By James Michaels
Apple’s new CEO Tim Cook might not only be the most powerful man at Apple but also one of the most powerful gay men in American and a technology leader in Silicon Valley.
Last week, Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple Computers, resigned sighting health reasons. It had been widely known that Jobs has been in ill-health for a number of years including fighting pancreatic cancer. Jobs cited an inability to meet his current expectations as CEO, but asked to remain within the company as chairman.
No one was actually surprised by Jobs’ stepping down, but neither were they surprised by him naming Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook to Chief Executive Officer Cook, 50, who has remained private about his sexual orientation, was outed earlier this year by Gawker when it named him “the most powerful gay man in Silicon Valley.” In the Gawker profile of Cook from earlier this year, they said that Apple management would support Cook even if he publicly acknowledged his sexuality, but did have “concerns about whether his coming out would impact of the Apple brand.”
Although Cook has never publicly commented on his sexuality, Out Magazine named him its most powerful gay or lesbian person of 2011. In its profile of Cook, Out Magazine wrote: “Although Tim Cook has chosen to be discreet about his sexuality, just know that Apple’s heir apparent is gay sends a compelling message of the opportunity to thrive in the workplace. That’s a big deal.” They listed Cook as number one in their Power 50 index.
Cook grew up in Robertsdale, Alabama, near Mobile. His father was a shipyard worker, while his mother was a homemaker. Cook graduated from high school at Robertsdale High School, earned a B.S. degree in industrial engineering from Auburn University in 1982, and his M.B.A. from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business in 1988.
Cook spent six months at Compaq as Vice President for Corporate Materials before he was hired by Steve Jobs to join Apple in 1998. He initially served as Senior Vice President for Worldwide Operations.
Cook is credited with pulling Apple out of manufacturing by closing factories and warehouses around the world. This helped the company reduce inventory levels and streamline its supply chain, dramatically increasing margins. In January 2007, Cook was promoted to COO.
Cook served as Apple CEO for two months in 2004, when Jobs was recovering from pancreatic cancer surgery. In 2009, Cook again served as Apple CEO for several months while Jobs took a leave of absence for a liver transplant.
In January 2011, Apple’s Board of Directors approved a third medical leave of absence requested by Jobs. During that time, Cook was responsible for most of Apple’s day-to-day operations while Jobs made most major decisions. Following the resignation of Jobs, Cook was made CEO of Apple Inc. on August 24, 2011.
While Jobs was known for his showman’s flair, Cook is known for improving profit margins and for being strong with supply chain management.
Cook is credited with rapidly fixing Apple’s “notorious manufacturing inefficiencies” and solved the inventory problems that dogged the company’s ability to supply enough of popular products like the PowerBook while spending too much to warehouse models that weren’t selling.
AppleInsider described Cook as a workaholic who survives on a diet of “an endless series of energy bars,” Cook is said to pride himself “on being first into the office and the last one out,” and expects a similar level of commitment from others.
“Unlike Jobs,” said AppleInsider, “Cook is not seen to be a product visionary nor a ‘compelling public speaker,’ tasks Apple’s management team has delegated to design chief Jonathan Ive and marketing chief Phil Schiller, respectively. Like Jobs however, Cook hasn’t been shy about thawing sharp critiques at competitors’ products, recently describing various vendor’s tablet products as being ‘big, heavy, expensive,’ ‘bizarre,’ or simply ‘vapor’.”