tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post1084962731268063844..comments2024-03-28T10:49:53.597-07:00Comments on Lessons Learned: The Steve Jobs methodErichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12249063135381216090noreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-30768246402805769832010-01-25T09:45:16.443-08:002010-01-25T09:45:16.443-08:00Maybe Steve Jobs just has a different definition o...Maybe Steve Jobs just has a different definition of "viable"? What a normal person would view as acceptable, he would not. I do believe that Apple iterates and is one of the keys to their success. Apple's first hit product was Apple II, which came after I. The Mac came after Lisa, which was a flop. The iPhone came after many generations of the iPod. The first gen iPod was created using OS and GUI software from Pixo, which was a little start-up (I know because I was an investor and on the board of Pixo). Apple would NEVER license the OS of a product which was strategic and expected to be a huge hit! They (Rubinstein was the lead) later acquired full license to Pixo OS (before the company was acquired by Sun) and then even later replaced it with their own OS. Apple also hired away key engineers from Pixo, who I believe still work there.Ho Namhttp://www.twitter.com/honamnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-22937145624033168062009-11-02T10:31:38.565-08:002009-11-02T10:31:38.565-08:00I can't claim to be an authority on the proces...I can't claim to be an authority on the process at Apple, but I did spend a year there in '93 (when Steve wasn't there).<br /><br />What I observed was that large numbers of projects were started internally, they were allowed to run for around nine months, then 90% of them would be culled, and the staff were moved onto the 10% of projects that remained.<br /><br />Obviously this approach is unsuitable for most if not all start-upsAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-27588012007299548812009-08-19T15:08:01.083-07:002009-08-19T15:08:01.083-07:00Hi Eric, thanks a lot for the post.
I'm readi...Hi Eric, thanks a lot for the post.<br /><br />I'm reading "Inside Steve's Brain" book, and I highly reccommend to understand Jobs approach on launching new products.<br /><br />They do lots of prototypes internally.<br /><br />Tks a lot for sharing. It clarified a lot the lean startup method with Apple's approach.<br /><br />Best wishes,<br /><br />Miguel Cavalcanti, from Brazil<br />@mcavalcantiAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-51523942429507293602009-08-07T06:03:54.205-07:002009-08-07T06:03:54.205-07:00Nice commentary.
There is however a very distinct ...Nice commentary.<br />There is however a very distinct item to remind yourself. Every single great Apple product on the market today is not something incredibly innovative.<br />No new, ground breaking technologies in the iPhone. iPod was not the first one of it's kind.<br />The main point is that Apple has this idea of making things easy to use. They start with existing technologies, and make them easy, not obstructive and good looking.<br />Lack of true groundbreaking technologies, is the reason I stay away from their products. But otherwise they are really great.<br />That is very important for a start up that is aiming at consumer market - it has to be easy to use and fashionable, is possible.Aleksandrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11226547359996333148noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-82104177235130475282009-08-03T15:44:17.734-07:002009-08-03T15:44:17.734-07:00Phil, thanks for posting those videos - I've a...Phil, thanks for posting those videos - I've always liked them. Relentless focus on customers and their real problems seems like a common thread. And I do believe there is a fair amount of iteration happening behind closed doors.Erichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12249063135381216090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-85840036419136501882009-08-03T15:35:16.830-07:002009-08-03T15:35:16.830-07:00There are a couple of videos that are relevant to ...There are a couple of videos that are relevant to this discussion. The videos are Steve explaining the company's path forward to Next employees. <br /><br />While the methods they used to gather the facts aren't obvious, hints are dropped along the way. For example at 8:47 into the first video Steve says: "Every single customer we've talked to ..." <br /><br />The videos look and sound a lot like a "Lesson's Learned" talk. He goes over in a incredibly lucid way who the customers are and how their product will satisfy their needs.<br /><br />Steve Jobs at Next part 1:<br />http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9dmcRbuTMY<br /><br />Steve Jobs at Next part 2<br />http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dn3Ex-5dPAoPhil Winklerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05531006692925988552noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-52941190997352133122009-08-03T02:58:01.968-07:002009-08-03T02:58:01.968-07:001) RE: 'At Pixar...We stopped production for f...1) RE: 'At Pixar...We stopped production for five months' - stopping production to fix problems is a thoroughly 'lean' concept as promoted by Taichi Ohno and implemented by Toyota in the form of 'andon' in engine assembly as early as 1950!!!!!<br /><br />2) Let's not forget that apple has has also made products that have...er...not quite gone to plan<br /><br />Thanks Eric for the continued enlightenment, I thoroughly enjoyed your Lean Startup Webinar!Miltonhttp://www.inkmedialab.