Excerpt From New Book Offers Look at Tim Cook's Management Style

[mabhatter]

Makes him sound like a bully with a touch of the white collar psychopath. Wouldn't be at all surprised if he is. Not uncommon traits among CEOs and senior execs I deal with.

I would say just the opposite. Anybody can push people around and bark out orders every time somebody is wrong. In that respect Steve Jobs got away with a lot because he was so smart.

Tim's style is about teaching people to fix their own mistakes. He's silent because he needs you to understand on your own why you were wrong. Obviously you didn't do the work he wanted to get the answer he expected. He's looking for somebody with balls to ask what they did wrong and how to fix it with him.. Not bully them.

 

[peterdevries]

Ballmer would be great if he was running an electric company. He's made lots of money. But Ballmer utterly stifled any world shaking INNOVATION because that got in the way of "winning at making money".

Apple has only been selling iPads for a few years and iPads utterly eclipse MacBooks now. Apple could stop selling Macs and be wildly profitable. Ballmer has utterly failed to "remodel" his company like that. Microsoft still makes its money on the same basic things it did ten even fifteen years ago.

People are afraid of Cook being the same way.

You are putting too much importance of who is CEO. It is the team that matters and the team is still very much in place at Apple. Sure Steve was a hands-on CEO, but that was not the single and only reason for Apple's success.

You are also disregarding the environmental position of Apple. If Steve would still be alive he would have a much harder time progressing than he did from 2003 to 2010. The company has grown, is less agile and the environment has become more complex. There are more competitors with similar technology and higher R&D budgets. In addition most product categories that Apple is in are starting to mature or have matured very rapidly.

Innovation seems to be a buzzword that many use, but very few understand what it actually means and how difficult it is for a large corporation such as Apple. Scale is a serious impediment to innovation. Even Steve Jobs was confronted by that fact in the later years of his life.

 

[inkswamp]

Nope. Tim Cook because CEO in 2011. It's been about 2.5 years now. Much of the success thus far happened under Steve Jobs.

That's really oversimplified.

Cook was handling a lot of the CEO duties during the last few years of Jobs' life when Jobs was struggling with his illness. IIRC, there were several long stretches during which Cook took over officially. And I imagine Cook handled a lot more than that unofficially.

Regardless, since when is a company's success solely on the CEO? Steve Jobs was brilliant but that doesn't mean Tim Cook deserves no credit for the many, many years of Apple's success prior to taking the CEO position. He has played an integral role in the company's most successful years. Just because he wasn't showboating on stage doesn't diminish his influence.

I think a lot of you need to get off the man's back and give him the credit he deserves.

 

[peterdevries]

I think a lot of you need to get off the man's back and give him the credit he deserves.

Amen to that.

 

[Glideslope]

I would say just the opposite. Anybody can push people around and bark out orders every time somebody is wrong. In that respect Steve Jobs got away with a lot because he was so smart.

Tim's style is about teaching people to fix their own mistakes. He's silent because he needs you to understand on your own why you were wrong. Obviously you didn't do the work he wanted to get the answer he expected. He's looking for somebody with balls to ask what they did wrong and how to fix it with him.. Not bully them.

ThankYou. At least someone gets it in here. Both were passionate students of the Art of Zen. Tim's implementation, if accurate, is the more traditional implementation. SJ's use of Zen was much more combative. As in the teachings of Sun Tzu. Bothe SJ and Tim IMO most likely have/had achieved the level of Sensei,or Zen Master. The transition would not have been easy in the CEO position.

People need to make a greater attempt to understand Tim. Very Logic Based Leadership.

 

[Mackan]

A psychopath is hiding in most CEOs.

 

[MajorC]

Classic bitch move of a mid-level manager.

^^^
Bingo. Anyone who has ever worked for a major corporation has had this type of tyrant like management style levied against them. If some are impressed with his attempt at creating a foreboding atmosphere in the star chamber, so be it. Innovation should be the focus. It is what used to put Apple out of reach. If one truly is honest, the magic has been missing for some time. Period.

 

[gagaliya]

Cook can stare and be silent all he wants, no one cares. He just needs to 1) deliver the next product be it iwatch or something else 2) make sure it doesn't suck and is widely adopted 3) fundamentally improve existing iPhone ipad to stay ahead.

So far he has not delivered item 1 and 2 at all since taking over, and delivered maybe 30% on item 3, I say 30% because of the fingerprint scanner, that's the only new thing apple delivered since he took over.

Also the constant crashing of ios7 browser and lack of fix shows the more relaxed nature of the user experience at apple under cook, job will never let this happened, or it will get fixed right away. How can you let your browser the most core use of the ipad crash daily and not fix it? All worrying signs.

