Role of Innovation in Strategy Making-a Steve Jobs Case Study
STEVE JOBS: THINK DIFFERENT
This world consist of two kinds of people; one who born new technology and others who use this technology.
This is a high tech environment, every day something new and innovative product is being introduced. The people are quite accustomed with gadgets such as Ipod, Iphones, and Laptops etc. In this era of technology, one word which is quite familiar to the world is “Apple Inc”. A company which has changed reintroduced the meaning of technology was started in a garage of a 20 year old guy and now it’s worth is $2 Billion.
In its transition from a two-boy garaged company to a billion dollar company, a person played a key role. His name is no other than Steve Jobs. He bore the seed of Apple Company and it would be no exaggeration to say that Steve jobs is one of the biggest innovators world has ever known. Whether it was his personal life or professional life, Steve had never feared of taking risks or trying something new. A glimpse at his Personal life: Early college life The Steve job was born in San Francisco in Feburary 24, 1955 to an unwed college graduates who put him up for adoption.
His foster parents were not rich and Steve tuition fees were always draining on their incomes. Steve believed that traditional form of learning was not meant for him. Hence he left college and he never graduated. He knew that his foster parents had lots of expectations from him, but despite that he took this step because he believed that world outside college provided him with more opportunities than as compared to college. He dropped out the college to find something interesting, which fascinated him. He took calligraphy classes and found it interesting.
During his youth he also went to India with his friend to seek enlightenment.Birth of First Apple Computer: After returning to Silicon Valley, he met Steve Wozniak who shared same passion for gadgets which Steve had. Woz along with Steve developed first computer (consisting of circuit board only) in Steve’s parents’ garage. Subsequently much improved computers like Apple ii and Apple iii were born. They both got funding from millionaire investors who found these computers highly revolutionary in technology world.
The apple iii brought cut throat competition in the market especially because of use of graphical user interface instead of command-line interface. a technology which brought revolution in computing was first time introduced by Apple. It was due to their rapid innovations techniques that Apple computers survived flooded competition from IBM computers when they entered into personal computers. The other important feature brought into the market for the first time was VisiCalc, the first spreadsheet program.
Thousands of people bought Apple II just to avail that innovative feature. This was introduced in 1977 and by December 1980’s Steve total worth passed $ 200 million. Steve job was only 25 years old at that time.Fall off Apple’s main Shoot: Due to Steve’s short tempered, his management was not happy with him. Hence he was thrown out of his own project named Lisa. Feeling infuriated, he started a new project of Macintosh to hit the sales of Lisa.
It had a very simplified GUI based on concept “computer should be as easy to use as a toaster”. Despite controversies rising against Macintosh within the company, it became very important in the upcoming years for the company due to decreasing market for Lisa. John Sculley, former pepsi CEO, hired by Steve himself bolstered Mac’s project.After some time Mac’s sales also started decreasing and management feared that this third consecutive failure would lead put the company out of the corporate world. Steve’s continued stubbornness and rudeness offended management team especially John Sculley who dismissed him from managerial duties.
His only role left was to act as chairman of the board. In the meanwhile, he bought Pixar, an animation company for $10 million in 1986. Steve believed that trait which separated successful entrepreneurs from non successful one is the pure perseverance.That is why after leaving Apple, he didn’t lose hope instead continued working hard and came up with other new venture Next. His passion was still to make best computers in the world.
The basic philosophy was to incorporate complex technology but present in a simpler way to the customer. This simplicity was great challenge to him. The Next and Pixar both infused new spirits and confidence into him. When he had left Apple he said “”I feel like somebody just punched me in the stomach and knocked all my wind out. I’m only 30 years old and I want to have a chance to continue creating things.I know I’ve got at least one more great computer in me.
And Apple is not going to give me a chance to do that”. But time has proved that getting fired from the Apple was the best thing that could ever happen to him. Pixar made the first computer animated movie “Toy story” and is now known as most successful animation studio in the world. Next was acquired by Apple in later years and became very important part of it. Therefore separation from Apple brought something new into him.
He had to start all over again from the scratch, he did that successfully and much more creative period awaited him. Steve’s Apple Got Rotten:
