Clarity of Thought

I had a most excellent time being away from technology these last few days. It turns out I didn't miss the lack of electronic access one bit! While many things happened back in the real world (corporate layoffs, the Palin book deal, oh and that lightly-attended rather minor event in DC on the 20th), I managed to survive not witnessing any of them in real time:)!

Being away from the fray did allow for time to reflect, organize thoughts, and gain clarity about many things.

When I got back, a good friend forwarded me a link to this great article entitled The Cook Doctrine at Apple. The article is about Tim Cook who as you all know is replacing Steve Jobs at Apple while he's on his health-related hiatus.

Here's the payoff quote:

We believe that we are on the face of the earth to make great products and that’s not changing. We are constantly focusing on innovating. We believe in the simple not the complex. We believe that we need to own and control the primary technologies behind the products that we make, and participate only in markets where we can make a significant contribution. We believe in saying no to thousands of projects, so that we can really focus on the few that are truly important and meaningful to us. We believe in deep collaboration and cross-pollination of our groups, which allow us to innovate in a way that others cannot. And frankly, we don’t settle for anything less than excellence in every group in the company, and we have the self-honesty to admit when we’re wrong and the courage to change. And I think regardless of who is in what job those values are so embedded in this company that Apple will do extremely well.

Talk about clarity of thought! There are very few leaders who can articulate their organization's ethos in quite this way. It does ring true, and what I really liked is the last sentence, which assures their constituency that things will be OK no matter who is driving the bus, and actually sets up a change-friendly environment.

Personally, I think Jobs will return, but later than forecasted. I think he'll have a smaller role (not unlike Bill Gates at Microsoft), but will still be the voice and face of the company, and when they announce their next generation products (like a light (under 3 lbs), long-battery life (over 6 hrs), touch-enabled MacBook Pro - please!!) in a year (I have no inside knowledge, just trying to get Santa to listen and put me closer to the front of the line), the person doing the show will be Mr. Jobs.

Going back to the quote for a moment, imagine if the Superintendent of your school district was this focused, or the Mayor of your city, or your employer. "We are committed to greatness; we will always focus on what we do, and ensure that we do it with excellence. We are open to new ideas, and even more open to looking at ourselves as critically as we do our customers, markets and competitors."

I imagine that Mr. Jobs has read the Art of War, and so has Mr. Cook.