2014 will be the year for him, sink or swim time

 

[peterdevries]

^^^
Innovation should be the focus. It is what used to put Apple out of reach. If one truly is honest, the magic has been missing for some time. Period.

Cook can stare and be silent all he wants, no one cares. He just needs to 1) deliver the next product be it iwatch or something else 2) make sure it doesn't suck and is widely adopted 3) fundamentally improve existing iPhone ipad to stay ahead.

2014 will be the year for him, sink or swim time

Can you enlighten us then how innovation should work and how one should manage it? It seems many people here like to fling that word as the solution to everything, but lack the knowledge to actually explain how it should work. You seem to know better, so please educate us.

 

[hairyguy]

I will agree that Cook is no Steve Jobs. But Cook didn't preside over a huge company that missed mobile - entirely - and has thereby condemned it to the imminent major-also-ran status that IBM now enjoys.

Really - is this the best you can do ?? You're unworthy of your cave.

WHAT is IBM?? no, i am not kidding.

 

[Rogifan]

Can you enlighten us then how innovation should work and how one should manage it? It seems many people here like to fling that word as the solution to everything, but lack the knowledge to actually explain how it should work. You seem to know better, so please educate us.

I hate the word innovation with a passion. The company I work for throws it out left, right and center. And why does it matter anyway? No matter what Apple does, someone is going to label it just an "incremental update" and whine about lack of innovation.

 

[peterdevries]

I hate the word innovation with a passion. The company I work for throws it out left, right and center. And why does it matter anyway? No matter what Apple does, someone is going to label it just an "incremental update" and whine about lack of innovation.

Exactly, 80% of companies use the word without knowing what it actually means. 99% of the people here have got no clue what innovation really is, how it is managed and how it works.

I would like to see how all these "experts" in innovation here would explain how Apple's R&D budget explosion (investment in innovation) since 1995 fits in with their view that "Apple should innovate more".

 

[IJ Reilly]

Ballmer would be great if he was running an electric company. He's made lots of money. But Ballmer utterly stifled any world shaking INNOVATION because that got in the way of "winning at making money".

Apple has only been selling iPads for a few years and iPads utterly eclipse MacBooks now. Apple could stop selling Macs and be wildly profitable. Ballmer has utterly failed to "remodel" his company like that. Microsoft still makes its money on the same basic things it did ten even fifteen years ago.

People are afraid of Cook being the same way.

I think you've addressed your own concerns, whether you realize it or not. Ballmer, along with Gates, created the culture at Microsoft, so it was unrealistic for anyone to expect Ballmer to alter it in any significant way. It's a culture that from the start didn't place any special value on innovation or risk-taking, and as you say, relied on perpetuating the same formula. Jobs, along with Cook, created a very different culture at Apple, one that highly values innovation and risk-taking. So if you're afraid of anything, you should be afraid that Cook will try to change Apple's culture. I think this is highly unlikely.

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I hate the word innovation with a passion. The company I work for throws it out left, right and center. And why does it matter anyway? No matter what Apple does, someone is going to label it just an "incremental update" and whine about lack of innovation.

Don't blame the word, blame the abusers of the word.

Apple has shown time again the ability to rethink and reinvent in ways that nobody expects. That's innovation, by definition.

 

[seecoolguy]

I wouldn't like to be under such a boss, but I understand why it would be necessary from a management point of view.

But good lord...6 hour meetings ?!?

That's fine for him who shows up at the ready with mt dew and energy bars, his employees should have had their own cliff bars and rockstar drinks

 

[soanis]

?

How do you get a photo like that?

 

[chrimux]

He asked a question, he's waiting for an answer, as far as I'm concerned, the employee is not being very productive.

Since he did not get any answer, maybe he asked the wrong question. Or the wrong person. Or his question was not clear.

I think a good leader should be able to work with strong personalities. Cook just "weeds out" people who threaten his harmony. A great manager does not adapt a company to his abilities.

 

[peterdevries]

Cook just "weeds out" people who threaten his harmony.

What a nonsense assumption. Do you work for Apple's board?

So many of you have got absolutely no idea what it is like working for a CEO or a management board. Any CEO needs dependable people reporting to them that can answer their questions and are able to take responsibility. CEO's need to be ensured that the information that is presented to them is backed up by facts and that the responsible manager is in control.

Again what many forget here is the responsibility that Cook and other CEO's have. They need to be able to rely on their management. The questioning that Cook does is to make sure that all data is supported by sound facts. This is general and normal practice in all CEO offices of large corporations on this planet. If you think this is not the case than you have never been in one.

 

[overcast]

Working at Apple sounds enjoyable.

