Why is BP a management basket case, while Apple shines?

[katty]

more:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-06-08/executive-pay-the-20-highest-paid-deputies/?cid=hp:mainpromo7

Why is BP a management basket case, while Apple shines? A powerful second in command. Peter Lauria on the 20 highest paid second fiddles—and why some make more than their boss.

As global outcry builds to a crescendo about BP's handling of the mile-deep gusher in the Gulf of Mexico, perhaps the only thing keeping BP Chairman and CEO Tony Hayward in place is the fact there is no obvious candidate at the company to step in and fill the void.

[rzemanfl]

1. I think they employ a lot of Apple polishers. n/t

[katty]

2. well it's hard to find a turd in the Apple product line

[rzemanfl]

3. I make a lame joke and you get all scatalogical on me..... n/t

[katty]

4. i loved your joke! :)

[rzemanfl]

11. You should send your endorsement to Steve Jobs. n/t

[katty]

12. nope i'm not a jobs groupie

[Billy Burnett]

9. Here's a few Apple turds... the latest versions of Snow Leopard, Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro.

These are hi-end pro products that Apple has consumerized to look and feel more like Garage Band. :puke:

Apple has just about destroyed by business because of the "improvements" to these products. They leave in all of the serious bugs (er, "features"), and upgrade with even more.

The new macs don't run Apple's most reliable OS for pro audio and video - OS 10.4.11.

There are also lots of reports of iMac LCD screens going bad, and the new glossy 27" iMacs have cracking issues.

Lifelong Mac user here, but they're AWOL on new Macs, new OSs, and pro product development and debugging.

Sad. Very sad. :(

[yurbud]

5. Apple is selling a product people want because it's useful. BP is selling a product people are

forced to buy because they have no affordable alternative.

One company is constantly trying to make their product more desirable.

The other is constantly trying to make their product more unavoidable.

[katty]

6. exactly

[yurbud]

8. being a CEO is not an inherently evil job, but if you have a job that requires people to do evil...

things, you will eventually attract evil people to the job.

[katty]

10. of course-and indeed a person, a company, a nation, etal will

attract accordingly.

[yurbud]

13. yep. sadly, the same thing has happened to our politicians. There's nothing inherently wrong with

being an elected official, but when it's impossible to do the job without being a corporate whore, you end up with a lot of candidates in fishnets stockings with cold sores.

[customerserviceguy]

7. They serve different markets

BP produces petroleum products, which are highly fungible. One producer's product is perceived to be identical to another producer's product, so price is the driving factor influencing purchase decisions. When that's the case, the management that cuts corners better than the other guy has an advantage.

On the other hand, Apple is blessed with customers that are really more like religious zealots than price-savvy consumers. Whatever they release, it will be gobbled up by the masses of true believers, no matter how much it costs, or how difficult it is to service and repair. You have the luxury of doing what is "right" occasionally, rather than what cuts your competition's throats.