"Be a yardstick of quality. Some people aren't used to an environment where excellence is expected." -Steve Jobs
Fortune has a feature on Steve Jobs, titled "Steve Jobs speaks out" that looks at some of Jobs’ perspectives on leadership. In the article Mr. Jobs divulges some interesting insights into Apple and his leadership principles.
I doubt you could say that Steve Jobs is the epitome of high morals. He has been known to park in handicap spots and berate his employees in public. He can be known to be condescending and egotistical. Jobs’ style can have a negative affect on the climate in the workplace and, in turn, on the performance of the employees. They can become overwhelmed and burned out, yet, some have been known to say that Steve Jobs is a dynamic and charismatic individual and they love working for him.
I do believe that Jobs builds relationships between the products he is producing and his employees. He gets them to buy into his ideas and to create ones of their own that they are proud of and want to build on for its consumers. In an exclusive interview, Apple's CEO talked with Fortune senior editor Betsy Morris, "When I hire somebody really senior, competence is the ante. They have to be really smart. But the real issue for me is, are they going to fall in love with Apple? Because if they fall in love with Apple, everything else will take care of itself. They'll want to do what's best for Apple, not what's best for them, what's best for Steve, or anybody else (Fortune, 2008).
Jobs also has the skill of knowledge building and sharing. In the same interview with Betty Morris, Jobs states, “We've got 25,000 people at Apple. About 10,000 of them are in the stores. And my job is to work with sort of the top 100 people, that's what I do. That doesn't mean they're all vice presidents. Some of them are just key individual contributors. So when a good idea comes, you know, part of my job is to move it around, just see what different people think, get people talking about it, argue with people about it, get ideas moving among that group of 100 people, get different people together to explore different aspects of it quietly, and, you know - just explore things" (Fortune, 2008).
Many may not agree with Steve Jobs’ management skills or the way he treats his employees, but it is hard to deny that he gets the job done. It may not always seem that he intends to make a positive difference in the lives of his employees, but he has been known to push them to their highest potential. They may think that they have reached their limit, but he shows them that they can go the extra mile and gets the best work out of them. He believes, “When you hire really good people you have to give them a piece of the business and let them run with it. That doesn't mean I don't get to kibitz a lot. But the reason you're hiring them is because you're going to give them the reins. I want [them] making as good or better decisions than I would. So the way to do that is to have them know everything, not just in their part of the business, but in every part of the business” (Fortune, 2008).
Jobs has always aspired to position Apple and its products at the forefront of the information technology industry by anticipating and setting trends, at least in terms of innovation and style He wants what is best for the customer, ensuring that they are buying the best his company can offer The way he approaches this may not be conventional, but it works for him and the Apple Industry.
References:
Morris, Betsy (2008). Steve Jobs Speaks Out. Fortune, Retrieved February 20, 2010 from
http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2008/fortune/...jobsqna.../index.html
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Stay Young. Stay Foolish.
"There's am old Wayne Gretzky quote that I love, 'I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been.' and we've always tried to do that at Apple. Since the very very beginning. And we always will."- Steve Jobs
Steve Jobs has been criticized as America’s roughest, toughest, most intimidating bosses. Colleagues have described him as a brilliant man who can be a great motivator and a charmer. He is an example of the transformational leader who stands for higher order values. He has triggered people to do things they might never have done before. He will only settle for the best in everything. This standard of excellence drives many of his employees mad, but also pushes them to their very best and makes them achieve extraordinary performances.
Based on these characteristics, Jobs’ primary behavior characteristic appears to be as a controller, while his secondary would be promoter. He is strong-willed and determined. He has been known to be persistently thorough, wanting to be involved in all aspects of Apple projects and products. He is eagerly ambitious and does not stop striving to create the next, best product. As a promoter, he is imaginative and creative. He thinks outside the box and tests the limits. He has been known to be out front and forceful. He is known as a charismatic pitchman, having presentations that are inspired demonstration of imaginative storytelling that motivate customers, employees, investors, and the entire computer industry.
