Alex Dudov
Tim Cook is leaving his position as Chief Executive Officer at Apple after 15 years. By his departure he finishes a period where the company became a business with a very high market valuation.
From iPhone Company to Global Ecosystem
When Tim Cook replaced Steve Jobs in 2011, Apple was a large technology company that relied mostly on iPhone sales.
Under his leadership, Apple became a system where hardware, software and services work together. In this model the company generates money through regular payments from customers.
| Area | Achievement |
| Market Cap | It increased from approximately $350 billion to more than $3 trillion. |
| Services | He created departments including the App Store, iCloud besides Apple Pay that earn billions of dollars. |
| New Products | Those include the Apple Watch or AirPods. |
| Chips | The company started using Apple Silicon M-series processors. |
| Capital Return | Apple bought back many shares and paid dividends to investors. |
| Supply Chain | The company manages global production activities. |
Financial Transformation
During the time Tim Cook was leader, the value and size of Apple increased by a large amount.
The chart shows that the total value of Apple shares rose from approximately $350 billion in 2011 to more than $3 trillion. To reach this valuation, Apple was the first company to pass multiple trillion dollar levels.
As the company grew, it sold products and also moved toward services with high profit margins that keep users within the Apple system.
The Services Revolution
For his strategy Cook built the services part of the business so that Apple is a mix of hardware sales and income from subscriptions.
By doing this the company depends less on when people buy new iPhones. Because of this change, profit margins are higher next to Apple is more stable when the economy is slow.
But Cook focused on how the company performs tasks, whereas Jobs focused on other areas. Because he has a background in operations, Apple created a supply chain that is very efficient.
With this system the company is able to:
- increase production across the world
- keep profit margins high
- manage problems like COVID and the lack of available computer chips
Conclusion
If Tim Cook leaves now, Apple is larger and has more types of income than it had in the past. And his impact is that he grew the size of the company to a level that no other technology company reached previously.
To conclude Apple changed from a company that invents products into a business with a strong financial and service system.
Alex Dudov
