The Apple Challenge_Leading Change.160622

T H E A P P L E C H A L L E N G E : T h e M i s f i t ‘ P e p s i F o r m u l a ’ | L e a d i n g C h a n g e
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INTRODUCTION: “ONE-SIZE DOES NOT FIT ALL”?
Steve Jobs: A most celebrated icon of the innovative leadership of the generation. His
unique ‘intelligent’ charism has enchanted a great number of people all around the world,
especially more educated groups. The coverage of his life stories and the ‘Genesis’ of Apple Inc.
(“Apple”) by media, and the biopics of his portrayed on silver screens have even idolized him.
Behind the scenes though, there are numerous supporting actors who could have respectively
played a leading role in their own act, had they not been shadowed by Jobs.
Among them, there is John Sculley, the former CEO of Pepsi-Cola (“Pepsi”), who was
courted by Jobs thanks to a series of his successful change managements; i.e., his research-based
marketing reforms in various subsidiaries of Pepsi Corporation. Sculley’s joining in Apple was
initiated by Jobs’ change leadership with a vision to apply marketing concept to the high-tech
industry, which was a ‘foreign’ practice in the trade at the time. As a result, Sculley made a much-
celebrated transition from the so-called ‘sugared-water’ business to the personal computer
industry.
However, the ten years (1983-93) that Sculley had spent at Apple not only ended with a
bitter aftertaste but also had he had to live the passage of time, until recently, being dubbed ‘the
man who fired Jobs,’ which could possibly have carried unspoken hostile messages given the
idolized nature of Steve Jobs’ figure.
Often, acclaimed business leaders are scouted by organizations where managerial,
organizational, and other types of changes are urgently needed, and those leaders do not always
stay in the same/similar area(s) of business but their far-reaching industry shifts are commonly
witnessed. For example, Alan Mulally from Boeing had served Ford Motors between 2008 and
2014 for the reasons listed above, and his change strategies had brought plenty of benefits to

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Ford. While it falls under the roof of the transportation industry as a whole, the nature of business
between the aerospace and the automobile industries could not be identical in details.
Nonetheless, Mulally succeeded.
How come then one successful change leadership example did not work in another
organization in Sculley’s case? Many stories had been circulated through the years, but answers
will be sought by diagnosing symptoms and assessing the personal as well as organizational
characteristics, such as the leadership styles of Sculley and Jobs and the corporate cultures of
Pepsi and Apple. The discussion will then be followed by evaluating the diagnosed symptoms in
light of the Leading Change theory: Sculley’s ‘Pepsi Formula’ that did not fly in Apple.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
From Pepsi to Apple1
John Sculley2 is a renowned entrepreneur famous for his Pepsi Challenge3 campaign,
which has demonstrated a successful case of leading change. Through this change management
under his lead, he was able to not only raise Pepsi’s brand recognition but achieve the power shift
from Coca-Cola to Pepsi in a consumer-oriented as well as cost-effective manner.4 This strategy
and mindset of Sculley’s appear to continue and work well even in the 21st century’s Silicon Valley.
1
Excerpts from information available at <en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Sculley>, unless otherwise cited.
2
John Sculley III (born April 6, 1939) has always been active as entrepreneur and investor in high-tech startups,
since his departure from Apple, Inc. in 1993. Lately, he has joined the smartphone game by founding Obi
Worldphone in 2014.
3
Pepsi Challenge: It refers to a blind taste test by general consumers between Pepsi Cola and Coke, first launched
in San Antonio, Texas in 1975, which is labelled experience marketing, not product. Through this, Pepsi had
expanded its market position from a regional brand to a national one, if not yet global. In Sculley’s own word, Pepsi
Challenge was “all about empowering consumer…. marketing is all about stories.” See Charlotte Mceleny, “Former
Apple CEO John Sculley on Steve Jobs, noble causes and creating the Pepsi Challenge,” Marketing Magazine (27
May 2015), online: Marketing Magazine <www.marketingmagazine.co.uk/article/1348778/former-apple-ceo-john-
sculley-steve-jobs-noble-causes-creating-pepsi-challenge>.
4
Ibid.

