Tim Cook, the genius leader, the current CEO of Apple, a person who in the past many people thought that he could not lead Apple to a good point like Steve Jobs did, but today he has proven that he can do better and can make Apple become the most valuable company in the world.
“ Being a champion is difficult, but defending the championship is even more difficult. ”
In the world of football, this statement is considered true. Take for example the story of the Liverpool team, an old English team that is over 125 years old and a team that has a large number of Thai fans following. Most recently, last season (2019-2020), they just won the highest championship of England, or the Premier League championship. But before winning the highest championship of the country this time, Liverpool had to wait a long time, almost 30 years, because the last time Liverpool won the highest championship of the country was in the 1989-1999 season.
The golden age of Liverpool team was the 1970-1980s.
It was a period of managerial career with Bill Shankly and Bob Paisley, who led the team to 11 league titles and also brought success to the team during that era by sweeping the European Cup (Europe’s top football competition) as many as 7 trophies.
But after that, Liverpool’s performance has been up and down, especially in domestic competitions, unable to return to the former greatness until last season, led by the German manager named Jurgen Klopp.
“ Running a football team is similar to running a business .”
Because they all have goals, expectations, and a desire to be successful. If the business is successful to the desired level, they will want to be even more successful. Very high expectations will become an enormous amount of pressure for the leaders and management teams of the company or organization.
But how severe is this pressure? Or how severe is it?
Imagine how we would feel if we were to take over as the manager of Jurgen Klopp. Or how worried and stressed we would be if we were to take over from a giant organization that has continued to be successful on a global level?
“And if this organization is Apple, a company that was once led by a great leader like Steve Jobs, how do we take over and create even greater success?”
When a company has achieved such great success under a highly capable, intelligent and capable leader, how can the company’s success be sustained?
Who will the company find or choose to replace the departed? What should the new leader do if he has to take on such a challenging position?
The problem that often arises after a good leader’s term ends, why can’t the next leader, or many leaders who are elected, achieve more or the same amount of success?
These questions are major problems that arise in Succession Planning. It is something that many organizations have to face and is an unavoidable challenge, especially in an era where disruption occurs very quickly.
“ The answer or solution may not have a fixed formula .”
But we can learn the principles, methods of thinking, and examples of real action from successful people who have actually done it. For example, the story of Tim Cook, the genius leader and current CEO of Apple, a person chosen by Steve Jobs and a person who has made Apple a company that is many times more successful than in the era of Steve Jobs.
The book Tim Cook – The Genius Who Took Apple to the next level is written by Leander Kahney or the Thai translation is Tim Cook – The Genius Who Took Apple to the New Future. The editor is Mr. Chatchuanan Santhidet who has translated and arranged the story of Tim Cook to be easy to read and fun with the history of Apple since after the end of the era of Steve Jobs and under the leadership of Tim Cook.
“ Don’t stand in someone else’s shadow. Unleash your own potential and let the world see it.”
This is an important lesson that Mr. Chachuwanun has mentioned from this book.
Admin has had the opportunity to read this book. There are many things that I never knew before, whether it’s about Apple or Steve Jobs, and I’ve also learned many useful lessons, such as:
“Be true to who you are.”
Tim Cook dared to reveal his identity as gay. It is believed that if he were a CEO of other companies, he would certainly not have dared to do this. However, when Tim Cook, CEO of a giant company like Apple, dared to reveal his identity in this aspect, he received admiration from many people in society.
It makes society more open and accepting of different genders and is an inspiration for those who are fighting for equal rights in society. This is something that Tim Cook sees as very worthwhile to be himself.
“Diversity is important”
Tim Cook believes that diversity and equality are good for business. He supports and promotes hiring without regard to race, nationality, gender or sexual orientation, elevates women and people of color to key roles in the organization, and supports education.
Another thing that Tim Cook also gives importance to is access to technology for people with disabilities through every Apple product. Every product, such as the iPhone, iMac, iPad, or Apple Watch that is produced, must be designed so that people with physical disabilities, including the blind or deaf, can use it.
“Learn to take risks”
Tim Cook and Choosing to Work with a Company on the Brink of Bankruptcy When Tim Cook decided to join Apple, the company was in a dire situation, close to bankruptcy. Tim Cook was hired in 1998 as Senior Vice President of International Operations. He overhauled the company’s entire manufacturing and distribution system. In just seven months, he was able to reduce the inventory turnover rate from 30 days to only six days.
And also saved the company by outsourcing more and more production to reduce production costs and increase Apple’s efficiency. The result was that the company, which had lost a billion dollars in 1997, was able to turn a profit again by the end of 1998. This is another example of how a crisis can always be turned into an opportunity. It depends on what we see it as.
“Admit when your are wrong”
Tim Cook himself made many mistakes, which he admits, and many of them are mentioned in various passages in this book, whether it was the launch of the first products after the death of Steve Jobs, hiring people (he hired people he thought were qualified and suitable for the job, but it turned out that they could not work with the company), or firing people who were once important to the organization.
Or in the case of the failure of the first launch of Apple Maps, which the New York Times said was the most embarrassing, least useful software Apple has ever produced. This story teaches us that leaders have the right to make the wrong decision or do wrong at all times. But if you want to be a good leader, when you know you are wrong, you have to fix it and dare to take responsibility for the consequences.
“Create your new way of innovation”
Many people in the past said that when the era of Steve Jobs is over, it would be difficult for Tim Cook or anyone else to be able to create success in the same way as Steve Jobs, especially in terms of creating innovation. In Tim Cook’s era, he launched the Apple Watch, which was one of the first new products of his era. It became a product with more than 40 million wearers, generating a lot of income for Apple.
It is said that the Apple Watch business alone is worth more than the Rolex watch business. In addition, there are AirPods and soon HomePods will be released. Let’s say that even though the innovations of Tim Cook’s era may not be comparable to the sophistication of Steve Jobs’ era, in terms of sales and profits, Apple can become the most valuable company in the world.
This book also presents many aspects of Apple under Tim Cook’s management, such as the company’s focus on sustainability through the company’s six values.
- Accessibility is a human right and basic technology is accessible to everyone.
- Education is equal, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, age, race, or nationality, everyone should have equal opportunities.
- Environmental issues : Apple takes this into account through the design and production of its products.
- On Unity and Diversity Apple believes that diversity is the engine of innovation.
- Privacy and security are a top priority for Apple, and every product is designed to protect the privacy and security of every customer.
- Regarding responsibility towards partners , Apple places importance on providing knowledge, supporting equality in employment, and encouraging all parties to work together to conserve environmental resources, etc.
Who should read this book?
For this book, it is considered another example for executives or business owners or even working people to see the thought processes, thinking methods, and practices of important people in the world that we can all use as examples to apply appropriately to the context or work or business that we are doing.
Price and where can I buy it?
This book is normally priced at 350 baht with 340 pages. The content is easy to read, fun to read, and you can’t put it down. In addition, it will make us understand Apple in this era and understand the perspective of a world-class executive like Tim Cook, how he handles expectations and pressure, and how he makes the company more successful than the legend Steve Jobs.
And this is the short story of Tim Cook, the brilliant leader who led Apple into a new future.
This book can be purchased from leading bookstores nationwide or ordered through SE-ED Online Shopping (with a 10% discount) here: https://m.se-ed.com/Detail/Tim-Cook/9786160838882