 

[Abazigal]

That's fine for him who shows up at the ready with mt dew and energy bars, his employees should have had their own cliff bars and rockstar drinks

The meeting should have provided such stuff. If not, after the first meeting, his staff should know what they need to survive subsequent meetings. Lots and lots of caffeine. Heck, I already find a 2 hour-long meeting hard to endure, and I am caffeine - intolerant...

 

[demodave]

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The Wall Street Journal today published a new excerpt from former WSJ reporter Yukari Iwatani Kane's new book Haunted Empire, Apple After Steve Jobs, offering a new look into the management style of Tim Cook.

Kane notes that when Cook started at Apple in 1998, he set high expectations for everyone working for him, asking them to act like Apple was a $20 billion company when they were a $6 billion company and to procure the best yields, delivery and prices on components.
Cook ran his operations meetings in an orderly and disciplined fashion, going through every item and finding any possible error in meetings that could last up to six hours long. These meetings, according to Kane, could sometimes be terrifying for employees.
Unlike Jobs, Cook apparently used deafening silence when he wasn't happy with something. For instance, the excerpt explains an incident where someone was unable to answer one of Cook's questions so Cook didn't say a word and let the silence fester, causing everyone in the room to stare at the table. The atmosphere of the room would grow to intense levels as Cook kept his eyes on the person who wasn't able to answer until Cook pulled out an energy bar from his pocket to eat as he waited for an answer.

However, once Cook became CEO he made moves to make Apple feel more open internally than it had under Jobs. He opted to communicate with employees more often via emails and town-hall meetings. And, unlike Jobs, who opted to have lunch with Jony Ive, Cook would have lunch at the cafeteria and introduce himself to employees he didn't know and ask to eat with them.

Haunted Empire, Apple After Steve Jobs will be published on March 18.

Article Link: Excerpt From New Book Offers Look at Tim Cook's Management Style

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: I think that time will prove Tim Cook to be a *very* effective CEO. It is difficult to step out of the shadow of Steve Jobs and gain instantaneous recognition, and I don't think that Tim Cook is an instantaneous recognition kind of guy. You can be a very capable guy following Steve Jobs (better than 99% that are out there), and you still have a difficult job to do to prove yourself. I think Tim is up to the challenge.

 

[robanga]

There is no one effective leadership style. The problem with these sort of books and also the reason they often sell so well is people want to believe in a short cut and a simplification of leadership and management.

Think of how many new managers will read this and start trying to create fear in their subordinates. Then think of how many of them that will backfire on.

People want simple formulas on very complex issues and there really are none. Its sort of like people chalking up success in others to " natural talent " ignoring the 10,000 hours of practice plus personal sacrifice, it took to get a person to that success point.

 

[MH01]

Exactly, 80% of companies use the word without knowing what it actually means. 99% of the people here have got no clue what innovation really is, how it is managed and how it works.

I would like to see how all these "experts" in innovation here would explain how Apple's R&D budget explosion (investment in innovation) since 1995 fits in with their view that "Apple should innovate more".

Image

Yeah cause as a result of the 2012-2013 spend we are rocking some incredibly new devices

Don't assume that money spent results in innovation. That path leads you down the Sony route. You can have all he money in the world, without he right individuals innovation does not happen. And that is apples current problem.

 

[MH01]

Exactly, 80% of companies use the word without knowing what it actually means. 99% of the people here have got no clue what innovation really is, how it is managed and how it works.

I would like to see how all these "experts" in innovation here would explain how Apple's R&D budget explosion (investment in innovation) since 1995 fits in with their view that "Apple should innovate more".

Image

Yeah cause as a result of the 2012-2013 spend we are rocking some incredibly new devices

Don't assume that money spent results in innovation. That path leads you down the Sony route. You can have all he money in the world, without he right individuals innovation does not happen. And that is apples current problem.

 

[Rogifan]

Yeah cause as a result of the 2012-2013 spend we are rocking some incredibly new devices

Don't assume that money spent results in innovation. That path leads you down the Sony route. You can have all he money in the world, without he right individuals innovation does not happen. And that is apples current problem.

Ah, so Steve Jobs didn't do a good job in picking the right individuals that know how to innovate and from 1998 - 2011 the only one innovating at Apple was Steve. After Steve died all innovation went with him. Got it.

 

[SusanK]

Ah, so Steve Jobs didn't do a good job in picking the right individuals that know how to innovate and from 1998 - 2011 the only one innovating at Apple was Steve. After Steve died all innovation went with him. Got it.

Question: If Cook hits one out of the park will that be Steve's triumph or will Cook get deserved credit?

I get so confused with this dead people running companies concept.

I'm posting in the spirit of good natured fun. Have a good evening!