Steve Jobs

With the news this week about Steve Jobs, I have thought a lot about what made him so successful and how he helped Apple to achieve things they never could before. I think that applying the Hedgehog concept gives us a better understanding of why Apple has been so successful under Jobs.

First, they definitely do something that they are deeply passionate about. From the beginning of his life, Steve Jobs has loved technology. It is what originally motivated him to begin building Macintosh computers out of a garage. His fire and desire have motivated him throughout his life, and Apple has followed that fire. It is seen in every new product that has been developed by Apple, Jobs has a fire and a desire to come up with the "next new thing." The challenge now for Apple will be to continue forward with that same fire even though Jobs is gone.

Also, they know that they can be the best at the things they do. Apple does a very good job of choosing the things that they know they can be the best in the world at. They create almost every product that they sell in a way that allows them to be the best. They aren't trying to compete on price, they just make sure their product is so good that people will be willing to pay the price that they ask. And they really haven't failed much with this strategy. By only getting into things they know they can do best, they have created a brand that is worth more than any other in the world.

Finally, they have figured out that making the products they make is extremely profitable, as shown by their financial results in past years. Obviously, they carefully price and place their products to maximize profits, and have been very successful.

Steve Jobs took over a company in the late 90s in serious trouble. It is amazing what he did in the space of 15 years, and he accomplished it by using the principles in the Hedgehog Concept.