The passing of Steve Jobs left a big gap. Since his death nearly two years ago there hasn’t been a CEO with Jobs’s combination of brilliance, mystery and breathtaking commercial success. But with his surprise purchase of the Washington Post, Jeff Bezos might be stepping into the role Jobs left behind.
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos hasn’t groomed his public image with the same intensity that Steve Jobs did, or at least he makes it appear that way. He doesn’t have a signature black turtleneck or a starring role in carefully choreographed product launches. So it’s likely Bezos doesn’t want the role once occupied by Jobs – that of the visionary, revolutionary, slightly odd but charismatic CEO with a knack for bringing us the future.
But it’s a role the media are likely to assign to him anyway. His surprise purchase of the Washington Post is just the sort of bold, boundary-breaking move that Jobs pulled off many times.
That’s where the comparisons begin. Here are six reasons Jeff Bezos will probably be anointed the new Steve Jobs:
1. We want him. We like having a smart guy around who is going to do amazing things that make our lives better. We also want someone whose every move will be scrutinized – milked by the punditsphere for every last drop of meaning. Bezos is a wealthy, long-tenured CEO who has built an incredibly innovative company. He is a fascinating personality at a time when there is almost limitless demand for stories about them. Steve Jobs saw this many times.
2. He’s got uncommon business values. Bezos, like Jobs, has a deep commitment to delivering great products and services with little regard for short-term results. It’s an approach that runs counter to what most CEOs do. Customers love it, and shareholders too: Amazon’s market value now tops $137 billion.
3. He’s kept a low profile. Steve Jobs was rarely seen in the media outside of Apple’s legendary product announcements. He didn’t do CNBC and gave few interviews. Bezos has followed a similar course. Being quiet keeps competitors guessing about your next move, and when you speak less people listen more. Jobs knew this instinctively.
4 He’s a tough boss. Steve Jobs could be difficult to work for. And now we’re beginning to learn that Bezos is just as demanding. According to a Washington Post article:
“In the relentlessly efficient world of Jeffrey P. Bezos, Amazon employees quickly learn when they have overtaxed the attention of their chief executive. He quietly pulls out his smartphone and starts replying to e-mails. In extreme cases, Bezos will walk out.
“He favors a nimble, loosely organized company in which “two-pizza teams” execute important corporate tasks, because a work group requiring three pizzas over a lunch meeting is inherently too cumbersome. And he often requires employees pitching new ideas to write mock news releases for their product’s imagined launch, a way of focusing their minds on what will most excite customers.”
5. He inspires envy and angst. No one made people more uncomfortable than Steve Jobs. If he jumped into your market – music, phones, film – you were rightly terrified. Jeff Bezos and Amazon aroused similar feelings when introducing e-books. With the Washington Post purchase he’s now got people in the media business worried, too. You can see the sweat between the lines of the statement from the New York Times:
“The Times is not for sale, and the Trustees of the Ochs-Sulzberger Trust and the rest of the family are united in our commitment to work together with the Company’s Board, senior management and employees to lead The New York Times forward into our global and digital future.”
6. He’s even getting the same backlash. Alongside the news and commentary on the WaPost purchase were articles on Amazon’s harsh warehouse conditions and aggressive tax strategy. Apple has been socked on these issues, too.
We miss Steve Jobs. We need a new mogul; one who is ruthless, unsentimental, successful and a very long-term thinker. Jeff Bezos is just the guy.