Steve Jobs taught Gap’s former CEO that micromanaging can be a good thing

But some greats in business have shown that micromanagement can lead to great success. Take Steve Jobs, for example. The former Apple CEO, who died in 2011 of pancreatic cancer, is still revered as one of the greatest leaders in business history, but he’s also among the most famous micromanagers.

“He is a corporate dictator who makes every critical decision — and many seemingly uncritical calls, too, from the design of the shuttles that transport employees to and from San Francisco to the type of food that will be served in the cafeteria,” Adam Lashinsky wrote in an article. luck An article about Jobs was published about a month before his death.

But Jobs and other business leaders have shown micromanagement has a bad reputation. In an episode of Open the bid Podcast with Yahoo finance Executive Editor Brian Suozzi Former Gap CEO Mickey Drexler provided justification for this management practice, saying it was one of his top leadership pieces of advice from working with Jobs on Apple’s board.

Jobs was “unique, once-in-a-lifetime, and… [his death] “It’s a loss for America,” Drexler said. “He was a difficult, moody, incredibly creative person who made sure the screws on all the products were horizontal.” Jobs also supported a “no-messing policy” or hiring people who In reality Knows how to manage others and get results.

“Micromanagement is what it is. If you manage like a leader, set the tone. I pride myself on being a micromanager of what the customer sees, feels and hears,” said Drexler, who also previously served as CEO of J. Crew and currently serves as chairman of Alex Mill. “So yeah, I micromanage, but [also] Provide leadership. People know what’s important.”

Drexler, the merchandising mastermind, also previously worked at Ann Taylor, Bloomingdale’s and Macy’s, and served on Apple’s board of directors from 1999 to 2015.

When Drexler first began serving on Apple’s board, GAP was worth $15 billion, larger than Apple at the time.

Apple is now a $4 trillion behemoth, and Jobs’ fingerprints are still visible on its devices. Much of Jobs’ success was about bringing products to market that customers didn’t even know they wanted.

“Some people say: Give the customers what they want.” “But that’s not my approach,” Jobs once said. “Our job is to know what they want before they do it.”

On a slightly different note, Drexler is more focused on responding to customer concerns while also planning for the future.

“I think the world has become somewhat mediocre in its standards,” Drexler said. “But average isn’t good enough for me. It is [about] Managing customer expectations and what they should get: Best in class. Don’t give the customer a reason not to buy something.

While Drexler said he learned from Jobs, he stayed true to his leadership style.

“I wasn’t taught to be so demanding [from Jobs]”That’s what I’ve always been: a tough boss,” Drexler said.

A version of this story appeared on Fortune.com on December 9, 2024.