After starting Apple in 1976, Jobs was fired in the 1980s, returned in the 1990s, survived two brushes with death, and survived a securities law-scandal. Although he was dealt all these misfortunes, he looks as them as learning curves that have caused him to “think differently’ and play tough.
Jobs’ outlook on life can be summed up in the commencement address has delivered at Stanford University in June of 2005. It involves three stories of his life. The first story deals with connecting the dots, where he states, “You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.” He discusses his early life and how it paved the path for where he is now.
His second story is about love and loss. In this story he expresses, “You've got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don't settle.”
Finally, his third story is about death. Simply put, Jobs states, “No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life's change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.
View his commencement speech:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA
References
Angelelli, L. (1994). Steve Paul Jobs. retrieved February 17, 2010 from http://ei.cs.vt.edu/~history/Jbs.html
Lashinsky, A., & Burke, D. (2009). The DECADE of STEVE. (Cover story). Fortune, 160(10), 92-100. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database.
Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 10:30, February 16, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Jobs
Steve Jobs has been criticized as America’s roughest, toughest, most intimidating bosses. Colleagues have described him as a brilliant man who can be a great motivator and a charmer. He is an example of the transformational leader who stands for higher order values. He has triggered people to do things they might never have done before. He will only settle for the best in everything. This standard of excellence drives many of his employees mad, but also pushes them to their very best and makes them achieve extraordinary performances.
Based on these characteristics, Jobs’ primary behavior characteristic appears to be as a controller, while his secondary would be promoter. He is strong-willed and determined. He has been known to be persistently thorough, wanting to be involved in all aspects of Apple projects and products. He is eagerly ambitious and does not stop striving to create the next, best product. As a promoter, he is imaginative and creative. He thinks outside the box and tests the limits. He has been known to be out front and forceful. He is known as a charismatic pitchman, having presentations that are inspired demonstration of imaginative storytelling that motivate customers, employees, investors, and the entire computer industry.
After starting Apple in 1976, Jobs was fired in the 1980s, returned in the 1990s, survived two brushes with death, and survived a securities law-scandal. Although he was dealt all these misfortunes, he looks as them as learning curves that have caused him to “think differently’ and play tough.
Jobs’ outlook on life can be summed up in the commencement address has delivered at Stanford University in June of 2005. It involves three stories of his life. The first story deals with connecting the dots, where he states, “You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.” He discusses his early life and how it paved the path for where he is now.
His second story is about love and loss. In this story he expresses, “You've got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don't settle.”
Finally, his third story is about death. Simply put, Jobs states, “No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life's change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.
View his commencement speech:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA
References
Angelelli, L. (1994). Steve Paul Jobs. retrieved February 17, 2010 from http://ei.cs.vt.edu/~history/Jbs.html
Lashinsky, A., & Burke, D. (2009). The DECADE of STEVE. (Cover story). Fortune, 160(10), 92-100. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database.
Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 10:30, February 16, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Jobs
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
The Icon of Apple
Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.” Steve Jobs
Mr. Jobs founded Apple in 1976 with Steve Wozniak, and built an early reputation for the company with the Apple II computer. After the Macintosh was introduced in 1984, the company's business stalled, and Mr. Jobs’ relationship with John Sculley, then Apple's chief executive, turned unpleasant. This disagreement ultimately ended with Mr. Jobs’ departing from Apple in 1985. The following year, with a small group of Apple employees, he founded NeXt Computer, which focused on the corporate computing market, without success. In 1986, he bought the computer graphics division of Lucasfilm Inc. and re-established it as the independent animation studio Pixar. Jobs was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2004 but underwent surgery to successfully remove the tumor. Jobs recently resumed his position as CEO of Apple after undergoing a liver transplant in April of 2009.
