Steve Jobs: not a great CEO

Fortune magazine has just named Apple's Steve Jobs as CEO of the Decade. Deservedly so: from 2000 to 2009, Jobs grew his company from a valuation of $5 billion and near-bankruptcy to an astonishing $180 billion. In the eyes of some, Apple is now set to surpass Microsoft (capitalized at $260 billion) as the world's largest technology company.

But the secret to Steve's success isn't his CEO title, it's his CBO behaviour. Chief Brand Officers are CEOs who understand that a Brand is what people think of you™. And therefore, that only their panoramic view and authority can ensure the intended Brand experience is delivered at every stakeholder touchpoint.

From the start, Jobs' vision for the Apple Brand has been “to create 'perfect' machines.” His unrelenting drive has manifested in an organizational culture that — year after year — delivers a Brand built on beautiful design, simple and superb usability, brilliant innovation and outstanding customer service.

Whether we're Apple customers or not, we experience this Brand at ubiquitous touchpoints: spot-on TV ads that hilariously contrast the Apple and PC positions; Macs that are so much fun to use; packaging so beautiful that people post YouTube videos of themselves opening it; the enthusiastic and knowledgeable staff at the Apple Store; constant exposure to the revolutionary iPod and iPhone.

All of these touchpoints are meticulously unified with a look and feel so familiar that the logo — the thing most executives treat as their entire Brand — is redundant.

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A Macintosh laptop costs $1,200, a PC laptop $550. Why Apple's incredible premium?

It all comes back to Steve Jobs, CBO. As Apple's visionary, only he can explain its Brand to his people with absolute clarity. Giving them Brand clarity allows them to buy-in on a cultural level and live it every day. The output of cultural adoption is delivery of products and experiences so remark-able, they command a premium. All of which results in greater Brand equity, which increases shareholder value.

Of course, it's much easier said than done. So the question becomes: are there any Steves among us?