LeaveOfAbsence
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Rich Green, Nokia CTO, takes leave of absence for 'personal reasons'
Rich Green's only been with Nokia since 2010, making his way onto the leadership team in February when the Elopcalypse rolled through Espoo. As CTO, the former VP of Sun Microsystems is charged with defining Nokia's technology vision; be it hardware, software, user experience, cloud services, or developer programs. So yeah, he's the guy looking at what's next, what's beyond Windows Phone and S40. Well, we just got official word from Nokia that he's taking a leave of absence for an unspecified duration for "personal reasons." Of course, that could mean anything -- business is always personal, regardless of those empty bromides tossed around whenever something distasteful happens between corporate personalities. The story first broke in the Finnish newspaper Helsingin Sanomat, citing two independent sources claiming that Green likely won't be returning to the company because of disagreements over strategy. Interesting, don't you think? Update: Reuters says that Henry Tirri, head of Nokia Research Center, will be acting CTO
Survey finds customers confident in Apple without Steve Jobs
If Steve Jobs were to step down as the CEO of Apple, what effect -- if any -- would it have on the likelihood of buying Apple products in the future? Research firms RBC Capital Markets and ChangeWave asked Apple customers this question in a survey conducted between January 31 and February 9. Of the 3,091 respondents, 84% said Steve Jobs departing Apple would have no impact on their buying decisions, and only 7% said they would be less likely to purchase Apple products. The new results are a notable change from a similar survey completed in June 2008. In the 2008 survey, 18% of respondents expressed a lower interest in buying from Apple if Steve Jobs left the company. On January 17, Apple announced Jobs would take his third leave of absence for medical reasons, igniting new concerns among investors and fans about the future of Apple without Jobs at the helm. This past week, Apple shares tumbled about 7% after new worries about the CEO's health began to circulate. Analyst Mike Abramsky suggests this survey shows that Apple may be bigger than its CEO; that Apple isn't just about Jobs anymore. "Consumers have had 3 years to evolve their perception of the Apple brand around its creative new products, cutting edge innovation, iTunes/App Store ecosystem and premium quality positioning -- beyond the buying pull of Apple's iconic CEO," Abramsky said. When Steve Jobs took a medical leave of absence in 2009, customers watched Apple perform successfully with Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook running the company. The company's stock rose 144%, revenue grew by 20%, and Apple shipped 25 million iPhones. This success seems to have boosted customer confidence in Apple. Does Apple lose its bite without Steve Jobs at the helm and become just another technology company? Will you continue to buy Apple products if he leaves? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.
Steve Jobs to take a medical leave of absence
According to wire reports, Steve Jobs sent out an email to Apple staff stating that he is taking a medical leave of absence. In the email, reproduced by BusinessWire here, Tim Cook is named as being in charge of Apple's day to day operations for an indeterminate amount of time; Steve will remain CEO and weigh in on strategic decisions. The text of the note is below: Team, At my request, the board of directors has granted me a medical leave of absence so I can focus on my health. I will continue as CEO and be involved in major strategic decisions for the company. I have asked Tim Cook to be responsible for all of Apple's day to day operations. I have great confidence that Tim and the rest of the executive management team will do a terrific job executing the exciting plans we have in place for 2011. I love Apple so much and hope to be back as soon as I can. In the meantime, my family and I would deeply appreciate respect for our privacy. Steve Jobs had a liver transplant in 2009 to treat complications from pancreatic cancer. All of us at TUAW extend our best wishes for a rapid recovery to Steve and our support to his family, friends and colleagues at Apple.
Steve Jobs takes medical leave from Apple, Tim Cook taking over daily operations in his absence
That's all we know for now, folks. Apple's CEO is taking a medical leave from work, his second in as many years, with Tim Cook filling his role during that time. In an email to the Apple team, Steve Jobs says he'll be on leave to "focus on [his] health," though he will retain the position of CEO and will remain involved in the major strategic decisions -- Tim Cook will be picking up the slack on day-to-day operations. No further details have been provided, save for Steve expressing his love for Apple and wish to return to his duties as soon as he can. See his email missive in full after the break.
