Monday, January 17, 2011

Steve Jobs Takes Indefinite Leave of Absence

Steve Jobs has taken a second health-related leave of absence as CEO of Apple. Tim Cook, Apple's Chief Operating Officer, will take over the company's day-to-day operations in Jobs' stead, as he did during Jobs' last leave of absence.

Jobs, who is 55 years old, gave no timetable for his return, but noted that Cook would execute the "plans the company has in place for 2011." In the meantime, the market is conflicted as to whether or not Apple can maintain its integrity and share price on the stock market. The last time Jobs took a leave of absence, shares fell 6% and many believe the company's shares will lose value.

Who knows what will become of Apple, and 2011 could likely be a transformative year for the company. What do you think? Will Apple benefit or detriment from Job's indefinite absence? WIll Cook be able to expand on and equal the innovation of Steve Jobs himself?

2 comments:

Amrit Saxena said...

As the market values of stocks are largely speculation-based, Apple stocks are all but sure to fall in the wake of this news. Now that isn't to say that the absence of Jobs will cripple the company. But something certainly has to be said about Jobs and his reputation as a passionate innovator and visionary, one who continually seeks to better the already sublime technology that his company has to offer. Personally, I believe that Cook will be able to handle the corporation quite well (as he has in the past). However, there will definitely be a decline in investor confidence with the absence of Jobs. At the end of the day, Apple has been at the vanguard of sophisticated technological advancements for quite some time and will continue to remain there for quite some time to come--with Jobs or without Jobs.

kiko said...

I agree with what Amrit said, but the fact that Jobs is taking a second leave of absence gives me the impression that his health is declining and he may not return to his position as CEO. I'm more concerned about Apple as a company in the long term than just in 2011. I don't know if Cook or Apple in general will be able to match what Steve Jobs has brought to the company. Then again, Apple isn't necessarily Jobs' one-man show; Cook is probably adequately prepared to keep Apple going, at least, so we don't need to be afraid of the company collapsing anytime soon.