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In 1983 seven years into its operation, Apple decided to have Sculley aboard to foster its
image of greater reliability and stability as well as to more aggressively increase its share in the
growing personal computer market. For the first few years until what is called “the most infamous
human resource decision in business history”5 occurred in 1985, Sculley had generally made good
business moves and raised profits by increasing annual revenue from the millions to the billions,
as was reported in the news media, "since Sculley joined the company … many things have
changed … and his strategy has worked."6
Then, came 1985 when the most notable organizational change was required during his
time at Apple. It was also considered to be one of the critical periods even in Apple’s entire history
that the need for change was urgently felt among a few available options, which included letting
Apple go bankrupt and abandon the Apple 2; and concentrating funding sources to the Macintosh;
i.e., the alternative that Jobs had insisted on against Sculley’s opposition. The conflicting positions
between the two had resulted in creating fraction within the organization, and eventually, the
direction for the then necessary change was set by ousting Jobs.7
While Sculley’s change initiatives at Apple had remained controversial, e.g., for
unfollowing Jobs’ sales structure, his business decisions to openly compete with IBM PC, the
overall market situation, and the company’s internal segmentation in the early 1990’s had
collectively amounted to his dismissal from the position of Apple’s CEO in 1993. His position was
replaced by Michael Spindler. Sculley and Jobs have never reconciled since.
5
Randall Lane, “John Sculley Just Gave His Most Detailed Account Ever Of How Steve Jobs Got Fired From Apple,”
Forbes (09 Sept. 2013), online: Forbes <www.forbes.com/sites/randalllane/2013/09/09/john-sculley-just-gave-his-
most-detailed-account-ever-of-how-steve-jobs-got-fired-from-apple/#5302268b10e9>.
6
Wikipedia, supra note 1.
7
“John Sculley: Minding the Design Gaps, Changing the World,” the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania (29
Oct. 2015), online: Knowledge@Wharton <knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/john-sculley-minding-the-
design-gaps-changing-the-world/> [Knowledge@Wharton].

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Key Symptoms: Problem Statement
Based on the background information above, the main problems of this case, in the
context of leading change, are identified as follows:
 Failure in organizational and strategy alignment; and
 Failure of communication in times of change.
ASSESSMENT
Personal Assessment: Leadership Styles
Due to the much-publicized scandal of Apple’s board decision of ousting Jobs, Sculley and
Jobs have frequently been compared ever since, as if one was a better leader than the other.
Through their respectively established professional life, they both had, however, demonstrated
such characteristics to be competent change leaders as credibility, proactiveness, courage and
determination. Had Sculley not been proved as capable, Jobs would not have approached him in
the first place.
As their MBTI assessment suggests, their leaderships have indeed been exercised in
different styles. Being a strong believer of research and analysis from the days at Pepsi, Sculley
has shown a tendency of making key decisions based on sensing, while Jobs had trusted his
intuition in his major decision-making moments; i.e., ESTJ8 for Sculley and ENTJ9 for Jobs10.
8
ESTJ (Extraverted, Sensing, Thinking and Judging) is practical, realistic, and matter-of-fact, with a natural head for
business or mechanics. Not interested in subjects they see no use for, but can apply themselves when necessary.
Likes to organize and run activities. May make a good administrator, especially if he or she remembers to consider
others’ feelings and points of view.
9
ENTJ (Extraverted, Intuitive, Thinking and Judging) is hearty, frank, decisive and a leader in activities. Usually good
in anything that requires reasoning and intelligent talk, such as public speaking. Is usually well informed and enjoys
adding to their fund of knowledge. May sometimes appear more positive and confident than their experience in an
area warrants.
10
“What is John Sculley on the Myers Briggs (MBTI)?” (12 Oct. 2012), online: Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
<www.quora.com/What-is-John-Sculley-on-the-Myers-Briggs-MBTI>.

