March 29th, 2006
Guy Kawasaki on Apple's 30th
Video: Guy Kawasaki worked for Steve Jobs twice, although he doesn’t necessarily recommend it. "At least once is a good experience," he said. "[Jobs] gets you to do things you didn’t think could do." Jobs is well know for his low tolerance for incompetence and mediocrity. Kawasaki was a software evangelist for the Macintosh group during its formative years in the 1980’s and from 1995 to 1997. "[Jobs] sees the world differently," Kawasaki said. He sees where there are opportunities where others don’t, and finds negotiation strength where other people wouldn’t see it, he added. "He’s a unique character."
If Jobs hadn’t returned to take over the company, Kawasaki believes that Apple would have been acquired by larger consumer player and eventually fade away. "As long as you believe that people appreciate industrial design, coolness and things that work better, there will be a market for Apple," he said. And, as long as Steve Jobs keeps coming up with new ideas that sell. "Steve Jobs is the spiritual leader of Macintosh and Apple–his judgement, vision, and passion keeps the company going–almost singlehandedly. He has very good people working for him, but Steve Jobs is the crux of that company," Kawasaki concluded, which makes you wonder how Apple in a post-Jobs era would fare. Jobs’ ultimate triumph may be in grooming someone to take over for him, which would be especially hard for someone who is so relentless and such a perfectionist…
Kawasaki speculates on future of Apple
Dan Farber, editor-in-chief of CNET News.com, has more than 20 years of experience as an editor and journalist covering technology. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