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-70802043911181605242009-08-02T09:50:16.067-07:002009-08-02T09:50:16.067-07:00Did you know Harvard is trying to trademark the ph...Did you know Harvard is trying to trademark the phrase "lessons learned"?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-86640990593635055282009-08-01T23:33:07.265-07:002009-08-01T23:33:07.265-07:00My guess isn't that Steve Job's just know ...My guess isn't that Steve Job's just know what people want, rather he got lucky a few times, has help but gets the credit and we don't hear about all the failures he and his gang have had. It's like talking about the miraculous cures of "faith healers" at Lourdes but failing to ask them where are the crutches of those they haven't healed. Also, a lot of Apple's stuff seems to me to be mostly "eye candy" and like fashion jewelry it's trendy and sells. Maybe the real "secret" here is that the Apple store at Valley Fair is really just a department of Nordstrom's.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-82386916075270942462009-08-01T20:30:04.167-07:002009-08-01T20:30:04.167-07:00I'm amazed at the level of engagement this pos...I'm amazed at the level of engagement this post has generated - thanks to everyone who's commented.<br /><br />I know this post was unusually speculative, so I get why there are so many comments along those lines. Let me stress again that I don't claim any special knowledge of how Steve Jobs works, nor am I even trying to extrapolate from the available data.<br /><br />Instead, I engaged in a thought exercise designed to answer the (highly speculative) question I get asked quite often: is my approach compatible with Steve Jobs? <br /><br />I think the available evidence is pretty slim either way. But so many people have mythologized Jobs that I think the "irreplaceable genius" theory is just as speculative as anything I've proposed here. <br /><br />So I don't think the Apple experience should be used to discount lean, agile, or customer development-type approaches. I do hope that someday more information about the _real_ internal process comes out, so we can get some answers to our open questions:<br /><br />- how much internal (secret) iteration goes into each product?<br />- how many products are "launched" internally or with beta testers that never see the light of day?<br />- what is the mortality rate of prototypes or new ideas? Where do they come from?<br />- what is the "right discipline to think through whether a lot of other people are going to want it, too?" Is it done by Jobs or does it have an institutional basis?<br /><br />In the meantime, I hope my speculation provokes some interesting thoughts.Erichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12249063135381216090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-54158754519642164892009-08-01T20:22:29.869-07:002009-08-01T20:22:29.869-07:00Eric, thanks for your insights.. a long-time Apple...Eric, thanks for your insights.. a long-time Apple user and watcher, I think you have captured a good part of it. You make me think of something I've been pondering for a while but haven't been able to articulate: the realignment of company and "customer" in the age of pervasive social networks and innovation. Companies constantly gaffe by asking the wrong questions, they don't understand their role and the customer's role the way Apple does. The customer understands experience, and social networks, since they make pervasive p2p economically viable, accentuate customers' ability to mirror each other and articulate customer experience. But they have no clue about how to design, make, distribute and service products that enable them to have experience, that's the company's competence. As you've pointed out, Jobs totally gets that. Companies that abdicate to customers will fail, as will companies that don't listen and respect experience. Too many companies are obsessed about making money and Apple, a public company, proves that they can make money by not focusing on it. Making money should never be a focus, it's a result. Thanks again for some great insight. Cheers-Christopher S. Rollysonhttp://globalhumancapital.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-48469291968314211942009-08-01T18:27:35.279-07:002009-08-01T18:27:35.279-07:00Good post, Eric! I would recommend reading "...Good post, Eric! I would recommend reading "Inside Steve's Brain"for solid insight on Jobs/Apple if you haven't read it.Peter Simshttp://www.petersims.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-68174254777753313562009-08-01T17:26:55.082-07:002009-08-01T17:26:55.082-07:00From a few facts and a strong commitment to your p...From a few facts and a strong commitment to your pre-existing notions you have conflated a version of Steve Jobs that may not exist at all. Not everything has to follow lean startup and customer development principles, and I write that as a devoted practitioner of both. It would be far more useful to discover how Apple really does develop their innovative products it rather than assume that they follow the principles that you and I espouse. It could be that their resources allow them to use methods that would be prohibitively expensive for startups. It could be that Jobs is just an irreplaceable genius blessed with unique insights and an ability to recruit, motivate, and retain other world class talent.Sean Murphyhttp://www.skmurphy.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-24455668720333519622009-08-01T15:33:19.434-07:002009-08-01T15:33:19.434-07:00I would not say that Apple "iterates, iterate...I would not say that Apple "iterates, iterates, iterates." I'm not saying they should, or even that they can - just that they don't. Not compared to any other company of their size, at least. The lean startup (as I understand the concept) does not have major releases. Apple is all about big announcements.