Tim Cook’s pay package

Posted on January 11, 2012 by marshallstanton

$378 million ($378,000,000)

What do you give the CEO of the world’s most influential and admired technology company for his partial first year on the job? Start with a base salary of $900,000, throw in $376 million (yes, million) in restricted stock that vests over ten years, and top it off with the bragging rights as the highest paid U.S. CEO for 2011. Continue reading →

Infographic of infographics

Posted on January 8, 2012 by marshallstanton

29%

The team over at Daily Infographic – one of the better sources for masterpieces of data visualization – recently announced a partnership with Infographic World, so you should expect to see more of the curious and insightful images that have become popular on this blog. Continue reading →

Marketing is about values

Posted on October 11, 2011 by marshallstanton

Above is a great video of Steve Jobs about the role of values and passion in marketing when he returned to Apple in 1997 following the management upset and ouster of Gil Amelio. Continue reading →

90 days worth of titles

Posted on September 18, 2011 by marshallstanton

Earlier today I was reviewing the usage statistics for this blog and was struck by some of the word patterns that emerged. Obviously when Steve Jobs announced his departure from an active management role at Apple, there were a number of posts in that vein as one would expect. However, there were quite a few other trends so I pulled all of the posts from the past quarter and dropped the titles into Wordle to see what else would emerge. Continue reading →

Steve Jobs: How to Live Before you Die

Posted on August 25, 2011 by marshallstanton

Steve Jobs’ name has become synonymous with innovation here in the U.S. and around the world. Many people credit him with single-handedly saving Apple from the brink of disaster in the 1990s when it had to rely on a capital infusion from archenemy Microsoft following the ouster of disastrous CEO Gil Amelio in 1996. However he will likely go down as being credited for transforming the mobile, home, and touch computing industries with the tens-of-millions of iPods, iPhones, and iPads he brought to the world. Fortune Magazine summarized his impact on the world simply when they stated that “[t]he past decade in business belongs to Jobs.”

Yesterday Mr. Jobs delivered the message that Apple’s fans (and investors) had been expecting for the past several weeks following his decision to go on medical leave for the third time since he’s assumed the CEO mantle. Having survived pancreatic cancer and a recent liver transplant, most feared that this recent leave might be his final. In his announcement Jobs explained that he could no longer perform the duties required of him and as a result he was stepping down from the helm of the world’s most valuable technology company.

Personally I have had a love hate relationship with Apple having warmly embraced their computers (II, II Plus, IIe, IIc, IIGS, Macintosh, Macintosh Plus, Macintosh IIcx, PowerBook 180, and the Centris 610) during the 1980s and the beginning of the 1990s. Like many people this love affair soured and I embraced Windows 3.11 through Windows 7, as well as several flavors of UNIX for professional reasons. With the rise of the hyper-elegant products that have become the norm at Apple these days, I find myself in possession of a few iPods, an iPad 2, and – like millions of rabid fans – am feverishly awaiting the release of the iPhone 5 in a few weeks (we hope).

I hope that Mr. Jobs spends his remaining time, be it days, weeks, or years, with the people he loves bringing joy into their lives as he has done for so many millions through the connections his products enable.

Below you will find Mr. Jobs’ 2005 Stanford University Commencement Address entitled “How to Live Before you Die” which certainly rings true given yesterday’s announcement.