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Regardless of the source’s academic and/or scientific reliability, each MBTI type for Sculley and
Jobs speaks to our common sense.
Considering the performance and achievement at Pepsi that had earned Sculley the fame
of ‘the blue chip of marketing’ as well as facilitated a remarkable growth of the company, his
corporate leadership obviously had “generated increased sales and customer satisfaction levels;
created higher-performing teams; fostered renewed loyalty and greater organizational
commitment;”11 and raised Pepsi’s market share, all of which amounts to recognizing him as an
exemplary change leader.12
On the whole, it may be fair to assume that Jobs’ popularity had been gained for his
future-oriented vision, inspirational rhetoric skills, strong bonding with his followers, and the
charism that overcomes resistance.13 People are enthusiastic about his ability to empower and
stimulate others to create new ideas. These traits make him a transformational leader, which is
defined as one that “serves to change the status quo by appealing to followers' values and their
sense of higher purpose.”14
Successful change leaders have one thing in common: Charisma.15 Often, people call Steve
Jobs as one of the charismatic leaders of this era. It is true that charismatic and transformational
leadership forms seem to share many common characteristics. And yet, under the
transformational leadership, it seems that the followers remain reasonable enough to exercise
as much of their senses as they may emotionally be attached to their leaders’ charism. On the
11
J., Kouzes & B., Posner, “When Leaders are at Their Best,” The Leadership Challenge (5 ed.), Ch. 1. (San Francisco:
Jossey-Bass, 2012), at 27.
12
See ibid. at 15-24.
13
R.L. Hughes, R.C. Ginnett & G.J. Curphy, "Leadership and Change," Leadership: Enhancing the Lessons of
Experience (6 ed.), Ch. 13 (New York: McGraw-Hill Irwin, 2009) at 637-640.
14
Ibid., at 632.
15
Ibid., at 628-629.

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other hand, under the charismatic leadership, the followers are exposed to the risk of losing their
sight blinded by the leader’s charm. In reference to the traditional leadership categorization
redefined by James MacGregor Burns in his Leadership,16 transformational leadership, thus,
seems to agree more with Jobs’ style, insofar as change leadership in concerned.
In sum, the two are quite different in many ways. However, given the proven track records
of successfully leading changes, some of which are listed above, both of them are capable change
agents in their own respective ways. Although they seem to present similar characteristics
considering the majority of their Mayer Briggs type indicators, they had, most importantly,
exhibited different patterns in decision-making; namely, one relying on analysis and the other on
intuition, which adds an explanation to their disagreement when choosing change directions at
Apple in 1985.
While some people may argue that it was fundamentally Jobs’ mistake to court and scout
Sculley under a simple line of thought that ‘you shall not recruit someone who you cannot get
along with,’ sometimes, ‘difference’ plays the role of a magnet attracting the two opposing poles,
and further, to the eyes of a distinguished leader like Jobs, the unlike professional qualities of
Sculley might have appealed more than having another agreeable person aboard, with the
priority of enhancing Apple’s competitiveness. Though, the two had allegedly started off well at
the outset of their partnership. In search for an accountability for their failed partnership, it will
also have to be taken into consideration that in the early days, Jobs was not perceived as quite a
socially competent character, either, which is essential to lubricate human relationships; i.e., the
key to successfully lead changes
16
Supra note 14.

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Incidentally, some had mockingly commented that Sculley was hired to ‘babysit’ Jobs.
Such public perception might have increased the level of interior challenge on Sculley from his
viewpoint, bearing in mind that Sculley himself had been in the center of the spotlight until Jobs’
charism pushed him behind the shadow. Whether identified or not, such an emotional cluster
must not have positively driven him to ponder upon either reopening the communication channel
or seeking means of reconciliation with Jobs even far down the road.
Organizational Assessment: Corporate Cultures
A corporate culture defines the traditions, values, and employee’s performance
guidelines, which is hard to change if that is large and established. It also determines capabilities
in supporting changes, new policies and new strategies. As much as people shape the culture of
an organization, it contributes to forming the mindsets and behaviors of its members.
 PepsiCo Inc.17
Pepsi’s corporate culture is overall represented by the company’s commitment to
maximizing the strengths of its human resources. Its organizational culture has been adjusted
through the years, responding to changes in leadership and business situations at a given time.
Along with the values corresponding to its current needs such as Performance with Purpose and
Real World Leadership, Collaboration is it that constitutes Pepsi’s corporate culture. Pepsi
supports synergy in its human resources, and its culture stands on the collaborative efforts of
individual strength. However, by the weight of such collaboration, autonomy or individual
flexibility is somewhat compromised in Pepsi’s culture; i.e., high employee morale at the cost of
17
PepsiCo Inc. was created in 1965 through the merger of the Pepsi-Cola Company and Frito-Lay Inc.

