????一年前的今天，斯蒂夫?喬布斯宣布辭去蘋(píng)果（Apple）首席執(zhí)行官一職。這本不應(yīng)讓人感到吃驚，但當(dāng)時(shí)消息一出確實(shí)引發(fā)了不小的震動(dòng)。蘋(píng)果公司宣布，喬布斯將擔(dān)任此前空缺的董事長(zhǎng)一職。喬布斯仍將參與公司工作，他將作為指引公司方向的一盞明燈，但不再是親自沖鋒陷陣的執(zhí)行者。是的，他們就是這樣告訴我們的。喬布斯健康狀況下滑時(shí)，蒂姆?庫(kù)克這位出色但沉默寡言的首席營(yíng)運(yùn)官早已在掌管著蘋(píng)果公司大部分的業(yè)務(wù)。因此，不會(huì)有太多改變。

????當(dāng)時(shí)的這一說(shuō)法基本上是對(duì)的，只是在一個(gè)關(guān)鍵點(diǎn)上有出入。沒(méi)錯(cuò)，六周后喬布斯就病逝了。伴隨著他的離世是席卷全球的哀痛、感人的員工追思會(huì)和一部全球暢銷傳記（傳記里并不全是溢美之詞）。蘋(píng)果在喬布斯欽點(diǎn)人選的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)下，延續(xù)著原有的軌跡。這一年，蘋(píng)果公司推出的產(chǎn)品基本上都屬錦上添花，并非革命性產(chǎn)品。（iPhone 4S和“新”iPad都很難說(shuō)給這個(gè)世界帶來(lái)了什么改變。）高級(jí)管理層也一直基本保持穩(wěn)定。公司利潤(rùn)持續(xù)激增。蘋(píng)果著名的守口如瓶的運(yùn)營(yíng)方式繼續(xù)飛速發(fā)展——盡管有些做法招致如潮批評(píng)，特別是在《紐約時(shí)報(bào)》（The New York Times）上。

????簡(jiǎn)言之，蘋(píng)果總體上還是蘋(píng)果。它沒(méi)有犯錯(cuò)，還做出了一些改變。蘋(píng)果開(kāi)始支付股息了。模糊地感覺(jué)到蘋(píng)果變得更加職業(yè)化了，因而神秘感也減少了。作為全球市值最高的公司而受到的審視和質(zhì)疑，令蘋(píng)果的光輝形象些許受到了些損害。

????眼前的挑戰(zhàn)是如何理解這些改變。對(duì)蘋(píng)果的分析已經(jīng)到了條分縷析的地步，難以分清什么是真正的改變，什么是背景噪音。自以為有品位的廣告界人士聲稱，史蒂夫?喬布斯絕不會(huì)批準(zhǔn)蘋(píng)果在倫敦奧運(yùn)會(huì)期間投放的那則低劣且自降身份的“Genius”廣告。行將末路？也許吧。但也許不會(huì)。距離上次蘋(píng)果發(fā)布震撼人心的產(chǎn)品已經(jīng)過(guò)了“很長(zhǎng)”時(shí)間，這么說(shuō)如今已成為風(fēng)尚。從2007年iPhone發(fā)布到2010年iPad發(fā)布經(jīng)歷了三年時(shí)間。如今看來(lái)，蘋(píng)果的電視產(chǎn)品——不管會(huì)成什么樣——都還有一些時(shí)間。

????近來(lái)頭腦有點(diǎn)亂的華爾街當(dāng)然也不知道如何理解蒂姆?庫(kù)克時(shí)代。喬布斯辭職那天，蘋(píng)果股價(jià)收于374美元。7月末，這只股票的股價(jià)已經(jīng)接近600美元，當(dāng)蘋(píng)果發(fā)布了令人失望的季度業(yè)績(jī)后，股價(jià)被推低至570美元。自那以來(lái)沒(méi)有實(shí)質(zhì)性消息傳出，投資者斷定狀況沒(méi)那么糟。上周四該股收于662.63美元。在蒂姆?庫(kù)克擔(dān)任首席執(zhí)行官的一年中，蘋(píng)果股價(jià)上漲了77%——市值上漲超過(guò)2,700億美元。令人稱奇的是，按照任何通常標(biāo)準(zhǔn)，蘋(píng)果股價(jià)看起來(lái)仍不貴，股價(jià)僅為華爾街今年預(yù)期每股收益的15倍。

