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Tim's been just fine as a CEO. No one was going to be the next Jobs, even Steve knew that when he selected Tim to succeed him.

And yes, Tim doesn't have to be a product person. You typically don't want your CEO to be a product person - Jobs was the exception because he founded the darn company. As long as Tim surrounds himself with the right people, Apple is fine.

And yes (again), some people come and go. That's part of a career. Just because someone leaves a company, doesn't mean the company is in trouble. Sometimes, people are forced out (like Forstall, who seems to have been a major jerk to most he worked with) and others opt out because technology may not be their passion (Angela). That's life.
 
Odd. I don't see how not being "a product person" is an insensitive insult unless that person wants to be a product designer or marketer. I think Jobs' comment is just a matter-of-fact clarification. Meanwhile, I'm more appalled that a biographer would omit details that paint an accurate picture. History is littered with myth and false narratives that distort our expectations for ourselves.
 
So is Walter basically saying his book was crap? It’s convenient for him to say this now and there’s no one who can refute or corroborate it. There are people more in the know than Walter who have said the WSJ story wasn’t really accurate. I’ll trust them over a guy who admits he didn’t tell the whole story in his book.
 
Duh.

While Cook was an amazing COO, products and innovation are not his strong suit.

He's been a terrific CEO in certain respects, less so in others like product development.
 
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Tim is CEO, he doesn't need to be a product person...but somebody at Apple does. :)
I don't know about you but if a CEO doesn't know every detail about the product they shouldn't be selling the product. I want someone with a passion for details. Thats what really matters and that's why so many little details are overlooked nowadays with Apple plain and simple.
 
Not really. You can be a chef that knows how to cooks everything right (meat at the right temperature, perfectly steamed veggies, etc.) but doesn't know how to create a bold new dish by incorporating different flavors. So they are good at following recipes and perfecting the timing but can't create a new dish.
Seems like many new dishes have been created since Tim Cook became ceo. A chef that can’t create is a sous-chef. TC is not a sous-chef.
 
Odd. I don't see how not being "a product person" is an insensitive insult unless that person wants to be a product designer or marketer. I think Jobs' comment is just a matter-of-fact clarification. Meanwhile, I'm more appalled that a biographer would omit details that paint an accurate picture. History is littered with myth and false narratives that distort our expectations for ourselves.

Yep. Must soften the comments. There in lies distortion. But that’s journalism today.
 
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Duh.

While Cook was an amazing COO, products and innovation are not his strong suit.

He's been a terrific CEO in certain respects, less so in others like product development.

exactly, Jobs would have never - NEVER let the airpower fiasco happen. It would have never seen the public light of day until it was ready and viable to ship. "oh, by the way we have a new way to power all of these devices at the same time. we call it air power and its available next month"
 
No need for the revelation; many on here felt that way about TC for a long time. However, if it was not for TC, even during the SJ era, Apple would be nowhere close to what it is today. In many ways, TC is responsible for the turnaround and success of Apple. The challenge going forward, post SJ and post JI, is to find someone in the company that has the vision and courage to promote their ideas of future tech.
(Albeit, Apple was never a first mover in anything; they found an opportunity that was not fully exploited and then moved it to the next level. So, not 100% sure that Apple needs to have something new. But they do need people that can find and seize opportunities.)
 
Apple Inc is a multi million billion company.
I do not see how these individuals matter and we can not call them out as "True Visionary". Cook is a grain of sand on a beach.
 
Weird how once every couple of years Isaacson comes forward with another revelation that for some reason didn’t make it into his book.
I was going to say the exact same thing. It’s really funny he keeps doing this. In a few years I bet you he tries to sell the recordings of his interviews with Steve
 
Angela leaves, Jony leaves, and this stuff surfaces.
Bit of a reading the tea leaves but it looks like they're paving the road for Mr. Federighi's role as CEO.

I don't know. Craig is a software guy.

Time will tell.
 
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Isaacsons opinion on Apple and the corporate landscape is about as useful as mine. Just another person with opinions ranting for free. There was only one Steve Jobs. Google and Microsoft and even Amazon don't have one. Every corporation must carry on with only mortal leadership.

Ranting? He's explaining more details on what STEVE JOBS said to him, details that he didn't feel were fair to put in his book at the time.

Now, if you want to assert that Issaacson is lying, and Steve Jobs didn't say these things, then you can say Walter is lying, and just spouting his 'opinion'. But it's not just an 'opinion' if you accept that he's referencing the actual interviews he did with SJ.
 
With Jobs, we got a bunch of whimsical crap, like Genius Bars and iOS updates that destroyed usability within a year or two of product purchase. With Ive, we got more form over function. Maybe it's good that Apple got a mature business leader instead of an elf at the helm.
 
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The CEO doesn't have to be a "product person." Lol. He can build a team around him that is...
 
exactly, Jobs would have never - NEVER let the airpower fiasco happen. It would have never seen the public light of day until it was ready and viable to ship. "oh, by the way we have a new way to power all of these devices at the same time. we call it air power and its available next month"

I agree. Given their penchant for secrecy, it was unlike Apple to elude to—or admit to—the development of the AirPower and new Mac Pro. Was it to reassure Wall Street that Cook's "pipeline" does indeed have future products?
 
Ranting? He's explaining more details on what STEVE JOBS said to him, details that he didn't feel were fair to put in his book at the time.

Now, if you want to assert that Issaacson is lying, and Steve Jobs didn't say these things, then you can say Walter is lying, and just spouting his 'opinion'. But it's not just an 'opinion' if you accept that he's referencing the actual interviews he did with SJ.
Why weren’t they fair to put in the book but they’re fair to say now?

Edit: actually it was in the book. So this is really a non-story.

D-9ZbADWwAA3JtJ
 
Why weren’t they fair to put in the book but they’re fair to say now?

Edit: actually it was in the book. So this is really a non-story.

D-9ZbADWwAA3JtJ

It was in the book, but the further complaint ( could be hash ) were not. Which is what this story is about.
 
I don't know about you but if a CEO doesn't know every detail about the product they shouldn't be selling the product. I want someone with a passion for details. Thats what really matters and that's why so many little details are overlooked nowadays with Apple plain and simple.

Steve being a product person while running the company is arguably the exception rather than the norm.

And he had other blind spots instead, some of which Tim doesn't have.

Does Apple currently lack a good products guy near the top? Maybe. But it doesn't follow that Tim is a poor CEO, which seems to be the argument that Isaacson is making (if Isaacson is really saying anything at all other than "hey guys remember my book?").
 
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