<br /><br />I agree with the point that SJ "just knows" what to do. But for every SJ, there are thousands of other executives who don't, and that's what makes lean startup so valuable.Mark Wildenhttp://mwilden.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-89368037890777540322009-08-01T14:12:34.505-07:002009-08-01T14:12:34.505-07:00Market Awareness, Visionary Innovation, Focus (dis...Market Awareness, Visionary Innovation, Focus (discipline), Leadership, Execution<br /><br />Always appreciate your perspective Eric.Chris Hopfhttp://pricingwire.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-78423180372389795522009-08-01T11:07:49.033-07:002009-08-01T11:07:49.033-07:00Beyond Apple, we can find examples of the Steve Jo...Beyond Apple, we can find examples of the Steve Jobs character at Toyota, in the form of the Chief Engineer. The Chief Engineer, through many years of experience, has a "visceral feel for what the customer wants" and acts as "the voice of the customer".<br /><br />I jotted down some musings about the Chief Engineer role and software development a few months ago:<br />http://blog.scottbellware.com/2008/12/chief-engineer.html<br /><br />In software, I tend to call this role "Product Director", but it has the same meaning and description. In talking with Mary Poppendieck about it, she said that the Chief Engineer role at 3M was called a "Product Champion". The name is less important than understanding the depth of competence that this person has, and what it takes to build it.<br /><br />There are some good anecdotes about Chief Engineers in the Toyota Product Development Book. Some of these reaffirm that they do indeed validate assumptions through interaction with customers. And in some cases, they disregard the results of customer focus groups if they sense that the results are incongruous.<br /><br />We might be a ways away from the reality of a Chief Engineer or Product Director role commonly in software development, but ultimately it's going to be a matter of getting the culture right so that people stick around long enough to develop not only the tactical skills, but also the honed instincts and senses.<br /><br />Thanks for another great article!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10851121926952875016noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-63911591256687634942009-08-01T10:41:38.016-07:002009-08-01T10:41:38.016-07:00Ravi. 1+Ravi. 1+Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-7621918690755972432009-08-01T09:41:26.562-07:002009-08-01T09:41:26.562-07:00Great post Eric.
Also SJ's obsession with b...Great post Eric.<br /><br />Also SJ's obsession with better taste (positively) contributes to the overall product development process. <br /><br />Good taste and common sense goes a long way.Brijhttp://www.twitter.com/brijnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-30719536128849257942009-08-01T09:33:59.680-07:002009-08-01T09:33:59.680-07:00I really enjoyed this article, my first time readi...I really enjoyed this article, my first time reading any of your stuff. Will start to pay attention...Scott Barstowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14485440065214288777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-48460381452415531572009-08-01T08:58:50.094-07:002009-08-01T08:58:50.094-07:00Great Post !Great Post !Michaelhttp://ielts.ionoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-33434013031411933052009-08-01T08:11:38.585-07:002009-08-01T08:11:38.585-07:00Eric,
This isn't as strong as your usual posts...Eric,<br />This isn't as strong as your usual posts. The "mapping" of the imaginary Steve Job's (imagined) process to "lean principles" is a bit strained (and too tenous, imho). <br /><br />"Steve Jobs doesn't put out crappy products and ask for feedback" seems valid to me as does the stark contrast that SJ's methods (whatever they are) seem to have with the Lean Startup ideas. <br /><br />Nothing wrong with that of course. Even if SJ has some unique "process" that enables him to come up with killer products (I suspect he is just wired differently from most people and probably has no real idea of how he does it to a point where it is teachable), that doesn't mean that the Lean Startup/Steve Blank's ideas etc have less of a value for the rest of us. <br /><br />In the end, SJ just might be the genius who makes his own rules, the exception that proves the rule. And that's fine.<br /><br />My key takeaway from your post (as I said, the mapping of the imaginary SJ's process to Lean Principles is a bit tenous, at least in my perception) is this idea..<br /><br />"Getting feedback is *not* about abandoning your vision" <br /><br />I see too many people expecting the customer to tell them what to make vs doing the "incorporate feedback into the original vision" part. The distinction seems subtle but is there nonetheless.<br /><br />Thanks for writing this. Made me think!Ravi Mohanhttp://www.magicindian.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533727264507128560.post-50346872669060510112009-08-01T07:39:32.797-07:002009-08-01T07:39:32.797-07:00REALLY appreciate you posting this, Eric. Still wo...REALLY appreciate you posting this, Eric. Still working through the post, but I wanted to say that this clarifies the distinction well. I have some more questions, but I'll ping you with them a little later on. But, yeah: thanks for this.Charlie Parkhttps://monotask.com/noreply@blogger.com