In my years of writing I have yet to see a day that makes me go WOW! Did that just happen. But today while opening the Internet became reality.
Steve Jobs effective immediately is no longer CEO. He resigned today for unknown reasons, although with his medical situations of late it would appear that that may be the primary reason. With a personal letter to Apple Board asking to execute the succession plan and announce Tim Cook as CEO. They quickly voted him Chairman of the Board, however, so he can still help direct how the company operates without the heavy burden and long hours of being CEO.
Click here for the new brief from MSN.
Here is the resignation letter he gave to the board:
To the Apple Board of Directors and the Apple Community:
I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple’s CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come.
I hereby resign as CEO of Apple. I would like to serve, if the Board sees fit, as Chairman of the Board, director and Apple employee.
As far as my successor goes, I strongly recommend that we execute our succession plan and name Tim Cook as CEO of Apple.
I believe Apple’s brightest and most innovative days are ahead of it. And I look forward to watching and contributing to its success in a new role.
I have made some of the best friends of my life at Apple, and I thank you all for the many years of being able to work alongside you.
Steve
How do you think this will help or hurt the company? Do you think this will impact their idea’s marketing and overall devices? Let me know below PPCGeeks.
[UPDATE]
Tim Cook (new CEO of Apple) has released the following email to Apple employees assuring them that nothing is going to chage:
“Team:
I am looking forward to the amazing opportunity of serving as CEO of the most innovative company in the world. Joining Apple was the best decision I’ve ever made and it’s been the privilege of a lifetime to work for Apple and Steve for over 13 years. I share Steve’s optimism for Apple’s bright future.
Steve has been an incredible leader and mentor to me, as well as to the entire executive team and our amazing employees. We are really looking forward to Steve’s ongoing guidance and inspiration as our Chairman.
I want you to be confident that Apple is not going to change. I cherish and celebrate Apple’s unique principles and values. Steve built a company and culture that is unlike any other in the world and we are going to stay true to that—it is in our DNA. We are going to continue to make the best products in the world that delight our customers and make our employees incredibly proud of what they do.
I love Apple and I am looking forward to diving into my new role. All of the incredible support from the Board, the executive team and many of you has been inspiring. I am confident our best years lie ahead of us and that together we will continue to make Apple the magical place that it is.
Tim“
© 2011, JasonFieldz. All rights reserved.
No it wont affect apple
Satan has left?!?!?!
lol jk..actually I don’t really have much against him personally..
I think it will most certainly affect Apple.
For the benefit of those that can’t remember that far back, Steve being ousted from the company years ago resulted in catastrophic losses to the business that nearly caused their demise. It was his return in the late 90′s and his deal with Microsoft that spared them total bankruptcy, and his leadership that has led them where they are today. I don’t agree with the company’s marketing, and I’ve never liked their products, but you can’t refute the man’s ability to blow smoke in everyone’s face, call it magical and revolutionary, and have everyone believe it like the gospel.
I’m not convinced that anyone in Apple has the vision or leadership talent to lead them the way Steve has.
Misleading information.
Steve Jobs is not leaving Apple, but stepping down as CEO. He wishes to remain chairman of the board, but due to health issues wants someone else to take the reigns.
You guys need to be careful about what you say and how you say it if you want this to be taken seriously as a news outlet.
@dishe, Thanks for your insight dishe, I have corrected the article and added a little to it to ensure we are accurate. Thanks for reading
@dishe, Actually, I wouldn’t call it misleading at all.
Bill Gates, last I heard, was still chairman of the board at Microsoft too… but you don’t see him sticking his hands in things these days at the company. I expect it to be very much the same at Apple… especially given his health.
@GoodThings2Life, True, Steve pretty much runs the show over there.
Bill Gates also announced today that he was leaving Microsoft…
Apple immediatly filed a patent infringment suit to stop him!
@ Asphyx…Nice one. Looks like those efforts are futile so far in the USA as I just saw a new Samsung Tab commercial.
@GoodThings2Life, must agree with you 100%. Though I am not an Apple fan I must admit Apple has no leader like Steve. All he stood for, whether positive or negative, will be lost. Most businesses only persevere or survive because of one person; in Apple that was Steve. Like you said @GoodThings2Life“, in the 90′s the company was a sneeze away from oblivion and it was Steve that revamped the company to what it is today.