Mr. Jobs has long been known for his intense focus on product design and marketing, but since Apple introduced the iPod digital music player in October 2001, he has also come to represent what is trendy across many American and international cultures, in areas from business to music. Apple and Steve jobs have a mystique about them. They have been able to create unparalleled suspense and excitement around their events and products. (Bartiromo, 2009)
Jobs is also a mastery of the message. He rehearses over and over every line he and others utter in public about Apple and is careful to avoid overexposure, preferring only to speak when he has products to promote. (Lashinsky & Burke, 2009)His presentations have been known to be brilliant demonstrations of visual storytelling that motivates customers, employees, investors, and the entire computer industry. He ignites enthusiasm and is passionate about designing cool, fun, and easy-to-use computers, music players and phones.
I chose Jobs as my leader because I admire anyone who is passionate about their work and ideas and has the ability to gain the trust of others through their enthusiasm. Jobs has been known to be egotistical an arrogant. He is willful and controlling, but he brings out the highest potential in people, forcing them to work harder than they would have if not pushed. He is inspiring and innovative and I believe in him and his ideas because he presents them in such a way that they are hard not to believe and buy into. People with that much intensity about what they are doing intrigue me.
References:
Bartiromo, M. (2010). A Leader in Innovation: Steve Jobs and the Apple Mystique. Retrieved from CNBC.com, February 16, 2010, http://www.cnbc.com/id/32732973
Lashinsky, A., & Burke, D. (2009). The DECADE of STEVE. (Cover story). Fortune, 160(10), 92-100. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database.
Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 10:30, February 16, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Jobs
Mr. Jobs founded Apple in 1976 with Steve Wozniak, and built an early reputation for the company with the Apple II computer. After the Macintosh was introduced in 1984, the company's business stalled, and Mr. Jobs’ relationship with John Sculley, then Apple's chief executive, turned unpleasant. This disagreement ultimately ended with Mr. Jobs’ departing from Apple in 1985. The following year, with a small group of Apple employees, he founded NeXt Computer, which focused on the corporate computing market, without success. In 1986, he bought the computer graphics division of Lucasfilm Inc. and re-established it as the independent animation studio Pixar. Jobs was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2004 but underwent surgery to successfully remove the tumor. Jobs recently resumed his position as CEO of Apple after undergoing a liver transplant in April of 2009.
Mr. Jobs has long been known for his intense focus on product design and marketing, but since Apple introduced the iPod digital music player in October 2001, he has also come to represent what is trendy across many American and international cultures, in areas from business to music. Apple and Steve jobs have a mystique about them. They have been able to create unparalleled suspense and excitement around their events and products. (Bartiromo, 2009)
Jobs is also a mastery of the message. He rehearses over and over every line he and others utter in public about Apple and is careful to avoid overexposure, preferring only to speak when he has products to promote. (Lashinsky & Burke, 2009)His presentations have been known to be brilliant demonstrations of visual storytelling that motivates customers, employees, investors, and the entire computer industry. He ignites enthusiasm and is passionate about designing cool, fun, and easy-to-use computers, music players and phones.
I chose Jobs as my leader because I admire anyone who is passionate about their work and ideas and has the ability to gain the trust of others through their enthusiasm. Jobs has been known to be egotistical an arrogant. He is willful and controlling, but he brings out the highest potential in people, forcing them to work harder than they would have if not pushed. He is inspiring and innovative and I believe in him and his ideas because he presents them in such a way that they are hard not to believe and buy into. People with that much intensity about what they are doing intrigue me.
References:
Bartiromo, M. (2010). A Leader in Innovation: Steve Jobs and the Apple Mystique. Retrieved from CNBC.com, February 16, 2010, http://www.cnbc.com/id/32732973
Lashinsky, A., & Burke, D. (2009). The DECADE of STEVE. (Cover story). Fortune, 160(10), 92-100. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database.
Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 10:30, February 16, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Jobs
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