7 ms·

Apple has shareholders and changing CEOs. This is really naive at best

by ramblerman 9y ago

Angostura 9y ago
As long as the company can show the shareholders that differentiating on privacy provides good ROI, they will be happy.
- pilsetnieks 9y ago
  There doesn't have to be a good ROI. Quoting Tim Cook: "When we work on making our devices accessible by the blind, I don't consider the bloody ROI. [..] If you want me to do things only for ROI reasons, you should get out of this stock." https://www.macobserver.com/tmo/article/tim-cook-soundly-rejects-politics-of-the-ncppr-suggests-group-sell-apples-s https://www.macobserver.com/tmo/article/tim-cook-soundly-rej...
pilsetnieks 9y ago
Compared to most companies, their CEOs don't change that much. The last one stayed on for life, for example. And with regard to displeasing shareholders - Tim Cook has no problem with that - to quote, "if you want me to do things only for ROI reasons, you should get out of this stock." http://www.businessinsider.com/tim-cook-versus-a-conservative-think-tank-2014-2 http://www.businessinsider.com/tim-cook-versus-a-conservativ...
- FussyZeus 9y ago
  He's not as bad as Steve Ballmer for example - though you can draw many parallels - but he's never had the vision Jobs had. iPhones and iPads are going well, but the Mac is suffering badly under Cook because it has such a low return. I hope he proves me wrong, but at this point I'm very worried about the future of the Mac.
  - tertius 9y ago
    At this point? The Mac has not been one of their main products for almost a decade.
    - FussyZeus 9y ago
      I don't disagree, but there was a definite tonal shift in how it was handled shortly after Cook took over. Jobs seemed to recognize that the Mac was a tool used by their pro/developer userbase that helped make not only the App Store the envy of Google and Microsoft in terms of the variety and quality of the software available, but as a big draw for the deep-pocketed developer community as a whole. Cook doesn't seem to get that, a problem that was on flagrant display when they unveiled the Macbook Pro last year, with a gimmicky input mechanism no one wanted, and no first-party displays to go with it. In other words: It was a niche product and always has been, but that niche has played a large role in the success of iOS. It should be one of Apple's primary concerns to keep them happy.
      - tertius 9y ago
        I think we agree here on the importance of the Mac. I don't know how real the difference between Jobs and Cook is regarding the product line. They worked together for a long time and what you're saying seems like the romantic apple media. True to a degree probably though.
        FussyZeus 9y ago
        Jobs had the vision, Cook had the business smarts to make it happen. Since Jobs passing, Apple has frequently felt like a rudderless ship. Cook is a great manager and a great businessman, no doubt at all, but he doesn't have the passion Jobs had and it shows.
        intoverflow2 9y ago
        Pretty much, Jobs thoughts on sales/marketing people driving companies more relevant than ever https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-AxZofbMGpM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-AxZofbMGpM
Sholmesy 9y ago
Maybe. Curious to what "at worst" would be... For the record I'm not saying they are taking this stance for some charitable reason, I'm saying it would/could make financial sense for them, especially considering their branding as a premium product.
coldtea 9y ago
Mobile phones aren't for life. Parent can change company again whenever they like. This is really irrelevant at best. (Besides Apple's CEOs tend to last a long time. 14 years with Jobs at the helm for example, and 6+ years with Cook and counting).
jp555 9y ago
Apple has deep seated values throughout the organization that it's been nurturing for 40 years. I think a mismatched CEO would either lose fighting it, or destroy the core of what makes Apple great, which shareholders will not like.

Apple has shareholders and changing CEOs. This is really naive at best

Angostura 9y ago

As long as the company can show the shareholders that differentiating on privacy provides good ROI, they will be happy.

pilsetnieks 9y ago
There doesn't have to be a good ROI. Quoting Tim Cook: "When we work on making our devices accessible by the blind, I don't consider the bloody ROI. [..] If you want me to do things only for ROI reasons, you should get out of this stock." https://www.macobserver.com/tmo/article/tim-cook-soundly-rejects-politics-of-the-ncppr-suggests-group-sell-apples-s https://www.macobserver.com/tmo/article/tim-cook-soundly-rej...

pilsetnieks 9y ago

Compared to most companies, their CEOs don't change that much. The last one stayed on for life, for example. And with regard to displeasing shareholders - Tim Cook has no problem with that - to quote, "if you want me to do things only for ROI reasons, you should get out of this stock." http://www.businessinsider.com/tim-cook-versus-a-conservative-think-tank-2014-2 http://www.businessinsider.com/tim-cook-versus-a-conservativ...

FussyZeus 9y ago
He's not as bad as Steve Ballmer for example - though you can draw many parallels - but he's never had the vision Jobs had. iPhones and iPads are going well, but the Mac is suffering badly under Cook because it has such a low return. I hope he proves me wrong, but at this point I'm very worried about the future of the Mac.
- tertius 9y ago
  At this point? The Mac has not been one of their main products for almost a decade.
  - FussyZeus 9y ago
    I don't disagree, but there was a definite tonal shift in how it was handled shortly after Cook took over. Jobs seemed to recognize that the Mac was a tool used by their pro/developer userbase that helped make not only the App Store the envy of Google and Microsoft in terms of the variety and quality of the software available, but as a big draw for the deep-pocketed developer community as a whole. Cook doesn't seem to get that, a problem that was on flagrant display when they unveiled the Macbook Pro last year, with a gimmicky input mechanism no one wanted, and no first-party displays to go with it. In other words: It was a niche product and always has been, but that niche has played a large role in the success of iOS. It should be one of Apple's primary concerns to keep them happy.
    - tertius 9y ago
      I think we agree here on the importance of the Mac. I don't know how real the difference between Jobs and Cook is regarding the product line. They worked together for a long time and what you're saying seems like the romantic apple media. True to a degree probably though.
      - FussyZeus 9y ago
        Jobs had the vision, Cook had the business smarts to make it happen. Since Jobs passing, Apple has frequently felt like a rudderless ship. Cook is a great manager and a great businessman, no doubt at all, but he doesn't have the passion Jobs had and it shows.
        intoverflow2 9y ago
        Pretty much, Jobs thoughts on sales/marketing people driving companies more relevant than ever https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-AxZofbMGpM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-AxZofbMGpM

Sholmesy 9y ago

Maybe. Curious to what "at worst" would be... For the record I'm not saying they are taking this stance for some charitable reason, I'm saying it would/could make financial sense for them, especially considering their branding as a premium product.

coldtea 9y ago

Mobile phones aren't for life. Parent can change company again whenever they like. This is really irrelevant at best. (Besides Apple's CEOs tend to last a long time. 14 years with Jobs at the helm for example, and 6+ years with Cook and counting).

jp555 9y ago

Apple has deep seated values throughout the organization that it's been nurturing for 40 years. I think a mismatched CEO would either lose fighting it, or destroy the core of what makes Apple great, which shareholders will not like.