Tim Cook's 7 years as Apple CEO: The major hits and misses

NEW DELHI: On this day, seven years ago Tim Cook took over as the CEO of Apple. It was considered a monumental task stepping into the shoes one of the most charismatic CEOs the tech world had seen. Cook although was an old Apple hand by then but very little was known about him. Six weeks after Cook took over, Steve Jobs passed away and there were question marks over his ability to steer Apple in a new era. Cook has had hits and misses in his seven-year tenure as Apple CEO. Here we list out seven major accomplishments of Apple under the aegis of Cook:

Hit: The first trillion-dollar company
When Cook took over the reins at Apple, Apple had a turnover of around $350 billion. In the last seven years, the growth for Apple has been remarkable and it became the first US company to hit the trillion-dollar mark earlier this year.

Miss: ‘Batterygate’ and slowing down of older iPhone performance
It was quite an embarassment for Apple when it emerged that the company used to slow down the performance of iPhones by throttling the battery. Apple and Cook faced a lot of flak and had to apologise for the issue.

Hit: The rise and rise of Apple Watch
It was the first major product that Apple launched under Cook’s leadership. Launched in 2014, the Apple Watch received a lukewarm response at first but is now seen as a widely successful product. So much so that Apple is now the largest watchmaker in the world.

Miss: Apple Maps and its failure to take off
It’s not as if Apple doesn’t have a Maps off but it’s so way off than what competition (read: Google) has to offer. Cook, in fact, had posted a letter online in 2012 and apologised stating that Apple “fell short” in its commitment to make the best possible products for its customers.

Hit: Apple Services business is as big as a Fortune 500 company
Apple’s Services division includes its Digital Content and Services, AppleCare, Apple Pay, licensing and other services, including iTunes, the App Store, AppleMusic and iCloud. For the last 13 quarters, the Apple Services business has shown double-digit growth and is considered a big achievement on Cook’s part.