Life and Career of Steve Jobs - Book Report/Review Example

Steve Jobs Introduction The book titled Steve Jobs authored by Walter Isaacson documents the biography of Steve Jobs, the founder of the Apple computer company. Steve Jobs is renowned across the globe for his contribution to the computer industry and his passion for innovation, which is the driving force at Apple Computer Company. Steve Jobs initiated the idea of Walter Isaacson writing his biography. Jobs wanted people to connect with his story, especially how he founded the Apple Computer Company and ensured that it became the most valuable computer company in the globe. The book documents different aspects of Steve Jobs highlighting his outstanding strengths, family history, his childhood, and his passion for technology and electronics. The book has numerous chapters, each dedicated to a different aspect of Jobs’ life. Many readers of the book will become familiar with the products of the Apple Computer Company that have caused a buzz in the world. In addition, readers will understand the reason behind the premium prices of Apple products. The lessons from the life of Steve Jobs are of critical importance in the field of operations and management. As a leader, Steve Jobs had his success and failures that can influence the modern leadership, as this paper will highlight. Summary of the Book The book comprises of 42 chapters that highlight the different aspects of Steve Jobs’ life. In the first chapter, Walter Isaacson introduces the reader to the childhood of Steve Jobs. It emerges that Steve Jobs was an adopted son of Paul and Clara Jobs. He was the biological son of John Jandali and Joanne Schieble, who had given him up for adoption because they were not ready to settle down. Paul and Clara Jobs brought him up and made him realize that he was an adopted but special son. However, Steve Jobs struggles with an identity of feeling abandoned and special at the same time. In chapter 2, the author introduces the reader to Steve Wozniak, who was of great influence to Jobs because they shared a passion for electronics. Steve Wozniak formed contributed immensely to the life of Steve Jobs and his company, which they founded together. In chapter 3, the author discusses Jobs’ life in high school and his experiments with marijuana. Isaacson described how Steve Jobs dropped out of the Reed College after the first year, but remained around the colleges auditing classes and attending the only ones that interested him. After leaving Reed College, Jobs sought work at the Atari Company, where he worked for a while before he embarked on an Indian journey in an effort to experience a different level of spirituality, as documented in chapter 4. Chapter 5 describes how Steve Jobs and Wozniak embarked on developing the Apple I company. In chapter 6, Isaacson describes how Mike Markkula came on board funding the Apple computer so that they would develop better designs. Jobs had realized that Apple I did not produce products that had an appealing design. Therefore, he relied on his Atari connections to bring Markkula on board because they needed funds. Markkula became aware that Steve Jobs lacked the capacity required to manage Apple computer II. Therefore, he brought in Mike Scott as the president of Apple II. In chapter 7, the author reveals that Steve Jobs had a daughter when he was 23 years with Chrisann Brennan. The daughter named Lisa Nicole Brennan, was born in 1978, during a time when Steve Jobs was not ready for the responsibilities that came with fatherhood. Therefore, he did not give Lisa his surname, but provided for her and Chrisann financially (Isaacson, 2011). In chapter 8, the author introduces the Xerox and Lisa projects that Steve Jobs participated. In this chapter, Isaacson also describes the weird behaviors demonstrated by Steve Jobs that caused the alarm to the senior management at Apple. In 1980, the senior management faced the compulsion of demoting him from to the level of nonexecutive chairperson of the board denying him control over any projects. In chapter 9, Steve Jobs attitude towards money became evident. He proved disinterested in material wealth, a factor that contributed to conflicts with some of the Apple employees. One of his longtime friends mentioned in chapter 3, Daniel Kottke, did not receive any share of the company after the initial public offering (IPO) because he had never been salaried. Evidently, this issue reflected negatively on Steve Jobs. In chapter 10, the book describes how the Macintosh was developed. In the next chapter, the reader becomes familiar with the Steve Jobs capacity to distort reality and convince Apple employees that everything was possible. Chapter 12 places emphasis on his obsession with perfection and intuitive design in the development of the Macintosh Computers (p. 125). Chapter 13 highlights that the Macintosh Computer would become the machine of the year after Steve Jobs ensured that it was a reflection of the highest level of innovation. Steve Jobs had the conviction that he lacked the capacity required to run the operations of the Apple Company on his own. Therefore, he brought in John Sculley to bring his marketing expertise to Apple as highlighted in chapter 14. Chapter 15 described the success of the Macintosh Computer after its launch in 1984. Steve Jobs did not have a great relationship with Bill Gates, who is the founder of the Microsoft Company, especially after Microsoft launched the windows operating system. Steve Jobs had the conviction that Bill Gates and his company had stolen his idea of the operating system used in Macintosh. In chapter 17, Isaacson discusses how the personality of Steve Jobs led to the loss of some of the talented engineers because he proved difficult to work with. The power struggles that resulted triggered a conflict between Sculley and Jobs eventually compelling Steve Jobs to leave the company. After leaving Apple, Steve Jobs ventured into starting NeXT from his personal savings. In chapter 19, Jobs also acquired Pixar after the failure of NeXT (p. 238). Chapter 20 highlights his personal life and relationships. The chapter also highlights that Jobs looked for his biological mother and half-sister Mona after the death of his adoptive mother. It emerges that Steve