{"id":330,"date":"2016-11-22T06:43:16","date_gmt":"2016-11-22T11:43:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/businessessentials\/chapter\/13-1-focus-on-power-the-case-of-steve-jobs\/"},"modified":"2021-12-08T16:56:07","modified_gmt":"2021-12-08T21:56:07","slug":"13-1-focus-on-power-the-case-of-steve-jobs","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/businessessentials\/chapter\/13-1-focus-on-power-the-case-of-steve-jobs\/","title":{"raw":"12.1 Focus on Power: The Case of Steve Jobs","rendered":"12.1 Focus on Power: The Case of Steve Jobs"},"content":{"raw":"
\n
\n

Figure 12.1<\/span><\/p>\n\"Steve<\/a>\n

\n

Wikimedia Commons<\/a> - CC BY 2.0.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

In 2007, Fortune<\/em> named Steve Jobs the \u201cMost Powerful Person in Business.\u201d In 2009, the magazine named him \u201cCEO of the Decade.\u201d Jobs, former CEO of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), transformed no fewer than five different industries: computers, Hollywood movies, music, retailing, and wireless phones. His Apple II ushered in the personal computer era in 1977, and the graphical interface of the Macintosh in 1984 set the standard that all other PCs emulated. His company Pixar defined the computer-animated feature film. The iPod, iTunes, and iPhone revolutionized how we listen to music, how we pay for and receive all types of digital content, and what we expect of a mobile phone.<\/p>\n

How did Jobs do it? Jobs drew on all six types of power: legitimate, expert, reward, information, coercive, and referent. His vision and sheer force of will helped him succeed as a young unknown. But the same determination that helped him succeed had a darker side\u2014an autocracy and drive for perfection that made him seem tyrannical. Let\u2019s take each of these in turn.<\/p>\n\n

    \n \t
  1. Legitimate power<\/em>. As CEO of Apple, Jobs enjoyed unquestioned legitimate power.<\/li>\n \t
  2. Expert power<\/em>. His success built a tremendous amount of expert power. Jobs was renowned for being able to think of markets and products for needs that people didn\u2019t even know they had.<\/li>\n \t
  3. Reward power<\/em>. As one of the richest individuals in the United States, Jobs had reward power both within and outside Apple. He also could reward individuals with his time and attention.<\/li>\n \t
  4. Information power<\/em>. Jobs was able to leverage information in each industry he transformed.<\/li>\n \t
  5. Coercive power<\/em>. Forcefulness is helpful when tackling large, intractable problems, says Stanford social psychologist Roderick Kramer, who calls Jobs one of the \u201cgreat intimidators.\u201d Robert Sutton notes that \u201cthe degree to which people in Silicon Valley are afraid of Jobs is unbelievable.\u201d Jobs was known to berate people to the point of tears.<\/li>\n \t
  6. Referent power<\/em>. But at the same time, \u201cHe inspires astounding effort and creativity from his people.\u201d Employee Andy Herzfeld, the lead designer of the original Mac operating system, says Jobs imbued employees with a \u201cmessianic zeal\u201d and could make them feel that they were working on the greatest product in the world.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Those who worked with him say Jobs was very hard to please. However, they also said that this meant that Apple employees worked hard to win his approval. \u201cHe has the ability to pull the best out of people,\u201d says Cordell Ratzlaff, who worked closely with Jobs on OS X for 18 months. \u201cI learned a tremendous amount from him.\u201d Jobs\u2019 ability to persuade and influence has come to be called a \u201creality distortion field.\u201d As Bud Tribble put it, \u201cIn his presence, reality is malleable. He can convince anyone of practically anything.\u201d Hertzfeld describes his style as \u201ca confounding m\u00e9lange of a charismatic rhetorical style, an indomitable will, and an eagerness to bend any fact to fit the purpose at hand.\u201d The influence works even when you\u2019re aware of it, and it works even on \u201cenemies\u201d: \u201cNo other high-tech impresario could walk into the annual sales meeting of one of his fiercest rivals and get a standing ovation,\u201d which is what Jobs got in 2002 from Intel Corporation (the ally of Apple archrival Microsoft in the partnership known as Wintel: Windows + Intel).<\/p>\n

    Jobs\u2019 power was not infallible\u2014he was ousted from his own company in 1987 by the man he hired to help him run it. But he returned in 1997 and brought the company back from the brink of failure. The only years that Apple was unprofitable were the years during Jobs\u2019s absence.<\/p>\n\n

    \n

    Based on information from Schlender, B. (2007, November 27). The power of Steve Jobs. Fortune<\/em>, 117\u2013118; Sutton, R. (2007). The no asshole rule<\/em>. New York: Warner Business Books; Kahney, L. (2008, March 18). How Apple got everything right by doing everything wrong. Wired<\/em>. Retrieved January 4, 2008, from http:\/\/www.wired.com\/techbiz\/it\/magazine\/16-04\/bz_apple<\/a>; Hertzfeld, A. (1981, February). Reality distortion field. Retrieved January 4, 2008, from http:\/\/folklore.org\/StoryView.py?story =Reality_Distortion_Field.txt<\/a>.<\/sub><\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

    \n

    Discussion Questions<\/h3>\n
      \n \t
    1. Steve Jobs achieved a great deal of success. What are some possible negative consequences of the level of power that he held?<\/li>\n \t
    2. Where did Steve Jobs\u2019s power and influence come from?<\/li>\n \t
    3. Does a member of an organization who has the title of power need legitimacy from the members of the organization to realize that power, or is the title enough?<\/li>\n \t
    4. Apple is a global company. How might the power structure within Apple change to reflect regional differences?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>","rendered":"
      \n
      \n

