Tim Cook assumed he was ready for the harsh glare that shines on Apple’s CEO. He had, after all, filled in for Jobs three times during the Apple founder’s medical leaves of absence. Cook ultimately became the company’s chief executive six weeks before Jobs died in October 2011. Critics had questioned Tim Cook’s ability to lead Apple. Much of the criticisms centred on Apple’s lack of innovation since Jobs, citing how Cook may not possess the same product vision. Further, many wondered whether Apple could sustain its success. What Cook found out instead is that there is no preparation for the scrutiny that comes with succeeding a legend. “I have thick skin,” he says, “but it got thicker. What I learned after Steve passed away, what I had known only at a theoretical level, an academic level maybe, was that he was an incredible heat shield for us, his executive team. None of us probably appreciated that enough because it’s not something we were fixated on. We were fixated on our products and running the business. But he really took any kind of spears that were thrown. He took the praise as well. But to be honest, the intensity was more than I would ever have expected.”1 Apple Inc. had been able to sustain its impressive growth with some hiccups. The company set record quarterly revenues and profits during these years, which resulted in its stock price catapulting to a level that made it the world’s most valuable company—a title it continued to hold in early 2015 with market capitalization of nearly $760 billion. However, in July 2019, Apple reported that its net income had fallen by 13 percent2 with a drop from iPhone revenue by 17 percent3. However, in the first quarter of 2020, Apple’s performances was hardly a disappointment, with record revenues, but not every category in the Apple Store was quite pulling its weight4. Cook and his senior managers faced new challenges in recent years. The company had yet to reverse the general decline in iPod unit sales and was facing a serious competitive threat in both the smartphone and tablet markets. Samsung had surged to the top of the smartphone market that utilized Google’s Android operating system to match the key features of the iPhone. In 2019, Android maintained its status as the most widely used operating system platform for smartphones worldwide with a 74.3 percent share of the market at year-end 20195. Dell, HP, and other computer manufacturers had also released ultra-portable high-end laptops and tablet computers, furthering pressure on the iMac and iPad. Moreover, the recent outbreak of Coronavirus (COVID-19) has also halted the revenue expectations of Apple in the coming period6. With competitive rivalry continuing in the tech industry, Cook and his chief managers would need to consider different avenues for growth.
1 https://fortune.com/2015/03/26/tim-cook/
2 com/2019/07/30/technology/apple-earnings-iphone.html” rel=”nofollow”>https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/30/technology/apple-earnings-iphone.html
3 https://www.bbc.com/news/business-48110709
4 https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2020/01/apple-reports-record-first-quarter-results/
Required:
· What issues confronted Apple in the last three years? More specifically, what market or internal circumstances should most concern Tim Cook and the company’s senior leadership team?
-Around 600 words
-APA 7th reference style (one or two resources)
-be specific to the case study