Nobody likes a micromanager.
According to Ron Johnson, the former Apple executive behind the Apple Store and Genius Bar, Steve Jobs was a great leader because he was the opposite.
Johnson told Business Insider that one of the outcomes he hopes comes from his upcoming book, “Shop Different: How Retail Revealed Apple’s Genius,” which comes out in September, is to reveal what an exceptional leader Jobs was. Johnson said that’s part of his legacy that some people misunderstand. Some people, he said, assume Jobs was “obsessed” with details.
“He cared about the details. But I’ve never worked for someone who delegated better,” said Johnson, who later became CEO at JCPenney.
Johnson first made his mark in retail during the 1990s, when he and Michael Graves helped put Target on the map by launching the first major designer-retailer collaboration. That success, he said, caught Jobs’ attention as Apple prepared to open its own retail stores.
After joining Apple in 2000, Johnson led the design and rollout of Apple Stores around the world. During his roughly 12-year stint at the tech giant, he oversaw the creation of 350 stores and the development of nearly 50 more, which together represent nearly three-quarters of Apple’s locations today.
While Jobs used to meet weekly with Johnson’s team during the early days of Apple retail, Jobs eventually shifted his focus to other priorities, like the iPhone.
By the end of Jobs’ tenure, Johnson said he and his team only had in-person meetings with Jobs every six months or so at their invitation, but the two still spoke regularly via phone.
He added that the Apple cofounder was heavily involved in Apple’s first store, and also engaged in a few other stores before they opened, like Apple’s flagship store in Soho and its high-profile Fifth Avenue location in New York.
For the most part, though, Jobs delegated operating decisions to the team, Johnson said.
Setting a North Star
Jobs didn’t blindly delegate to his workers. He made sure that his employees understood his goals and the thinking behind them, Johnson said.
Leaders do this by investing significant time in getting to know their employees during the early days of working together, Johnson said.
Soon after Johnson joined Apple in 2000, Johnson said Jobs started calling him regularly. Their conversations, which occurred nightly for around a year, covered everything from Apple, to family, to faith and hobbies.
“He wanted me to know him,” Johnson said.
After about a year of those conversations, Johnson said Jobs told him he had “complete trust” in him. If Johnson ever wasn’t sure how Jobs would approach a decision, he could always ask. Otherwise, Jobs encouraged him to “just go do great work,” Johnson said.
“Steve has such a clear vision for the stores and such high standards that he was able to delegate generously and have confidence that the decisions would align with his thinking,” Johnson added in a follow-up email.
The former Apple executive said that level of independence was critical. Great leaders don’t just hire talented people, they align them around a clear North Star and aspirational goals, Johnson said.
“That’s the art of leadership,” Johnson said.
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