Three Tidbits About Steve Jobs’ Return to Apple

Steve Jobs, widely regarded as the brains behind Apple and oddly a one-time Apple reject, is back in business.  That's the news from late June, as Jobs' five-and-a-half-month-long medical leave to recover from a liver transplant drew to an end.  Considering Jobs was treated for pancreatic cancer in 2004, it's nothing less than amazing that he's back at work – but what exactly does a return to the office mean for one of the world's highest-profile business chiefs?  Let's take a look.

1.  Apple might have missed him, but the bottom line didn't. Steve Jobs is actually returning to a stronger company.  While he was gone, Apple was left in the capable hands of Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook, who oversaw a 67 percent rise in Apple's stock price.  With a performance like that, Jobs won't exactly have too much trouble justifying a vacation any time soon.  If you could by stock in corporate executives, it might be a good time to invest in Tim Cook, who kept in charge of things during some busy weeks at Apple, including the release of the new iPhone.

2.  The Palm Pre might be priority #1. Palm released the Palm Pre while Jobs was gone - excellent timing, no doubt - and even though Apple has been performing well, it's needless to say that the new Palm Pre is a thorn in Apple's side.  Steve Jobs wants to see Apple dominate the personal gadgetry market, and Palm's release of the Pre does represent a serious threat to the dominance of the iPhone.  iPhone users can expect to see even more innovation in the future, the result of work that may be starting as we speak.

3.  Jobs is still working at Apple just a few days a week. Even with Jobs' return, he isn't around the Apple offices on a totally regular basis.  And even though COO Tim Cook's performance has been strong, that doesn't necessarily mean there aren't some concerns for Apple to work through, including a slight decrease in Apple's share of the computer market, not to mention the rise of the aforementioned Palm competitor.