Tim Cook has been CEO of Apple for more than a year, he was chosen by Steve Jobs to be his successor, but a former director of the company says that there is no strong man at the helm of Apple. David Sobotta was a director in the sales division at the time when Tim Cook was appointed to lead it and says that the current CEO does not show the same passion for technology as Steve Jobs, or other members of the management team, and is not the kind of person to support its employees in difficult times.
Well, for starters, Cook is not a people person," Sobotta writes. "He certainly will not stand behind someone if the going gets rough. He is not that kind of guy. I sense no personal loyalty in him, and I suspect employees already understand that. Technology-wise, I think Tim Cook is a lightweight. I never felt passion for technology from Tim like I did from Steve and some of the great engineers. I would expect that Tim is having a hard time herding the chickens. From what I saw of him, he was something of a loner. He is not a warm guy nor is he the type to go wandering the halls or Caffe Mac to find out what is happening. His preference is to tinker with spreadsheets and numbers. He is not a natural leader. He's a manager.
Continuing, Sabotta says that Cook lacks those qualities that a leader must have, and maybe he is right, but for now Apple has worked as well as possible under Cook's leadership, so not too much can be blamed on him. Tim Cook was not and will never be a new Steve Jobs, he was chosen for his managerial qualities and not for the qualities that the former CEO of Apple had, and so far the choice has proven to be good, but no one knows what will happen in the future.