      Figure 12.1<\/span><\/p>\n

      \"Steve<\/a><\/p>\n

      \n

      Wikimedia Commons<\/a> – CC BY 2.0.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

      In 2007, Fortune<\/em> named Steve Jobs the \u201cMost Powerful Person in Business.\u201d In 2009, the magazine named him \u201cCEO of the Decade.\u201d Jobs, former CEO of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), transformed no fewer than five different industries: computers, Hollywood movies, music, retailing, and wireless phones. His Apple II ushered in the personal computer era in 1977, and the graphical interface of the Macintosh in 1984 set the standard that all other PCs emulated. His company Pixar defined the computer-animated feature film. The iPod, iTunes, and iPhone revolutionized how we listen to music, how we pay for and receive all types of digital content, and what we expect of a mobile phone.<\/p>\n

      How did Jobs do it? Jobs drew on all six types of power: legitimate, expert, reward, information, coercive, and referent. His vision and sheer force of will helped him succeed as a young unknown. But the same determination that helped him succeed had a darker side\u2014an autocracy and drive for perfection that made him seem tyrannical. Let\u2019s take each of these in turn.<\/p>\n

        \n
      1. Legitimate power<\/em>. As CEO of Apple, Jobs enjoyed unquestioned legitimate power.<\/li>\n
      2. Expert power<\/em>. His success built a tremendous amount of expert power. Jobs was renowned for being able to think of markets and products for needs that people didn\u2019t even know they had.<\/li>\n
      3. Reward power<\/em>. As one of the richest individuals in the United States, Jobs had reward power both within and outside Apple. He also could reward individuals with his time and attention.<\/li>\n
      4. Information power<\/em>. Jobs was able to leverage information in each industry he transformed.<\/li>\n
      5. Coercive power<\/em>. Forcefulness is helpful when tackling large, intractable problems, says Stanford social psychologist Roderick Kramer, who calls Jobs one of the \u201cgreat intimidators.\u201d Robert Sutton notes that \u201cthe degree to which people in Silicon Valley are afraid of Jobs is unbelievable.\u201d Jobs was known to berate people to the point of tears.<\/li>\n
      6. Referent power<\/em>. But at the same time, \u201cHe inspires astounding effort and creativity from his people.\u201d Employee Andy Herzfeld, the lead designer of the original Mac operating system, says Jobs imbued employees with a \u201cmessianic zeal\u201d and could make them feel that they were working on the greatest product in the world.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Those who worked with him say Jobs was very hard to please. However, they also said that this meant that Apple employees worked hard to win his approval. \u201cHe has the ability to pull the best out of people,\u201d says Cordell Ratzlaff, who worked closely with Jobs on OS X for 18 months. \u201cI learned a tremendous amount from him.\u201d Jobs\u2019 ability to persuade and influence has come to be called a \u201creality distortion field.\u201d As Bud Tribble put it, \u201cIn his presence, reality is malleable. He can convince anyone of practically anything.\u201d Hertzfeld describes his style as \u201ca confounding m\u00e9lange of a charismatic rhetorical style, an indomitable will, and an eagerness to bend any fact to fit the purpose at hand.\u201d The influence works even when you\u2019re aware of it, and it works even on \u201cenemies\u201d: \u201cNo other high-tech impresario could walk into the annual sales meeting of one of his fiercest rivals and get a standing ovation,\u201d which is what Jobs got in 2002 from Intel Corporation (the ally of Apple archrival Microsoft in the partnership known as Wintel: Windows + Intel).<\/p>\n

        Jobs\u2019 power was not infallible\u2014he was ousted from his own company in 1987 by the man he hired to help him run it. But he returned in 1997 and brought the company back from the brink of failure. The only years that Apple was unprofitable were the years during Jobs\u2019s absence.<\/p>\n

        \n

        Based on information from Schlender, B. (2007, November 27). The power of Steve Jobs. Fortune<\/em>, 117\u2013118; Sutton, R. (2007). The no asshole rule<\/em>. New York: Warner Business Books; Kahney, L. (2008, March 18). How Apple got everything right by doing everything wrong. Wired<\/em>. Retrieved January 4, 2008, from http:\/\/www.wired.com\/techbiz\/it\/magazine\/16-04\/bz_apple<\/a>; Hertzfeld, A. (1981, February). Reality distortion field. Retrieved January 4, 2008, from http:\/\/folklore.org\/StoryView.py?story =Reality_Distortion_Field.txt<\/a>.<\/sub><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

        \n

        Discussion Questions<\/h3>\n
          \n
        1. Steve Jobs achieved a great deal of success. What are some possible negative consequences of the level of power that he held?<\/li>\n
        2. Where did Steve Jobs\u2019s power and influence come from?<\/li>\n
        3. Does a member of an organization who has the title of power need legitimacy from the members of the organization to realize that power, or is the title enough?<\/li>\n
        4. Apple is a global company. How might the power structure within Apple change to reflect regional differences?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":923,"menu_order":9,"template":"","meta":{"pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":["author-removed-at-request-of-original-publisher"],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[61],"license":[],"class_list":["post-330","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry","contributor-author-removed-at-request-of-original-publisher"],"part":328,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/businessessentials\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/330","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/businessessentials\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/businessessentials\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/businessessentials\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/923"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/businessessentials\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/330\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":331,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/businessessentials\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/330\/revisions\/331"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/businessessentials\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/328"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/businessessentials\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/330\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/businessessentials\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=330"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/businessessentials\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=330"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/businessessentials\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=330"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/businessessentials\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=330"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}