By Grace Chng

DL says SUCCESSION management in large companies is a huge challenge.

Not least because even handpicked successors may not do well. Like Kevin Rollins, formerly of Dell Computer.

When company founder Michael Dell decided to occupy the chairman's seat, he promoted Kevin who was his No. 2 to CEO.

Unfortunately, under Kevin's watch the company failed to retain its status as the No. 1 PC maker. He resigned after three years and Michael took over the reins again in January last year.

Which leads me to the hottest succession gossip in tech spheres in the last two weeks: Who will succeed Apple's chief executive Steve Jobs?

It's almost sacrilegious to ask this question but what prompted the inquiry was a stick-thin Steve Jobs who spoke at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) about two weeks ago.

It was shocking to see an emaciated Steve, so thin that his collar bones were sticking out of his trademark black turtleneck shirt. Saying that he has lost weight, since I last saw him less than six months ago at Macworld in January, is probably an understatement.

Uneasiness about his health arises because he had a rare form of pancreatic cancer in 2003. He recovered after an operation.

A gaunt Steve reignites talk of his cancer returning. As a high profile CEO of a major tech company, his health is always on the public radar. After all, his publicly traded company has a market capitalisation of about US$160 billion (S$S219.2 billion) in revenue and employs over 20,000 people worldwide.

Like many others, I'm wondering: What happens if he leaves Apple - or this world? Will Apple continue to bring out hits that started with the iMac computers and continued with the iPod, iTunes and now the iPhone?

Apple Asia had no comment except to say unofficially that he is healthy and still on his vegan diet. In news reports, however, Apple headquarters said Steve was recovering from the flu during WWDC.

Any ill person has a right to privacy. But Steve and Apple are so closely intertwined that if the man leaves the company, its stock will certainly be hit.

So who can helm Apple and repeat its success?

To be sure, Steve has trusted key aides who will be able to run Apple in his absence. There is Tim Cook, Apple's chief operating officer, who manages operations and who was responsible for reducing inventory from days to months. He also stood in as CEO when Steve was recuperating from his surgery.

Then there is senior vice-president Phil Schiller who runs marketing. He usually has a spot on the stage during major events like Macworld and WWDC.

In recent days, Scott Forstall, senior vice-president of iPhone Software has seen his name being thrown up by the blogosphere as someone who is a possible successor. Two weeks ago, he took centre stage at WWDC when he introduced several companies that were developing third-party applications for the iPhone 3G.

But - and it is a big but - can any of these executives or anyone else internally or externally pick winning products?

It is Steve's knack as product picker - a Silicon Valley term to identify the key product person in start-ups - that will be hard to replace.

As the product czar, he has been able to sniff out the technologies to bring iconic gizmos to market. He has been able to push through the product ideas to different parts of the organisation, such as engineering and manufacturing, without the ideas being compromised or watered down.

In the just released book, Inside Steve's Brain, author Leander Kahney describes Steve's obsession with excellence as the secret of Apple's great design and products that resonate with users.

The man, it seems, is a stickler for detail. For each new product, he demands endless numbers of mock-ups and prototypes, editing and revising each round before any device makes it out of the door.

Leander said it is the "unprecedented attention to detail that ensures that Apple turns out products with a fit and finish worthy of an artisan".

So it is worrying if Steve is ill again. No one has had an influence that spans the tech, entertainment and communication industries as he has.

Let's hope that he really had the flu.

chngkeg@sph.com.sg

This article was first published in The Straits Times, Digital Life on June 24, 2008.