Top Visionary - Steve Jobs, Apple Inc.

Steve Jobs was selected as the best CEO in the country in 2007 according to a poll of thousands of investors and finance pros. He fosters creativity within his entire company. He is a true visionary.

There is no doubt that today Steve Jobs of Apple Inc is a top visionary. He weaves magic out of his products so that you want to buy more than one.

When Jobs returned to Apple in 1997 the company was on the brink of bankruptcy. Jack Welch has called Steve Jobs, “the most successful CEO today.” He has shaped what entertainment we watch, how we listen to music, and many of the objects we use to work and play. The iPod has changed the music industry.

2. INNOVATOR

Steve Jobs, Apple, Inc

Jobs is at the top again! When he joined Apple ten years ago the company was going downhill with very little innovative new products. Today, even with a weak economy, Apple has popular products that the consumer wants to buy.

He considers himself as an artist and Apple’s “creator-in-chief.” Jobs understands desire in a customer and brings products they want. He made a nation of enthusiastic consumers pant in anticipation to what the new cellphone would be. Consumers were not disappointed as the new iPhone was launched to the public two years ago.

The new lightweight Mac Book Air laptop computer demonstrates that innovation is the company’s brand. Each January at The MacWorld Show in San Francisco Steve Jobs announces a new product to the excited anticipation of Apple fans. No other company gets this kind of recognition from its consumers.

Ken Chenault of American Express

Chenault established a $50 million innovation fund to finance employees’ ideas for how to transform their business long term. He wanted great ideas to come from all over the company—not just the chain of command.

3. CHARISMATIC

Charismatic CEOs, in particular—those blessed with that elusive mix of vision, dynamism, and the uncanny knack for getting people to buy into their ideas—have become heroic figures in the business world. While having charisma is NOT a requirement to be a CEO, it certainly helps make the company a better place to work for employees, and brings on happy customers.

Starbuck’s Chairman Howard Schultz built an extraordinary company based largely on his ability to effectively communicate his values to investors, employees, customers and colleagues.

Steve Cook, Founder of Intuit, speaks with gentle precision, thinking before talking, and never the loudest voice. And in conversation he listens. Listening, he seems to forget himself. He's a man who always expects that the next thing someone--anyone--tells him might be the most surprising and enlightening thing he's heard. He listens without blinking. He learns. He is humble. His charismatic style helps others around him feel comfortable and they trust him.

4. CHIEF PROBLEM SOLVER

Many CEOs left their companies and were later brought back to help save the company. Many had to reinvent their companies as sales sagged and cash declined.

In 1985 Steve Jobs was thrown out of Apple; the company he founded. He was age 30 at the time. He was called back in 1997 to save the company from bankruptcy. His amazing problem solving skills restored Apple to a $108 billion dollar company and elevated him to the status of superstar.

John Chambers of Cisco Systems had a tech meltdown in 2001 during the “dotcom bomb.” Chambers reinvented the company by reorganizing the multinational firm, in which each division had their own separate divisions of sales, marketing and engineering talent. Today executives share resources, and part of the their compensation is based on how they work as a team. Cisco made some smart acquisitions and has a $23 billion cash reserve—the biggest in the tech world. This is a most admired company.

Join me in my next blog post where I will share traits five through seven.

Learn, Experience, Enjoy Global Success !

Jinsoo Terry