Stefan Mileschin

Former Microsoft chief operating officer Bob Herbold thinks Apple might be losing its vision. Now that Steve Jobs is gone, so is the magic, apparently.

In a Forbes article, Herbold concluded that Apple's stock slide should be attributed to analysts, who merely looked at the numbers and did not want to take a look at the wider picture. Sadly though, Jobs' death has left a big pair of shoes to fill at Cupertino, and it doesn't appear as if Apple will get a new visionary leader any time soon.

Herbold stressed that such a leader does not have to be a tech wizard. He does, however, need to be a visionary, not a mere administrator. The trouble with Apple is that such a demigod would have to live up to unrealistic expectations. He would also need to show an exceptional level of personal involvement and get personally involved with the details of upcoming products. Jobs was quite famous for this, and it worked.

Lastly, a new Apple messiah must have the guts to lead. This is a lot to ask. Not only does the new leader have to live up to high expectations, but he also needs to take a lot of responsibility.

Apple's market cap is still north of $400 billion, but the company lost quite a bit of value over the past two quarters. Taking any radical steps at this point would be bold to say the least and not everyone has the guts to make decisions that could cost the company tens of billions of dollars. However, bold decisions are exactly what Apple needs at this point.

http://news.techeye.net/business/ex-...ost-its-vision