📩 How One Email from Steve Jobs Became a Classic Example of Business Toughness
In 2005, Steve Jobs sent an email to Adobe CEO Bruce Chizen – a message still quoted in business circles today. The reason? Adobe had started poaching employees from Apple.
The email was short, but razor-sharp:
“Bruce, Adobe is hiring people out of Apple. They’ve already hired one and are calling others. We have a policy – we don’t hire from Adobe. Seems like you have a different one. One of us needs to change. Let me know who.”
No emotions, no threats, no fluff. Just facts – and a polite but firm ultimatum.
Chizen tried to explain that the agreement applied only to senior executives. Jobs replied with cutting irony:
“Okay. Then I’ll tell our recruiters they’re free to approach anyone at Adobe below the level of senior director. Did I get your position right?”
Adobe backed down – both companies agreed on a full no-poaching policy.
The letter is a brilliant example of how a few well-chosen sentences can convey a firm stance. But was it ethical? That’s debatable: the exchange resurfaced years later during an antitrust investigation.
The letter is a brilliant example of how a few well-chosen sentences can convey a firm stance. But was it ethical? That’s debatable: the exchange resurfaced years later during an antitrust investigation
🍏 Still, Jobs’ email remains a classic reminder: sometimes, a few precise words can do more than weeks of negotiation
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