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creativity & innovation.18 “It’s about working with teams. It’s about hanging out with really
talented people,”19 one of Sculley’s recent comments still resonates Pepsi’s corporate culture.
 Apple Inc.
The company, Apple is where a group of innovative minds empowers the manifestation
of the state of the art products like the iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch. The key features of Apple’s
corporate culture, such as Top-notch excellence, Creativity, Innovation, Secrecy and Moderate
combativeness are deemed to fit the business. The combination of these key elements in its
corporate culture, especially creativity and excellence contributes to rapid innovation processes
and eventually enables the company’s leading position in the industry. On the other hand, the
emphasis on secrecy and the moderate degree of combativeness embedded in its culture is
evaluated to challenge the company’s further growth. For example, a secretive atmosphere
hinders open communication among its brilliant employees which could possibly lead to even a
better outcome, and also, some employees’ morale could adversely be affected by the culture
encouraging combativeness. Thus, it is believed that to a certain degree, there is a limiting factor
to its human resources in Apple’s culture, and the utilization of such top-tier assets shall be
brought to the optimum level.20
In Apple, everyday work routine must be the cycle of managing changes, and every single
launch of a new product involves many layers of change leadership, more distinctively than other,
due to the traits of this particular industry.
18
Daniel Kissinger, “PepsiCo’s Organizational Culture Characteristics: An Analysis” (02 Dec. 2015), online: Panmore
Institute <panmore.com/pepsico-organizational-culture-characteristics-analysis>.
19
Knowledge@Wharton, supra note 7.
20
Pauline Meyer, “Apple Inc. Organizational Culture: Features & Implications” (08 Sept. 2015), online: Panmore
Institute <panmore.com/apple-inc-organizational-culture-features-implications>.

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 Vision & Mission of Each Company
A firm’s vision statement indicates the direction of organizational development while its
mission statement gives specific details about the company’s products and target market. They
are the foundations of a company’s successful undertakings and sound growth, which continue
to motivate its employees to align their objectives with the direction of company’s development.
They, however, evolve over time to address changing organizational and market conditions.
Apple Inc. has changed its vision21 and mission22 statements over time, including changes
to Steve Jobs’ original mission statement. The latest versions of Apple’s statements by Tim Cook
indeed reflect the company’s current position, and point out the direction and the line of
products they pursue23 (See below corresponding footnotes for more details of each statement).
Those of Pepsi’s have also come into adjustment with its current business condition.
Pepsi’s vision24 and mission25 statements are known to be designed to complement each other.26
21
“We believe that we are on the face of the earth to make great products and that’s not changing. We are
constantly focusing on innovating. We believe in the simple not the complex. We believe that we need to own and
control the primary technologies behind the products that we make, and participate only in markets where we can
make a significant contribution. We believe in saying no to thousands of projects, so that we can really focus on the
few that are truly important and meaningful to us. We believe in deep collaboration and cross-pollination of our
groups, which allow us to innovate in a way that others cannot. And frankly, we don’t settle for anything less than
excellence in every group in the company, and we have the self- honesty to admit when we’re wrong and the
courage to change. And I think regardless of who is in what job those values are so embedded in this company that
Apple will do extremely well.”
22
“Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork and professional
software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple has reinvented the
mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App store, and is defining the future of mobile media and
computing devices with iPad.”
23
Christine Rowland, “Apple’s Vision Statement & Mission Statement” (03 Sept. 2015), online: Panmore Institute
<panmore.com/apple-mission-statement-vision-statement >.
24
“To deliver top-tier financial performance over the long term by integrating sustainability into our business
strategy, leaving a positive imprint on society and the environment.”
25
“To provide consumers around the world with delicious, affordable, convenient and complementary foods and
beverages from wholesome breakfasts to healthy and fun daytime snacks and beverages to evening treats.”
26
Jessica Lombardo, “PepsiCo’s Vision Statement & Mission Statement Analysis” (01 Dec. 2015), online: Panmore
Institute <panmore.com/pepsico-vision-statement-mission-statement-analysis>.

