02 December 2011

The Real Lessons from the Steve Jobs Bio

I just finished the Walter Isaacson biography of Steve Jobs, and boy is my brain tired.  There have been thousands of reviews written, hundreds of videotaped interviews with pundits who knew him and some who didn't, and psychoanalysis of his personality that is endless and almost certainly half informed.  If I were Laurene Powell Jobs, I'd probably throw my TV in a pool, unplug from the net, and move to a remote mountain for the next year.  Yes, he did seminal things.  Steve Jobs's accomplishments and abilities were so great and his charisma so strong that people overlooked or put up with huge personality flaws that would have sunk a lesser high tech leader.

Tens of thousands of aspiring entrepreneurs will read Mr. Isaacson's book in an effort to glean insight that will help them become the next Jobs, Gates, or Ellison.  The book is event-rich.  It covers all 56 years of Steve Jobs's life. Almost all of us are intimately familiar with products that Apple, NeXT, and Pixar created.  Something interesting happens on almost every page.  The book doesn't read like a novel, but it does provide clarity on the tech wars of the last 35 years.  In short, it's instructive.

Cradled inside all of the events and occasional commentary are some key lessons that can benefit every entrepreneur.  Here's my take on what they are:

  • Don't be a jerk unless you are supremely talented and have something that consumers really want to buy.  Steve Jobs could be a royal jerk.  If you believe the words of his colleagues, business partners, and enemies, he was supremely good at it; however, he made up for his supreme jerkiness with a penchant for breakthrough incredible thinking, a drive to create "perfect" products, and a passion for design that was unique in high tech. To work with him - to be part of the implementation and rewards - people were willing to put up with a lot.  Plus, he wasn't ALWAYS a jerk.  Much of the time, he was quite the opposite; he could be an outstanding and inspirational leader and manager.  The bottom line is, you have to earn the right to be a jerk for even some of the time, and you have to make up for it in other ways.
  • Focus on A Players, and get rid of B and C Players.  Steve Jobs respected and had an eye for talent.  Particularly during the second coming of Apple and the building of Pixar, he hired a lot of senior managers and key employees who either amplified his skills or delivered things that he could not.  John Lassiter of Pixar delivered the perfection that Jobs admired but with the gentle persistence that Pixar animators craved, and, after awhile, he kept Jobs out of the day-to-day workings of the company.  Tim Cook became the operational alter ego that Jobs needed at Apple, and Jony Ive, Phil Schiller, Eddy Cue, and Scott Forrestal figured out how to deliver, market, sell, and support breakthrough products. The line in the book is, "A Players want to work with A Players." That's completely true, and the best companies in world - real market leaders - have more than their fair share.
  • Most importantly, never lose your love of products.  Several academic and consulting studies have noted that the companies with the best products typically win about 25 percent of the time. It's the combination of product, sales, support, and market image that wins the day.  Steve Jobs says over and over in the book that companies lose their way when products take a back to seat to anything else - especially sales.  So who is right?  Well, the answer is definitely both, but consistently great products always keep you in the game.  
Customers do appreciate the combination of style, reliability, a reasonable price, and enough choice to feel like they bought the features they wanted.  Often, Apple provides far fewer choices and features in its computers, tablets, and software than its competitors; however, the products work flawlessly on their own and with other Apple and Windows products.  The experience far outweighs the omissions.  Even more importantly, Apple has a system to creating consistently great products.  You should do a little mental test.  Think back to 2004 or 2005.  When you held a meeting with outsiders and they through their phones and computers on the table, how many were Apple products?  The answer is, not many.  Today, there are Macs, iPhones, and iPads everywhere.  Apple should be saluted.  Usually, as companies create a broad portfolio of products, the overall commitment to excellence declines.  With Apple, it's quite the opposite.  
  • However, great products are not enough.  I have had tech-oriented CEOs express extreme frustration of the substandard ability of their sales leaders and account reps to close deals.  The common refrain is, "This product is the best of its kind ever built. It should sell itself. I am paying these guys good money, and I get nothing." Harsh words, and, usually, the CEO is at best half right. Most products just aren't as good as their inventors think. Code doesn't work right, the version 1.0 design is a little off, and, most importantly, the competitors have been at it longer.  Their approach might be antiquated, but they staked their claim first. Customers aren't going to bolt immediately just because a new, pretty girl walked out on the dance floor. You have to earn it. That's why the quality of the sales force, implementation services, marketing, and support are so important.
Interestingly, Steve Jobs obsessed about products; however, Apple has the best distribution model, support, and marketing programs in the computer and consumer electronics industries. No one else comes close. Isaacson's book talks a lot about the birth of the Apple Stores but hardly at all about Apple's sales prowess in locking up the education, design, or small business markets, and it never mentions the excellence of the AppleCare program. Thousands of people who aren't Steve Jobs did all those things - usually far from the limelight. 
So, what's the result of all this work "beyond the product" for Apple?
  • Incredible revenue growth.  Apple is fastest growing big company in high-tech and shows no sign of slowing down.  It is on pace to break $100 billion in annual revenue 
  • Immense profits.  Apple is by far the most profitable company on a percentage and real cash basis that produces computer and consumer electronics hardware.  A really PC maker make make an 8 percent after tax profit.  Apple makes more than double that. 
  • Apple is the most admired large company in America - more admired than Coca-Cola, Microsoft, Google, or anyone else.  A company with that much good will can survive big missteps and prosper - not that Apple is planning to screw up any time soon.




1 comment:

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