? Spend it on mindshare of course. Spend it on legal battles, spend it on patents, spend it on management of expectations and rumors like you said.
They actually have all the "tech" part sewn up. Even if they don't include a new technology like LTE for example, critics and staunch supporters will say 'it's not ready yet', as an excuse. And when they do introduce something new even if it isn't that new, it will be like Apple introduced it first. Apple the first company to do it the right way and everyone in the industry will have to follow suit just to compete.
Regarding the goose chasing, if you don't think Apple will introduce a Retina style display eventually I think you will be proven incorrect. The biggest news from CES for me was the disclosure of 1080p tablets from Acer and Asus. No doubt a hackjob but it proves the existence of such high resolutions displays on small devices.
Personally I can't wait for iPad3, skipped iPad 2 and after having used one for a while, yes it was nice, worth the upgrade, nope.
Oh and I'm looking forward to reading this book too, I agree with the main premise of a tightly structured caste system in corporate world producing the best results, though it's highly dependent on who's in charge.
Apple isn't that secret if everyone knows weeks in advance what the next product is going to be, with all the leaks, rumors, photos, prototypes, case designs, etc. It certainly isn't much more secret than other tech companies.
We all know about the upcoming release of the iPad 3, what most of its features will be, general price point, etc.
All this talk of secrecy is just more Apple hype.
We all know about the upcoming release of the iPad 3, what most of its features will be, general price point, etc.
All this talk of secrecy is just more Apple hype.
In those instances Apple has a pretty liberal return policy, and an even more liberal exchange policy.
But shouldn't you have already known that, having "worked both for Apple Retail and Corporate"?
In those instances Apple has a pretty liberal return policy, and an even more liberal exchange policy.
But shouldn't you have already known that, having "worked both for Apple Retail and Corporate"?
Sure, they've got good policies there, but that doesn't stop people who *just* bought the old model yesterday from being PO'd. It just makes it easier to take that PO'd customer and turn them into a satisfied one.
Funnily enough, I worked in Apple QA, and remember being told never to share information on products in testing with anyone in sales, for this reason. They'll pass the news on to the customer, and the customer will put off a purchase for a new, unreleased or even unannounced alternative.
these official leaks are done on a time schedule where it's impossible for a competitor to copy the product before apple's release. it takes 18-24 months for a phone/tablet to go from design to market
if someone talked about working on the ipad 3 early last year in detail and it got out then it would be a lot different
We were told exactly the same thing at at least two other companies I worked for after leaving Apple.
Tell anyone in sales, and they'll quit selling your current products in favor of pushing something that might not appear for six months or a year down the road.
I think the difference at Apple, is, these admonishments aren't just guidelines. Information flow is probably tracked, and if something leaks, those responsible are immediately fired and possibly sued. The fear of the hammer coming down on a consistent basis is what keeps people in line. They're ruthless, and it works.
Also, nothing that Apple does in regards to security and secrecy is all that secret. They've just borrowed techniques from intelligence and defense like "compartmentalization", where you only know what you need to know to do your job, and absolutely nothing else. In defense work, you often have no idea what the actual product is that you are working on. You're just building a component or programming a module, and that's all you know. The component or module will be used to make a final product, but that's not information you get to have.
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He was able to talk directly with Jobs via late night 800-number spiritual mediums, so it's all the honest truth. You don't get a trusted source any better then Madam Cleo.
Not if their quarterly bonus depends on the stuff sold and shipped to customers this week versus next week!
AAww I wanted to make this lame comment but you beat me to it.
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For those looking for a good book to read you may want to avoid reading this book.
re original article
"...Jonathan Ive's industrial design team among the "untouchable"..."
the aapl imperial guards
"...Jonathan Ive's industrial design team among the "untouchable"..."
the aapl imperial guards
But all tech companies are like that. HP and Dell aren't releasing nearly identical products at the exact same time either.
kinda ironic how a book about apple secrecy is being sold on the iBookstore
What's ironic about it ? Is it like rain on your wedding day ?
Alanis Morissette would be proud.
I think the error is in using the term "caste".
I believe the idea relates more to the Elliot Ness idea of the "Untouchables" - the group that was beyond corruption -- could not be bribed to give out information.
The error was that this author didn't have a clue about the dramatic analogy he used, which affects his overall credibility. Especially for a book supposedly written with "inside" information about the company.
In those instances Apple has a pretty liberal return policy, and an even more liberal exchange policy.
But shouldn't you have already known that, having "worked both for Apple Retail and Corporate"?
Well, yeah, but that's not the point of my post is it? There were plenty of uninformed customers who simply never knew, especially when the design of the product didn't change.
At Corporate (Business direct sales) we had a couple of customers with large quantity iPad orders get the total shaft because of turnarounds from their order date and their actual ship date. Apple's policy is to allow returns from the sale date, so even though they waited four weeks for their order to actually be delivered, they couldn't turn it around and get either credit or a swap for iPads 2.
It was not pretty.