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The vision and mission statements are critical instruments in understanding the core
values as well as the characteristics of an organization, together with its corporate culture. Their
evolutionary nature may be deemed positive and encouraging in light of leading change, as it
indicates that changes are being initiated and implemented on a constant basis in the life of a
business organization. And yet, the same nature puts a limit to an attempt to detect those
organizations’ characteristics at a specific time period in the past; i.e., the currently available
statements of either company may not retroactively be interpreted, as if they are identical to
those from the period when Sculley and Jobs were leading these firms. Through the current
statements, may only be inferred a corporate’s general line of philosophy that had come down
its history.27
By and large, it appears that the prevailing corporate cultures of Pepsi and Apple fall on
the opposite end of the scale; Pepsi draws its strength from teamwork, whereas Apple’s
competitiveness relies more on individual-oriented performance. While the strengths and
weaknesses of these organizations would well complement each other, which is beyond the
scope of the current discussion, the two outstanding leaders from such opposing backgrounds
must have experienced hardships in their smooth cooperation because an organizational culture
influences the formation of its members’ perspectives, and vice versa, as stated earlier.
While there is no right or wrong culture, there is one that suits a certain person better
than another. Hence, Apple’s culture might not have been the most comfortable suit for Sculley
in which he could be his best self, the assumption of which could well be supported by his
professional journey post his office at Apple. In turn, when Jobs returned to his leading position
at Apple, the company revived, which proves the same hypothesis like the other side of the coin.
27
Within the possible extent of information search, the vision and mission statements of these two organizations’
at the time period applicable to the current research scope have not been found.

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What if Jobs had served in other industry than the digital technology, let alone this very company,
could his leadership have been acknowledged as such a sensation as the way it has been?
EVALUATION
Alignment in Change Management
In managing change initiatives, without aligning some of the organization’s key elements,
the concerned change process cannot efficiently be facilitated. In his “Leadership and Change,”
Hughes listed such five components as vision, culture, structure, system and capabilities for
organizational alignment.28 Further, when formulating a strategy for a change, people, culture,
structure/process, and measurement/reward systems need to be aligned as well. 29 Each
component of the above or phase in the implementation process carries equal significance.
While the choice of terms may slightly vary, they speak of the same essence that a change
initiative shall be focused on an integrated final goal, and implemented in a single direction. Thus,
the change leaders are required to maintain a united vision which shall be communicated to all
levels of change recipients.
In 1985, when the sales performance of the Apple 2 turned out to be disappointing and
therefore, as much revenue as the need of company’s cash flow was not generated by this model,
Sculley and Jobs indeed identified the need for a change. However, they took a varying approach
to the recovery of the unsuccessful product and the alternative source of funding for the
continuous investment in a new Macintosh model. Obviously, the vision and the culture between
the two top leaders of the company were not aligned in handling the situation in need of a change,
28
Hughes, supra note 13 at 619-620 (Figure 13.1).
29
W.G. Pietersen, "Strategy in Search of a Method," Columbia Insights for Executives (New York: Columbia Business
School Executive Education, March 2005) at 7.

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and such disagreement had resulted in priority disorientation, which as a whole had disrupted
the aligned designing of strategy for their contemplated change.
In reference to Figure 1 below, both Sculley and Jobs apparently wanted to prevent their
change process from being frustrated by the lack of resources such as cash flow for R&D funding.
And yet, due to their split visions, they could not help but to create confusion in the direction of
leading the change in concern.30 Therefore, even with disregard to the consequence of Jobs’
departure from Apple, their vision for change did not start off on a solid ground even before it
would involve a wider range of change followers, because as Figure 1 illustrates, a change can
successfully be materialized only when all the components of the process are aligned.31
[Figure 1] Managing Complex Change32
30
To briefly summarize one of the most scandalized clashes in the Silicon Valley’s history, Jobs and Sculley held
different position in making a strategic decision to generate funding resources for the improvement of the then
Jobs’ ambition, McIntosh model, which however was received with criticism at its launch. Jobs proposed to shift
away a large portion of Apple 2’s promotion and other management expenses, which was selling fine at the time,
and concentrate those resources on the Mac. While Sculley disagreed to Jobs’ strategy of increasing the needed
cash flow for the Mac, he, despite being the CEO of the company, was unable to conciliate Jobs on his own who
was not only its founder, but was also exercising a full discretion over the McIntosh division back then.
31
Given that Apple’s tech-savvy employees are highly skilled and apt to the process of rapid innovation, the
chances are very slim that Apple’s change inactivates would fail with anxiety due to the lack of skills among the
listed possibilities of unsuccessful change attempts. See Figure 1 (3rd row from the top).
32
Adapted from Knoster, T., Villa R., & Thousand, J. (2000); “A framework for thinking about systems change.”
R. Villa & J Thousand (Eds), Restructuring for caring and effective education: Piercing the puzzle together
(Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., 1999), at 93-128.

