For me, Steve Jobs recent passing could be squarely put in the "disappointing but not surprising" category. When he resigned as Apple's CEO a few weeks back with a terse message signalling he could no longer perform his day to day duties in the organization, people had to expect the worst. While I respect the brand and have purchased a few Macs for personal use, I myself am not an Apple enthusiast (ThinkPads STAND UP!!!). Regardless, every few years I would check out the highlights of Jobs' various keynote addresses and I will never forget seeing a photograph of him while unveiling the iPad - the guy was a total shadow of himself.
It was shocking to see this titan of the industry looking so emaciated. I've always thought Jobs was an arrogant asshole, that hasn't changed, but over the years I've come to appreciate that archetype and the role it plays in the most important of organizational functions - providing direction. Now it takes more than bullheaded self-assuredness and the audacity to throw it around to lead, Mr. Jobs had that plus a very acute consumer focus and sales acumen that set him apart. The most important lesson I learned from Jobs was how true leaders do what has to be done, regardless of pride or how such action might be perceived at the time.
The moment was Macworld 1997 where Mr. Jobs made his first keynote address as CEO of Apple after being exiled for twelve years from the company he helped found. During the Keynote, Jobs would talk about partnerships and drop several bombs on the audience. The two biggest hits were that Microsoft would buy 150 million dollars in Apple stock and that Internet Explorer would be the default browser in the MacOS.
For those who were in the anti-Microsoft camp those days (as I was), that latter point was especially painful given the fact that Microsoft was being investigated by the Feds for destroying an upstart company named Netscape by engaging in anti-competitive practices of which making Internet Explorer the default browser in Windows was a major one. More chillingly, the enormous visage of Bill Gates smiling and telling the Apple faithful that their beloved company was being given a lifeline by its mortal enemy was probably an all-time low for Apple. Regardless, Jobs put his legendary ego to the side and did what he had to do to save the company. His words:
If we want to move forward and see Apple healthy and prospering again, we have to let go of a few things here. We have to let go of this notion that for Apple to win, Microsoft has to lose. We have to embrace a notion that for Apple to win, Apple has to do a really good job. And if others are going to help us that's great, because we need all the help we can get, and if we screw up and we don't do a good job, it's not somebody else's fault, it's our fault. So I think that is a very important perspective. If we want Microsoft Office on the Mac, we better treat the company that puts it out with a little bit of gratitude; we like their software.
So, the era of setting this up as a competition between Apple and Microsoft is over as far as I'm concerned. This is about getting Apple healthy, this is about Apple being able to make incredibly great contributions to the industry and to get healthy and prosper again.
Not only did Jobs save Apple from bankruptcy, he was given a base upon which to transform it into a company that would transcend technology. He might not have been a nice guy - neither is Gates for that matter - but he was a shining example of a person who knew what mattered for his purposes and relentlessly pursued it - even if he had to take a bite out what must have been the nastiest crap sandwich he could imagine. Jobs indeed got the last laugh, but where might Apple be today had he not swallowed his pride and made this happen?
Well played sir. Well played.