Jobs faced challenges in establishing a healthy relationship with his daughter Lisa. Chapter 21 gives attention to Jobs meeting his future wife Laurene Powell, whom they settled down with and had three children. While away from Apple, Jobs also partnered with Disney, which worked closely with Pixar to produce toy story as highlighted in chapter 22. In chapter 23, Jobs returned to Apple as described after John Sculley had mismanaged the company contributing to a reducing stock price. At a time when the company needed a CEO, Steve Jobs appeared as an adviser. For two years, Jobs focused on getting Apple back on the right track implementing his “Think Different” campaign as chapter chapters 24 and 25 highlights. Chapters 26 and 27 describe how Jobs worked closely with Jony Ive in the design of the iPod, iMac. Steve Jobs later accepted the post of chief executive officer of the Apple Company transforming the operations and bringing in favorable deals that benefited the company. He hired Tim Cook as the head of operations. Chapter 29 focuses on how Jobs conceived and implemented the establishment of Apple stores because he did not like the idea of people marketing his products (p. 369). In chapters 30 and 31, the development of the iPod and iTunes become evident to the reader. Chapter 32 focuses on the passion for music exhibited by Jobs. As chapter 33 highlights, the Pixar project was eventually taken over by Disney after striking a deal with Steve Jobs. After Steve Jobs; experience while away from Apple, he gained a new perspective of considering the costs and practicality of his designs. He also focused on developing Macs for the 21st century. Chapter 35 reveals how Steve Jobs discovered that he had cancer but was reluctant to go for surgery. In the same chapter, the author describes The Wall Street Journal interview, which featured both Steve Jobs and Bill Gates discussing their experience and success in business (p. 452). In chapter 36, Isaacson describes how the development of the iPhone, a phone intended to compete with the digital camera by presenting users with a unique phone that brought in different features occurred. Unfortunately, Steve Jobs had a second diagnosis of cancer in 2008 compelling him to take a medical leave. In 2010, he returned to Apple and designed the iPad as chapter 38 highlights. The success and issues surrounding the iPad are discussed in chapters 39 and 40. Chapter 41 gives attention to milestones that Steve Jobs achieved in watching his son graduate from high school and his meeting with Obama to discuss the use of technology in education. The chapter also reveals his resignation from Apple in August 2011. The final chapter discusses his legacy highlighting that he had a passion of contributing positively to the society by bringing forth new products (p. 561). What I gained from this Book The book highlighted the value of innovation in modern businesses, especially in the computer industry. Although the Apple Company, founded by Steve Jobs has faced challenges in the industry, its capacity to design unique products has kept it on the right track. Such innovation was driven by the passion exhibited by Steve Jobs and his ability to convince the employee that everything was possible. Notably, Steve Jobs relied on his principles of distorting the reality in order to motivate and inspire the engineers at Apple convincing them that they would design any unique product they wanted. Steve Jobs also had an eye for talent and did not settle for less (p. 341). He kept people with talent closer to the company. Although he had a difficult personality, he was very passionate about his work and devoted his energy to ensuring that the Apple Company proved to be successful. Throughout his life, Steve Jobs had a passion for electronics, and he lived for that passion. He is one of the renowned personalities across the globe, and some of his tactics in business can be applied to other companies. A closer understanding of the circumstances that defined Jobs’ life makes a reader appreciate him from a new perspective. The fact that he saved the company after returning as the chief executive officer reveals that he was well aware of the market conditions and knew how to manipulate the business environment to the company’s advantage. What the Book Highlights about the Relationship between Operations and Management Evidently, Steve Jobs had a passion and talent to design. However, he faced challenges in the management field. His difficult personality served to destroy the working relationships between him and some engineers, a factor that led to the loss of talent. He made many mistakes related to management. He only managed to get the company back on the right track after separating management and operations (359). A company needs to have a clear direction and definition of responsibilities related to operations and management. Steve Jobs had an undying passion that drove him to create unique products and made him insensitive to the value of developing positive working relations. In many cases, when he headed a project, he did not accept opinions from other people. He wanted to do things his own way. The book highlights some of the critical conflicts that a company may face as it struggles to gain a favorable market position. Therefore, the management and operations departments need a clear definition of tasks and responsibilities in an effort to minimize conflicts. Conclusion Without doubt, the book tackles the biography of one of the most popular men in the globe. After his death in 2011, many people could not imagine the face of Apple without Steve Jobs in the picture. The contribution of Steve Jobs to a company that he founded out of his passion for electronics and how he struggles to make it a success is highly inspiring. Although he made his mistakes, he had success stories over the years because he believed in achieving anything that he conceived. As a leader, Steve Jobs inspired Apple employees to remain motivated in their efforts to launch new products into the market. Although the company faced management issues, they were solved with time and the company was declared the most valuable computer company in 2011. Reference Isaacson, W. (2011). Steve Jobs. New York : Simon & Schuster, c2011. Read More