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Communication in Change Management
It may be worthwhile to reiterate that the importance of communication in any form of
human relationship and community has increasingly been emphasized for many reasons. As John
Kotter reinforces, ‘no matter how wonderful your vision is, it means nothing unless it is properly
communicated,’ communication indeed matters when leading and managing changes, especially
in organizations. He has also recommended a few vehicles for effective communication of a vision
for change such as the use of various channels and repetition of the message.
That being said, three major parties were initially invited to the discussion table on the
above-mentioned occasion at Apple in 1985: Jobs, Sculley and the Board. Sculley and the Board
had aligned their views in the process,33 and accordingly, the company’s ‘fate’ had been left in
the dialogue between Sculley and Jobs. Then, a question is posed whether and how exhaustively
the two brilliant leaders had sought to communicate in an effort to narrow the gaps in their
different approaches. According to the numerous public media sources including but not limited
to Steve Jobs biography and biopics, and Sculley’s interviews,34 they did not.
The purpose of communication, particularly in view of leading change, must be to change
people’s mindsets which will lead to changing their behaviors35 and eventually bringing desired
changes to a greater scale; e.g., a corporate. Bearing that in mind, another question arises: How
feasible it could have been to find a middle ground with someone like Jobs who was strongly
opinionated and operated on a concrete ground of (his own) logic. It is doubted what would take
to make even a tiny bit of shift in his mindset, considering the pattern of practice which tells that
33
The allied position between the Board and Sculley at first made it possible to claim that Sculley had orchestrated
the dismissal of Jobs, but it also gives a ground to Sculley’s later counterargument that it was the Board that ousted
him.
34
See Walter Isaacson, Steve Jobs (New York: Simon & Schuster, Inc., 2011); Danny Boyle, Steve Jobs (Film)
(Universal Pictures, 2015); Joshua Michael Stern, Jobs (Film) (Open Road Films, 2013); and Lane, supra note 5.
35
C. Aiken, D. Galper& S. Keller, "Winning Hearts and Minds: The Secrets of Sustaining Change" (2011), online:
McKinsey & Company <www.mckinsey.com/app_media/reports/financial_services/mcklean_winning.pdf>.

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most change initiatives in Apple had become successful when people adapted to Jobs' way of
doing things, not the other way around.
Sculley and Jobs, they were probably attracted to the minds of each other in the first place,
but until the passing of Steve Jobs, they had apparently failed to win the hearts of the other.
CONCLUSION: MOONSHOT
This case is the event of the time passed; the past we cannot change, which just leaves a
lot of ‘could have been’ and ‘would have been.’ The only way that the outcome, in regard to Jobs’
dismissal, could have been different might be that either one of the two had decided to follow
the other’s lead in that particular time of change, as it appears that the compromise of their
conflicting views was not possible at the time. However, how probable could this scenario have
been, given the characters of the two, in addition to the relatively horizontal positions that they
had held in the organization, unless the situation had taken place in another phase of their lives?
There must be various factors that had made the difference in Sculley’s change leadership
at Pepsi and Apple. Counting their different corporate cultures as one of them, it could also be
assumed, within the scope of available information, that at Pepsi, Sculley might not have been
challenged by as a charismatic and yet ‘butt-headed’ counterpart like Jobs when he was managing
a number of change initiatives in terms of marketing, who was, on the other hand, irreplaceable
in exploring the market of unfamiliar products while at Apple. Although the radical decision of
ousting Jobs had been dramatized as a grand finale, it was in fact one little part, just on the top
executive level, of the implementation process in ultimately changing Apple’s marketing
directions for more revenues and better cash flow, which had vertically had to reach the change
followers far down the organizational hierarchy.

