Wrong

Henry Blodget:

Steve and Apple need to find a clear, strong No. 2 soon, and then Steve needs to start sharing the stage with him or her. This person can come from within Apple or outside of it, but investors need to know who it is.  The sooner the better.

Two takes on this:

  1. The last time Apple tried this was when they brought John Sculley in as CEO. And then he turned around and engineered a boardroom coup to kick Jobs out of the company. So don’t hold your breath waiting for Jobs to establish a “clear, strong No. 2”.

  2. Tim Cook has been Apple’s “clear, strong No. 2” for years. When Jobs was out of commission for his cancer surgery in 2004, he handed the reins of the company over to Cook.

My vote goes for #2.

★ Wednesday, 22 October 2008