Steve Job’s is a visionary inventor who is co-founded and CEO of Apple Inc., the most valuable company in Silicon Valley. Before claiming his title as CEO he first got ousted from his company in 1985 and invited back as interim CEO in 1997. In the following decade he survived two near death experiences, one securities-law scandal, and also conceptualized and ran his product line-up to become the dominant leader in four distinct industries – music, movies, mobile phones and computing. Jobs was fittingly named Fortune’s CEO of the Decade in 2009.
A decade ago, after witnessing the almost complete collapse of the music industry which I came to know intimately through my years of work with the biggest record labels in the world, I witnessed the pure genius of Apple’s Steve Jobs as he transformed the way in which we buy and sell music in the digital realm. Here was a man whose primary industry is computing but clearly possessed abilities far beyond those of the failing record labels to recognize the music industry’s value chain and the major shift occurring in its fundamental structure as a result of the emerging digital technologies. With his launch of the iTunes music software in 2001, the iPod music player, the subsequent online store in 2002 combined with tough negotiating with major labels he managed to deliver a clear message that engaged the commerce of music once again. In my most honest personal opinion, without question, Steve Job’s saved the music industry.
While the unsettled state of the music industry still prevails, Steve Job’s has made it possible for those remaining musical soldiers to envision new business opportunities that can combine the best elements of the old model with new digital channels and a new value chain that is highly independent and dialectical.
I truly admire Steve’s brilliance and ability to handle complex problems, like the music industry’s, by focusing on the heart