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Speaking thus of a broader spectrum, the concept of marketing, as mentioned above, was
not settled as a common practice of business in the personal computer market when Sculley took
the lead in Apple. Therefore, the environment of his playing field might not have been
comparable to that of the food and beverage market, and consequently any stunt of his proven
marketing strategies, in the absence of Jobs’ expertise of products to be sold, could have turned
out to be experimental. Years later when Jobs rejoined Apple, the conditions of this market
segment might have become much more mature, the external factor of which could have assisted
Jobs in excelling his renewed change leadership.
Changes are brought to reality through the cycle of action–observation-reflection, and
“any organizational change is preceded by personal change”; 36 namely, organizational and
personal changes have impacts on each other.37 All that was to say that without the years in the
wilderness between his dismissal from and return to Apple, Jobs would not have been the same
change leader remembered in people’s hearts today. The way Fortune's editor-at-large, Peter
Elkind, once described, the ‘new’ Jobs echoes this reflection: "[Jobs] had become a far better
leader, less of a go-to-hell aesthete who cared only about making beautiful objects…. Now he was
a go-to-hell aesthete who cared about making beautiful objects that made money."38
As Sculley has been stating through several interviews in more recent years, the lessons
learned the hard way at Apple and the subsequent contemplations, including his regrets about
the missed opportunities of communicating better with Jobs at the time, have indeed borne fruits
in his later business strategies and more importantly, shaped him to be a wiser change leader as
36
C.G. Worley & Y.H. Vick, “Leading and Managing Change,” 8:2 Graziadio Business Review (2005), online:
Pepperdine University <gbr.pepperdine.edu/2010/08/leading-and-managing-change/>.
37
See N. Boaz & E. A. Fox, “Change Leader, Change Thyself,” McKinsey Quarterly (March 2014) at 1-11.
38
“APPLE'S EVOLUTION: The Return of Jobs,” Time, online: Time
<content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1873486_1873491_1873461,00.html>.

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well. On a personal level, his experience of serving in Apple has made his career shift to high-
tech & software industry – the money mine of this era possible in the following paths of his
professional life, through which his area of expertise was indeed expanded and reinforced.
The title of his latest publication Moonshot, ‘the moment of change that just changes
everything,’39 suggests that he is a leader mindful of changes not only in the cycle of business but
on every front of life.40 While Sculley and Jobs failed to align their stances for the greater good
of Apple at some point in the past, they both are considered equally distinguished change leaders,
regardless of their wins and losses, who are modeled after by many business professionals. Only
their leadership styles vary.
Apparently, the clouds of the ‘Apple Challenge’ that had long been hanging over John
Sculley for nearly three decades have recently been clearing, and such freedom has probably
been enabling him to live a life of a leading actor in his own show.
“People need to learn how to fail fast, learn fast, and to always lean forward. People need to learn
that it is okay to make mistakes and to learn from them. If we don’t change this simple cultural principle,
people won’t take risks and they won’t try new things.”41
– John Sculley
39
Knowledge@Wharton, supra note 7.
40
See John Sculley, Moonshot!: Game-Changing Strategies to Build Billion-Dollar Businesses (New York:
ResettaBooks, 2014).
41
“Zenger Folkman Podcast Features Leadership Lessons from John Sculley, Former CEO of Apple and Pepsi,”
Business Wire (26 Oct. 2015), online: Snapp Conner PR,
<www.businesswire.com/news/home/20151026006121/en/Zenger-Folkman-Podcast-Features-Leadership-
Lessons-John>.

P a g e | 17
SELECTED REFERENCE
Primary Publication
Boaz, N. & Fox, E. A., “Change Leader, Change Thyself,” (March 2011) McKinsey Quarterly.
Hughes, R. L., Ginnett, R. C. & Curphy, G. J., Leadership: Enhancing the Lessons of Experience, 6th ed.,
(New York: McGraw-Hill Irwin, 2009).
Kouzes, J. & Posner, B., The Leadership Challenge, 5th ed., (San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2012).
.
Pietersen, W. G., “Strategy in Search of a Method,” (March 2005) Columbia Insights for Executives.
On-line Media & Other Sources
Aiken, C., Galper, D., & Keller, S., “Winning Hearts and Minds: The Secrets of Sustaining Change.”
(2011) McKinsey & Company www.mckinsey.com
Lane, R., “John Sculley Just Gave His Most Detailed Account Ever Of How Steve Jobs Got Fired From
Apple,” (09 Sept. 2013) Forbes www.forbes.com
Mceleny, C., “Former Apple CEO John Sculley on Steve Jobs, noble causes and creating the Pepsi
Challenge,” (27 May 2015) Marketing Magazine www.marketingmagazine.co.uk
Worley, C.G. & Vick, Y.H., “Leading and Managing Change,” (2005) 8:2 Graziadio Business Review
gbr.pepperdine.edu
Panmore Institute panmore.com
The Wharton School knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu
Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John Sculley
Secondary Reference
Sculley, J., Moonshot!: Game-Changing Strategies to Build Billion-Dollar Businesses (New York:
ResettaBooks, 2014).
Isaacson, W., Steve Jobs (New York: Simon & Schuster, Inc., 2011).

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