Gene Munster: Tim Cook has conflict resolution ‘superpower’

Tim Cook believes in responsible business

Can anyone else recall as far back as the other day when Apple and Twitter were on a collision course and the current owner of the social media company declared war? Well, that tension seems to have mitigated somewhat following a meeting between the two CEOs. And according to one analyst, it’s a superpower the Apple boss possesses.

Gene Munster on Tim Cook

I chanced across an article about this on Benzinga, and thought it made a series of great points, which I’m basically summarizing here to return to later because I believe that too many people underestimate Apple CEO, Tim Cook.

That’s a surprise given how he managed to grow the company and possibly quite disrespectful given his status as America’s only (is he still the only, because surely, it’s time to change that?) gay CEO. I don’t think it’s his ability his critics are moaning about.

So, Elon Musk…

The whole world’s media, including me, was watching the evolving battle between both firms.

I think it would have gone a lot worse for Musk than for Cook, but the Apple boss chose that moment to invite the chief twit for a meet and greet and guided tour around the Apple HQ. How lovely. That Apple’s enemies were as usual snarking around trying to buddy up to the Twitter owner probably helped motivate that meeting a little.

At the end of that chat, the tension had been resolved. Musk said he Cook told him Twitter was going to stay (though I guess subject to maintaining at least some control over the conversation, as we saw in action the other Ye.)

Embracing conflict is a skill

This is what Munster said, summarized:

1. Apple CEO Tim Cook has “crisis management superpowers”.
2. During the meeting, Cook appeared to win Musk over.
3. Tension cooled between both firms.
4. Banning Twitter on Apple’s App store would have impacted both firms – Apple for a display of public power and Twitter for losing access to half the US audience.
5. “Embracing conflict to improve the odds of success has been in Cook’s DNA since he first rebuilt Apple’s operations from 2000-2010,” Munster said.
6. Cook is able to approach tense negotiations with an open mind, as we saw when he worked with Trump when the then US leader was threatening tariffs on Apple products.
7. Cook is also able to make changes to help pacify situations.
8. And we’ve seen him grow Apple from a $364 billion company to a $2 trillion company. Obviously that’s not just him, but holding all of that together takes a certain degree of savvy, right?

Anyway, that’s the story. If Munster wants to share the rest of his thinking on Cook with me, I’d be grateful to learn it. I’ve a feeling Cook’s a lot more qualified than people realize for the job that he does.

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