Taking a Byte Out of Life: Apple, Inc.
When thinking about a company to research, I searched for close to an hour before I realized the answer was right under my nose. More
specifically, the answer was in my lap, on my wrist, and sitting on the couch next
to me: Apple. How did this company grow from an ambitious and idealistic start
up to a multi-billion-dollar success story? To answer that I turned to a quote
by Zig Ziglar, “Outstanding people have one thing in common: An Absolute sense
of mission.”
After a little digging into the historical archives (aka Google),
I found that the mission statement of Apple, Inc. has actually been changed from
its legendary father figure, Steve Jobs. In a very personal ethos, Jobs first
placed this statement in effect at Apple back in the 1980’s before the release
of the very first Macintosh computer. The previous mission statement is pictured below.
Anyone who was familiar with the brand
and its famous fearless leader knew his heart and soul was built into Apple and
its products. As a company who has from its very beginning been “different”
from rivals, the mission statement which drove this company to new heights
captured that desire to innovate and advance. The emphasis on being different
and innovative was even captured in their brand promise of, “Think different.”
It was systematically ingrained into the very fabric of Apple to be different
and inspire others to break the mold of thinking…and it worked fabulously.
However, is it safe to say that even tycoons such as Apple
must change their mission statement eventually? The newest version is slightly less idealistic and far more specific, but it speaks very clearly to the milestones and continued efforts of the company in the present day. In its 2017 annual report, Apple
Inc. relayed its new mission statement pictured below.
Have they lived up to is? I can’t deny them that considering
the multitude of Apple products I have bought and use daily. They have masterfully encroached into a market over the last 35 years and taken down
their once dauntingly larger competition. Though Tim Cook (current Apple, Inc. CEO) may not
share the same grandeur and hubris of Steve Jobs, I can’t see this company straying from its
ability to create products which revolutionize our world today from top to
bottom. Their software and designs have begun to shape how competitors answer
back in products and have infiltrated how we learn as a society. From age two
and up modified iPad-like products are marketed and sold to parents for their
children of the modern age. Books are clandestine nearly and have given way to
e-readers. I could go on, but we all get the point. Walk into any classroom in
America and you will find at minimum of five Apple products.
The key? No matter the changing mission statements, the
company has remained true to its vision of advancing humankind by creating an experience
all its own through innovative design and elegant simplicity.
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