TRAILBLAZER
TIM COOK
JOB TITLE : CEO COMPANY : APPLE
Cook supplied magic ingredients that allowed for Apple to grow
WRITTEN BY : SEAN ASHCROFT
Probably more than any multinational company in history , Apple is the corporate incarnation of its owner . Steve Jobs was Apple , and Apple was Steve Jobs .
So back in 2011 , when the world learned that Jobs was terminally ill with pancreatic cancer , analysts predicted a rocky road ahead for the company . They weren ’ t alone ; few could envisage the company without its inspired , iconic and occasionally tyrannical leader .
But Jobs himself had no such fears . Long before his death he knew that his Chief Operating Officer , Tim Cook , was the best person to take the company forward . It was Cook who served as interim CEO in 2009 when Jobs was on medical leave . Why did Jobs choose Cook ? Because more than anyone , it was Cook who had ensured Apple ’ s phenomenal growth by never allowing the supply of its products to be outstripped by demand , even when demand was stratospheric .
Cook joined Apple in 1998 , having been recruited by Jobs . “ I knew it was a once in a lifetime opportunity to work for a creative genius ,” Cook said at the time .
With a degree in industrial engineering , he spent 12 years at IBM , and had a short stint at Compaq , before joining Apple as senior VP of worldwide operating ,
16 February 2022