Blog Post 2: Why did Steve Jobs get kicked out of Apple?
In class, we talked a lot about balanced vs unbalanced networks. We learned that if a network or a group of three nodes have two strong ties and one weak tie within them, the mentioned network is unbalanced. If a group of three nodes has one or three positive ties between the nodes, it is balanced. If it has zero or two positive ties between the nodes, it is unbalanced.
Let’s talk about a situation in the real world where this theory perfectly applies. Let’s talk about how Steve Jobs got ousted from his own company, Apple. Quite simply, almost all the Board members had strong ties with the CEO of Apple at the time, John Sculley, in that they trusted his judgement and believed in his vision for Apple. However, many of them had negative ties with Steve Jobs, as he was seen as insubordinate, stubborn, and rude.
Now this network was unbalanced at first, Jobs and CEO had strong tie, and any given member of the Board had a strong tie with the CEO. However, Jobs and any given member of the Board had a negative tie. Therefore, this network was unstable because in a group of three nodes, there were only two positive ties, and there was friction between the CEO and Board members on the issue of their individual relations with Steve Jobs.
The network had to reach balance to release the building-up stress on the company’s management. Therefore, eventually, a negative tie developed between Jobs and CEO Sculley and Jobs was then removed, in turn making the network made up of only positive ties within itself, which is a balanced network.
Sorry Steve Jobs! Maybe you wouldn’t have been kicked off if you understood the network dynamics in your company.
It’s okay! You are still amazing in my eyes and your passion and determination are extraordinary! You came back to Apple and changed our world forever!
Link: https://www.cnet.com/news/john-sculley-spills-the-beans-on-firing-steve-jobs/