Steve Leigh

Ahhh…the throwback logo. I think the winding down of football season put me in the mood.

I’ve actually been wanting to post something up here about Apple for a while now, and what it comes down to really are these three thoughts about my favorite company.

First, you have to love “the comeback”. I know I do. I love the fact that consumers are flocking to Apple in droves, and truth is, I always knew this day would come. I bought my first Apple (the computer and the stock) in 1980, and I have owned their products ever since. (I think I even still have my Newton packed away somewhere downstairs). But being a creature of Corporate America, I have been encouraged (alright, forced) to work many years on a PC as well, since most corporate engineers and IT departments have long been firmly in the PC camp. But that was the 90’s, and now a new generation has arrived in the workforce; an Apple friendly generation. The company is on a roll, the stock has quintupled in the last five years, and the corporate IT departments are actually starting (alright, forced) to incorporate somewhat of a Mac strategy into their environments as well. Getting the iPhone into the corporate world took years; the iPad, considerably less. Life is good.

Second thought, kind of Apple related. What’s surprising to me is that I always imagined that on this day, I’d be secretly enjoying the thought of Bill Gates tossing furniture around last summer as Apple surpassed Microsoft in market cap. After all, he was the enemy, right? Even when he came to Apple’s rescue (remember that huge Gates Face at the 1997 Macworld)? Well I’m not, and he’s not. Since he left Microsoft, I’ve actually become a fan of Bill. I follow his foundation and his tweets. I like the fact that he’s putting his time and his money where his mouth is, and I like what he’s doing. As for Microsoft and Steve Ballmer (who has been rumored to have stepped on an iPhone or two), well that’s a subject for a different blog post altogether.

Last thought, but certainly not least, is after building custom homes for many years, I’ve been in the Purchasing/Supply Chain end of homebuilding since about 2004. So naturally this little snippet about Apple’s Supply Chain strategy caught my eye. The title may be a little on the harsh side, but it just goes to show you the kind of role that good supply chain management can play in a manufacturing company. I think this piece is even more timely since with Steve Jobs’ departure, Apple has Tim Cook (a supply chain wonk) running things. See that my Supply Chain friends, we really are where its at.