There are several leadership points that Steve Jobs implement to his company Apple, and indicates his perspective towards people around him.

The first one is Simplify. For example, Jobs set his sights on redesigning the mobile phone. He would grab a competitor's phone and rant the functions were incomprehensible and the address book was indecipherable. His iPhone set a new standard for smartphones, making them into miniaturized computers. The iPhone's small touch screen was the test case for the iPad, Apple's tablet computer, and proved there was a big market for teeny mobile computers.

The second one is Control the Experience. Apple took full responsibility for the product from end-to-end. Every aspect of the hardware was analyzed carefully, from each component to the overall look. Likewise, he considered the user experience in every line of code and each salesperson in the Apple stores. Apple's model of a closed and proprietary system was consistent with his controlling personality and set Apple apart from open-source competitors.

The third one is Innovate. Innovators change the game rules to reinvent industries. Jobs noticed people were burning CDs on their personal computers from content on-line. The Mac could manage videos and photos but it could not record CDs. Jobs thought he had missed an opportunity in on-line entertainment. But, he rethought the concept and developed an ecosystem that transformed the entertainment industry with iTunes software and the iTunes Store. He made it simple to buy and manage music from one website and store it on an iPod or computer.

The fourth one is Team with Winners. Jobs could be so direct, it bordered on rude. But his high aspirations spilled over onto Apple employees who believed they too could accomplish anything. Jobs said, “Maybe there’s a better way—a gentlemen’s club where we all wear ties and speak in this Brahmin language and velvet code words—but I don’t know that way, as I'm just middle-class.”

The fifth one is Vision + Details. Jobs’ passion was applied to issues both large and small. Some CEOs are great visionaries while others know that God is in the details. In 2000, he came up with a grand vision that the personal computer should become a hub for managing user content. With the hub in mind, he developed different kinds of nodes, launching personal devices. In 2010 he came up with the successor strategy—the hub would move into the cloud—and Apple built huge server farms to upload and sync content. Here, it indicates that a leader should have a clear vision of what the leader wants in order to really make it happen.

E-mail me when people leave their comments –

You need to be a member of Pusat Kewirausahaan dan Inkubator Bisnis Podomoro University to add comments!

Join Pusat Kewirausahaan dan Inkubator Bisnis Podomoro University