From Timothy Donald Cook, who is working as the Chief Executive Officer of Apple Inc., we can derive many important leadership lessons, which can be valuable for today’s and tomorrow’s business leaders. Prior to being the CEO of Apple Inc. Tim Cook was Apple’s Chief Operating Officer. Tim joined Apple in March 1998 as Senior Vice President for Worldwide Operations, from where he graduated to become the company’s Executive Vice President for Worldwide Sales and Operations.
Born on 1st November 1960, Tim took the charge of the globally renowned company from the visionary innovator and business tycoon Steve Jobs, and showed exemplary leadership traits in taking the tech powerhouse to its next level of progress.
From 24th August 2011, when he took the leadership of Apple, to 2020, under Tim’s astute leadership the company’s revenue and profit doubled, and the company’s market value escalated from $348 billion to $1.9 trillion.
Here it deserves a mention that under Tim’s leadership, Apple became the first company in the world to reach a $1 trillion market capitalization. What is amazing is that Tim Cook managed to script such success stories despite not coming up with any earth-shattering innovative products for Apple during his tenure.
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Inclusivity and Diversity
Apple’s success during his tenure reflects well on his democratic leadership style, which is contrary to the autocratic leadership style of Steve Jobs. Tim trusts the diverse opinions and voices of his team, and facilitates talents of team members to contribute to Apple’s success. He encourages in consensus building among top employees and practices inclusive approaches to decision making.
All these attributes can and should inspire today’s and tomorrow’s business leaders. He also believes in being a good listener and staying focused; the other critical attributes which many good business leaders have or should have.
Today’s and tomorrow’s business leaders should know that it is not necessary that business leaders should be flamboyant and boisterous and visionary like Steve Jobs to be super successful. They can achieve their hard to achieve goals also by quietly fostering inclusivity and adhering to a democratic leadership style.
Embrace your Strengths
What is really commendable is that despite having an iconic individual as his predecessor, Tim had the mental resolve to not get influenced by his predecessor’s aggressive leadership style and carve out his own inclusive and democratic leadership style marked by his calm demeanor, which is absolutely distinct from that of Steve Jobs.
Tim played to his strengths to make Apple climb further on the dizzying heights of success. Today’s and tomorrow’s business leaders could be inspired by Tim to have their own distinctive style of leadership, irrespective of the height of the shadow of influence looming over them.
Besides practicing inclusivity and democratic leadership, Tim also advocates diversity. “We want diversity of thought and diversity of style. We want people to be themselves,” he said. In the future business world, diverse workplaces are expected to be more productive and innovative than those workplaces which are not and business leaders of today and tomorrows should get inspired by Tim Cook’s assertion for and practice of diversity.
Staying humble and staying grounded is another of the wonderful leadership trait of Tim Cook that today’s and tomorrow’s business leaders should imbibe. Despite his super busy schedule, Tim takes the time to visit Apple stores personally and to engage with his consumers. By being humble and grounded, a leader can earn more respect from her/his team.
Team Work and Transparency
The leadership style of Tim Cook is also characterised by team work and transparency, which are perhaps likely to be the most important traits for a successful business leader in the near future.
Here it needs to be mentioned that once when Apple was accused of employing low-wage workers in dangerous environments, Tim directed to reveal Apple’s global operations to the public. The bold step probably further enhanced confidence and goodwill for Apple among people. Such transparency deserves respect and can contribute to building long-term consumer trust.
A business leader who adheres to team work and transparency is more likely to win the complete trust of his teammates and consumers than an autocratic business leader.
However, like many great business leaders, Tim also believes in making one’s own rules and not doing everything in a predictable and formulated manner. To have an individualistic streak is a hallmark of a good business leader, which today’s and tomorrow’s business leaders can learn from Tim.
Trust and Courage
From Tim Cook, today’s and tomorrow’s business leaders can also learn to put the right people in right places and having trust on them. This can prevent falling into the trap of micro-managing, one of the most common pitfalls for a plethora of business leaders, which generally impedes their potential success story. It should be remembered that without trust on team members and right human resource allocation, democratic style of leadership doesn’t work in a competitive business environment.
Another of the very wise leadership attributes of Tim Cook is having the courage to admit and accept mistakes. By following this praiseworthy principle, today’s and tomorrow’s business leaders can appear more humane, honest and relatable to their team members, which in turn can induce the team members to get more involved with the company’s growth and success.