????雖然投資者給庫(kù)克打出了高分，雇員和合作伙伴也紛紛給予好評(píng)，但普遍看法是蘋(píng)果當(dāng)前的成功仍應(yīng)歸功于史蒂夫?喬布斯當(dāng)初制定的計(jì)劃。但很快，我們就將能夠評(píng)判庫(kù)克和高管團(tuán)隊(duì)（基本保持不變）這些人自己的表現(xiàn)了。（蘋(píng)果零售部門負(fù)責(zé)人羅恩?約翰遜告訴喬布斯，他將離開(kāi)公司到J.C. Penney任職，庫(kù)克用歐洲零售業(yè)高級(jí)管理人士約翰?布勞威特填補(bǔ)了這一空缺。蘋(píng)果硬件負(fù)責(zé)人鮑勃?曼斯費(fèi)爾德最近宣布退休，他的副手接替了他的職位。）

????雖然Macintosh業(yè)務(wù)非常穩(wěn)定，蘋(píng)果總體上仍然是一家靠人氣帶動(dòng)的公司。為了在龐大的規(guī)模之上繼續(xù)增長(zhǎng)，它需要不斷地給顧客帶來(lái)驚喜。循序漸進(jìn)不能持續(xù)太長(zhǎng)時(shí)間，每個(gè)人都期待蒂姆?庫(kù)克最早于下個(gè)月就推出全新產(chǎn)品。一年帶來(lái)了什么變化？后喬布斯之時(shí)代的蘋(píng)果，一年的時(shí)間似乎還不足以看出什么改變。

????譯者：早稻米

????It shouldn't have felt like a surprise, but it did, when the news broke a year ago today that Steve Jobs was stepping down as CEO of Apple. He was becoming chairman of the board, a previously unfilled position, Apple announced. Jobs would remain involved with the company, a guiding light rather than a hands-on taskmaster, we were led to believe. Tim Cook, the strong-but-silent chief operating officer, already had been running most of Apple as Jobs's health declined. So not much would change.

????That assessment, though wrong in one key respect, turned out to be largely true. Jobs, of course, died six weeks later. A global outpouring of grief, a heart-tugging employee celebration and aninternational best-selling (and not altogether flattering) biography heralded his passing. Yet Apple under the CEO Jobs hand-picked to succeed him has been the very definition of staying the course. The company's product introductions during the year have been incremental, not revolutionary. (The iPhone 4S and a "new," third-generation iPad hardly constitute putting a dent in the universe.) Senior management has been largely stable. Profits have continued to soar. Apple's (AAPL) infamously tight-lipped operation has continued apace -- despite a torrent of criticism over some of its practices, notably in The New York Times.

????In short, Apple by and large has continued to be Apple. Make no mistake, there have been changes. Apple now pays a dividend. There is a vague sense that the company has become more professional and therefore less magical. With the scrutiny of being the world's most valuable company come scratches on the shiny veneer.

????The challenge is what to make of the changes. Apple is so thoroughly analyzed that it becomes difficult to know what constitutes real change and what is background noise. Advertising snobs said Steve Jobs never would have approved the cheesy and demeaning "Genius" ads Apple ran during the London Olympics. A sign of the apocalypse? Maybe. But probably not. It has become fashionable to say a "long time" has passed since Apple released a mind-blowing product. Well, the gap between the iPhone in 2007 and the iPad in 2010 was three years.Apple's TV effort, whatever it's going to be, has some time left.

????Wall Street, hardly a model of clear thinking of late, certainly doesn't know what to make of the Tim Cook era. Apple's stock closed at $374 per share the day Jobs resigned. It was trading near $600 in late July, when Apple reported a disappointing quarter, sending the shares to $570. With no real news since, investors have decided the situation isn't so glum after all. Apple's stock closed Thursday at $662.63. That's an increase of 77% -- or more than $270 billion in market capitalization -- in the year Cook has been CEO. Amazingly, shares of Apple remain inexpensive by any normal standards at a multiple of 15 times Wall Street's estimates of current-year earnings.

????While Cook wins high marks from investors and generally favorable reviews from employees and partners, the conventional wisdom is that the current success of Apple continues to be attributable to the plans put in place by Steve Jobs. Soon enough, though, we'll be able to start judging on their own merits Cook and the team of senior managers he has largely held together. (Retail chief Ron Johnson told Jobs he was leaving for J.C. Penney (JCP), and Cook filled the spot with European retailing executive John Browett. Hardware boss Bob Mansfield recently announced his retirement and is being replaced by a lieutenant.)

????Apple, despite its annuity-like Macintosh division, is a hits-driven business. To grow at its massive scale it needs to continue to wow customers. Incrementalism won't cut it for long, and everyone expects Tim Cook to unveil brand-new gadgets as soon as next month. What difference does a year make? With Apple after Steve Jobs, it's probably not enough time to tell.