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I, Cringely 2019 Prediction 1- Apple Under Tim Cook Emulates GE Under Jack Welch

34 points by protomyth 8y ago

elizabeth_olu 8y ago
www.elizabethblog.com.ng
fgonzag 8y ago
I think that's a very dangerous pivot though. True, there is a lot of money to be made in financial engineering, financing, et al. I also think that's where companies go to die long term, even if it is a huge profit center short term. It means you are no longer looking forward to innovation and are now just looking to grease the wheels as much as possible.
- woodandsteel 8y ago
  My thoughts exactly.
kevin_b_er 8y ago
Jack Welch pioneered stack ranking. Anyone trying to emulate him should be looked at dimly by the workers. It is a disaster to employee culture due to its nature of backstabbing and dirty tricks to get the best "score" to keep your job. Being on an "amazing team" becomes a bad idea, because even if everyone is amazing, someone's gotta get fired still. Jack Welch ended GE as a company that symbolized good products and turned it into a financial company. Jack Welch represents American job loss.
musicale 8y ago
Transforming into a financial firm might be OK for Apple's cash hoard and shareholders in the short run, but it would also be turning away from the most interesting and beneficial parts of the company - the ones that make technology companies valuable to humans in the first place. I'm more interested in a company that applies technology to create tools to help people work, play, learn, create, and communicate. Or one that helps to improve health care and education. Even businesses like streaming music and video, improving cars, or making headphones and speakers seem more interesting and beneficial to humans.
aNoob7000 8y ago
I think one of Apple's biggest issues right now is the incessant focus on margins and profits. For a company with a cash horde of 150+ billion, they should be focusing on attracting more users. I have no idea how Apple is going to transition to a services business when they price their products for a very high-end consumer, and most of their services are tied to their products which means a limited customer base. Also, I know people are going to think I'm crazy but I think Apple should buy DropBox. I personally iCloud is not fixable, just buy something that works.
timoth3y 8y ago
Tim Cook is a supply chain expert and is positioning Apple to profit accordingly. By controlling who can sell and repair the hardware, who can sell software and at what margins, he is making a lot of MBA-smart moves. But it looks like Apple has moved into a phase where it is milking its ecosystem and customer base rather than building it. In the same way, Apple engineers are focused on creating Apple devices than trying to create new and innovative products. I love Apple. I had an Apple II and there are three different Apple devices in front of me right now, but I'm not optimistic about the future of the company. You either die a hero or live to become Microsoft.
- kalleboo 8y ago
  > You either die a hero or live to become Microsoft Indeed the comparison I see a lot is to Steve Ballmer, milking Windows for all it was worth The Jack Welch/GE turn is a new one though
deleted 8y ago
[deleted]

34 points by protomyth 8y ago

www.elizabethblog.com.ng

I think that's a very dangerous pivot though. True, there is a lot of money to be made in financial engineering, financing, et al. I also think that's where companies go to die long term, even if it is a huge profit center short term. It means you are no longer looking forward to innovation and are now just looking to grease the wheels as much as possible.

woodandsteel 8y ago
My thoughts exactly.

kevin_b_er 8y ago

Jack Welch pioneered stack ranking. Anyone trying to emulate him should be looked at dimly by the workers. It is a disaster to employee culture due to its nature of backstabbing and dirty tricks to get the best "score" to keep your job. Being on an "amazing team" becomes a bad idea, because even if everyone is amazing, someone's gotta get fired still. Jack Welch ended GE as a company that symbolized good products and turned it into a financial company. Jack Welch represents American job loss.

musicale 8y ago

Transforming into a financial firm might be OK for Apple's cash hoard and shareholders in the short run, but it would also be turning away from the most interesting and beneficial parts of the company - the ones that make technology companies valuable to humans in the first place. I'm more interested in a company that applies technology to create tools to help people work, play, learn, create, and communicate. Or one that helps to improve health care and education. Even businesses like streaming music and video, improving cars, or making headphones and speakers seem more interesting and beneficial to humans.

aNoob7000 8y ago

I think one of Apple's biggest issues right now is the incessant focus on margins and profits. For a company with a cash horde of 150+ billion, they should be focusing on attracting more users. I have no idea how Apple is going to transition to a services business when they price their products for a very high-end consumer, and most of their services are tied to their products which means a limited customer base. Also, I know people are going to think I'm crazy but I think Apple should buy DropBox. I personally iCloud is not fixable, just buy something that works.

timoth3y 8y ago

Tim Cook is a supply chain expert and is positioning Apple to profit accordingly. By controlling who can sell and repair the hardware, who can sell software and at what margins, he is making a lot of MBA-smart moves. But it looks like Apple has moved into a phase where it is milking its ecosystem and customer base rather than building it. In the same way, Apple engineers are focused on creating Apple devices than trying to create new and innovative products. I love Apple. I had an Apple II and there are three different Apple devices in front of me right now, but I'm not optimistic about the future of the company. You either die a hero or live to become Microsoft.

kalleboo 8y ago
> You either die a hero or live to become Microsoft Indeed the comparison I see a lot is to Steve Ballmer, milking Windows for all it was worth The Jack Welch/GE turn is a new one though

deleted 8y ago

[deleted]