It’s no real surprise that Tim Cook has been tapped to serve as Apple’s CEO following Steve Jobs’s resignation to become Chairman. Cook has spent thirty years distinguishing himself in the industry, spending the first half with IBM and Compaq and the second, more than fourteen years, as Jobs’s right hand. He joined Apple’s operations team as a senior VP and quickly advanced to worldwide head of sales, Chief Operating Officer and head of the Macintosh division. Finally, Cook has served either as official acting CEO or effective head of the company during Jobs’s medical leaves of absence three times since 2004.
At Quora, TechCrunch’s MG Siegler argues that between these three terms, Cook’s already proven that he’s ready:
“In each instance, not only has Apple survived, they’ve thrived. That’s fairly remarkable when you think about it. Each time, pundits have more or less said it was the end of Apple, and each time Apple ended up ahead of where they were when Jobs left. It was trial by fire, and Cook passed with flying colors.”
But Cook hasn’t just been a company caretaker during Apple’s good years. He’s also a product, sourcing and supply chain visionary. Cook arguably did as much as anyone to turn Apple around after its nearly disastrous fall in the mid-1990s.
Read more: Why Tim Cook is the best choice to run Apple