What is left in Apple? In my opinion money hungry investors and less than mediocre execs that only see $$$$ but with no vision or inspiration to make their $$$$ dreams come to life. Wait is that not what happened in the 90′s? Apple will no doubt trickle away and become a monument of what use to be a successful company.
I feel bad for Steve for 2 reasons. 1) his health 2) he created a legacy and unfortunately will see all his hard work be thrown away.
For what its worth Steve, is a great man and true inspiration. Best of luck Steve.
Sorry but my brain itched so I have to say this… was it not the money hungry investors and less than mediocre execs that got rid of Steve in the 90′s because he was no longer fit for the company or some lame lingo excuse similar to that? Was this not the first of many stupid decisions these ID10TS made that brought down Apple? Are these not the same people who will be left running the company?
Sooooo… the next question is, amidst the fierce competition tech companies face today, how long do you think Apple will float without Steve?
I say 3 years and only because they have a lot of cash.
Let the bets begin!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
@havek, He’s still Chairman of the Board, so he can slap stupid ideas upside the head for a while.
@havek, I’ll give them half a decade…
Macs still have less than 10% market penetration in the US and less than 5% worldwide, so they’re going to continue to be irrelevant to most people, and they’ll never really take over business. Within 5 years, I expect usage trends to be half what they are today, since their expansion has been due to Windows Vista’s failure and the iDevices popularity. Post-Steve, I expect them to drop the Mac completely as a waste of resources.
Mac OSX will continue its trend to become more iOS-like and will ultimately vanish as a distinguished platform as Apple decides that maintaining the Mac line is pointless.
The iDevices will continue to roll out year after year featuring relatively minor improvements. The iPod will be phased out, except for the Nano, as more people want integrated devices, but the Nano makes a great “work out” accessory. The iPhone will become less trendy as Android continues its dominance, and Windows Phone will actually begin to compete over the next 2 years (after that, it’s anyone’s guess on MS vs. Google). I expect the iPhone to slip from 22% market usage to 15% within 2 years, and below 10% within 5. The iPad is a wildcard… if they continue to market it as a content-consumption device with limited-to-moderate productivity ability, I think it will succeed for at least 3 years. After that, it will require some serious innovation to survive… especially given the competition from Amazon, Google, and Microsoft.
But GT2L, why do you really believe this? Well, simple…
Steve was given god-like status upon his return for one reason only… the company was on the edge of total collapse. He came back, he got the company back on solid ground financially, and he has spent the last several years marketing the hell out of their products.
The reality is, his marketing is catchy, because it’s technically true if you don’t think about it too much or don’t pay attention to the competition. Otherwise it’s all smoke, mirrors, and deception.
The iPhone was not even close to the first smartphone, we all know that Palm, Blackberry, and Microsoft beat them to that. They DID MAKE the first smartphone simple enough for idiots to use.
The iPod was purely a “right time” sort of device… Napster was collapsing, and Apple capitalized on the fact that consumers needed a legal way to get content, and oh here’s a nifty way to take that content with you instead of buying CD’s and figuring out how to burn them.
The iPad is NOT the first tablet. Tablets have been around for a long time, and Bill Gates was the champion of the tablet back in 2001/2002. Hell, I’ve been carrying a tablet around since 2005. The iPad IS, however, the first tablet to make content consumption convenient and distract you from getting any serious work done. Notice I’m not saying you can’t get work done… you can. But I don’t know anyone that runs their whole life on an iPad alone, and they’re going to go away with the next trend, just like netbooks went away when the iPad came.
Wow GT2L, you really do hate everyone!
@rainfreak, LOL! No, just stupid people… or in this case, a company that take advantage of stupid people through misrepresenting their products.
Look, I don’t want anyone to misinterpret my analysis though… I am not faulting Jobs. The opposite is true, I think Apple needs Jobs, and I don’t think the company is the same without him. They weren’t 15 years ago, and they won’t be this time.
I also believe that Apple is capable of saving themselves from the fate I’ve described… I just don’t think they’ll actually do what they’d need, because it goes against the core values of the company. They need to open up more, and they need to embrace business.
When Bill Gates stopped having control of Microsoft, look where everything went (ie Windows Mobile 7, Windows 8…).
But can even apple top a screwup as bad as WM7?
- 2 Bunny
@2 Bunny, I agree here..when bill gates left the company went downhill :/..Balmer is just not cut out for it..