Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Somewhere in between alright!, February 10, 2004
It is hard to not want to read a book about how the founder of Apple was sacked by the guy he brought in himself, to lead the company. And that is precisely what the first part of the book is about. In a tale of roaring passion and excitement, we walk through pages in almost quivering excitement as we read about the stony-mahagony culture of Pepsi, the young irreverent west coast start-ups, the passion and idealism of youth, the quest for making a difference to the world, the heady mix of million dollar stock options and unruly aesthetic genius... and how it all culminated at the altar of capitalistic zeal and resulted in Steve Jobs being sacked by John Sculley and the board.The second half of the book though, takes a downspin. From the exciting tale of the first half, where John Sculley's fleshing out his character is seen as contributing to the intrigue of the story, the second part of the book is more of trumpet-blowing. It deals with how Sculley and his team 'rescued' Apple and converted it to the company it is today. As such, the book is also made a little vexatious with Sculley's sermons of management that are intervowen between chapters. Reco : Read the first half, skim through second half... But definitely worth reading if you're interested in the human side of business dealings!
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2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Still interesting after all these years, March 16, 2002
John Sculley had a very close friendship with Steve Jobs. He was wooed to Apple, and when he got too close to Steve and found out he had created a monster, it was almost too late. He did do much to help Apple's fortunes, and yet in the chapters not found in the book, found his own demise. His words about Steve Jobs are still prophetic as ever, and still just as pertinent. His relationships with board members and those creators who worked at Apple are wonderful. In hindsight, Gil Amelio should have read this book, because he too was taken in and taken over by Steve Jobs. While Jobs will always be affiliated with Apple, its really the others mentioned in the book who are the heroes that Sculley learned to appreciate when Jobs was ousted for not bringing the idea of the Macintosh Office to reality. That in effect is where Sculley really showed his worth to the company. While discussing technology long obsolete, the excitement of giving birth to those projects and products is still worth your time to complete the Odyseey that Sculley brings forth.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Pepsi vs. Apple Computer: Leading Change, May 9, 2007
'Do you want to spend the rest of your life selling sugared water or do you want a chance to change the world?' So began John Sculley's engagement with Apple Computer. He went from managing a huge global and very traditional beverage company to leading a bleeding-edge of technology innovation center. This fantastic book describes his personal journey into high-speed product development and constant change in at Apple Computer. "Reorganizations,in fact, are looked at positively. In many corporations, they're viewed with anxiety. People wonder, 'Where do I go, what will I do? That's especially true in companies that have had no lay-off or have cradle-to-grave employment policies. In Apple, it's constant change. People expect buildings, structures, offices, and people to change. Organizations shouldn't have permanence....The beauty of a network is that is has no centre. It is a process more than a structure, composed of modular groups that establish themselves to take on specific tasks-- not to build fiefdoms and traditional 'departments' do." He compares the "organization man" who had job security in return for his loyalty, with the self-directed man who deals with "third-wave companies" in a different type of relationship: one of creativity and trust and co-maturation. Sculley's description of Steve Jobs, who replaced him as CEO, "Steve Jobs was less a manager and more an impresario. He knew that the role of managment wasn't to stifle creativity through structure and process, but to foster it through unusually innovative means and thinking."
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