Flash analysis: Steve Jobs

1. Summary

This week’s retirement of Steve Jobs marked the end of an era, not only at Apple but also in the broader world of technology. Jobs oversaw a breathtaking period of innovation: Along with the company he founded, he reinvented the very concept of computing, disrupted not just one but many markets with bold products that captured our imaginations, and catapulted Apple to the top of the heap as one of the most valuable companies worldwide.

While Apple has a well-thought-out succession plan in place, it is perhaps inevitable that over time new CEO Tim Cook will bring small — and possibly big — changes to the company he now leads. Cook has been a loyal lieutenant of Jobs’ for many years, but he isn’t a carbon copy of his former boss, nor would the stockholders or employees want him to be.

This analysis is a snapshot of what GigaOM’s readership thinks will happen in the coming years of the post-Jobs era. We asked our readers to answer a few questions about which of Apple’s competitive strengths could potentially be impacted by Jobs’ departure, what areas they expect the Cook-led Apple to influence in the next decade, and which well-known Apple corporate practices could be altered in the coming years.

We recognize that our survey of 110 respondents is not statistically representative and also only represents the views of one particular readership. But it is interesting nonetheless to gather and analyze the views of what our educated Apple-watching community thinks will happen as Apple transitions to the Tim Cook era.