????隨著蘋果公司（Apple）飽受病痛折磨的首席執行官史蒂夫?喬布斯辭職，他的繼任者和多年的合作伙伴蒂姆?庫克將受到前所未有的考驗。

????今年1月，喬布斯宣布因病短暫離崗。此后，作為蘋果公司首席運營官的庫克就一直負責公司的日常運營。此前也曾經出現過兩次類似的情況，當喬布斯因健康問題離崗之際，庫克都曾從他手里接過管理大權。

????和喬布斯一樣，庫克也是個要求嚴格的管理者和處處苛求的老板，一個執著于最微小細節的完美主義者。但是他和喬布斯的相似之處也僅限于此了。喬布斯是魅力超凡的領導人，脾氣火爆，庫克則在阿拉巴馬州的小鎮上長大，言語溫和，舉止保守，極度沉迷于自己的世界。喬布斯運用自己的創造性天才和眼光構想并設計出一款款一鳴驚人的產品，如iMac，iPhone和iPad時，而庫克則專注于運用自己非凡的運營技巧確保蘋果公司能生產出成千上萬臺的產品并將它們運往世界各地，滿足消費者似乎永難饜足的需求。

喬布斯背后的天才

????這兩個人優勢互補，共同推動蘋果公司成就了美國歷史上最為非凡的大逆轉之一。

????蘋果的董事之一，阿特?列文森，也是基因泰克公司（Genentech）的董事長，在一份新聞稿中代表蘋果公司董事會發言，表達了對庫克的信心。他說：“董事會充分相信，蒂姆是我們下一任首席執行官的合適人選。”他還表示，喬布斯擔任董事會主席后，“將繼續以他獨到的洞察力、創造性和激發眾人靈感的能力為蘋果公司效力。”

????不過，喬布斯的辭職出人意料，人們不禁再次紛紛猜測他的健康狀況。在其辭職信中，喬布斯寫道：“我常說，如果有那么一天，我無法再勝任蘋果CEO，無法再達到大家的期望值，我會在第一時間告訴你們。不幸的是，這一天到來了。”

????從2004年開始，喬布斯就一直在和胰腺癌作斗爭，兩年前，他做了肝移植手術。他對自己的健康狀況始終三緘其口，而蘋果公司的一位發言人也拒絕就此發表看法。

????從目前各方意見看，年屆50的庫克在喬布斯離開期間非常成功地領導著蘋果公司。但是，一旦他長期擔任首席執行官，庫克將必須證明，即便喬布斯不在身邊，他也能干得一樣出色。

????不過，這種考驗或許并非迫在眉睫。盡管投資者可能對喬布斯的辭職感到震驚，蘋果公司卻憑借iPhone，iPad等熱門產品以及麥金塔電腦（Macintosh）的復興連續多年保持著高速增長，業績驚人。這種局面不可能一夜之間戛然而止。

????With the resignation of Steve Jobs, Apple's ailing chief executive, his successor and collaborator of many years, Tim Cook, will be tested like never before.

????Cook, who was Apple's chief operating officer, has been running day-to-day operations since January, when Jobs announced that he was taking a medical leave. And twice before, Cook had taken the reins from Jobs, as Apple's founder stepped aside to focus on his health.

????Like Jobs, Cook is a relentless executive and exacting boss, a perfectionist who obsesses over minute details. But the similarities between the two men end there. While Jobs is a charismatic leader known for outbursts of temper, Cook, who was raised in a small town in Alabama, is soft-spoken, reserved and intensely private. And as Jobs used his creative genius and vision to conceive and design blockbuster products like the iMac, iPhone and iPad, Cook's considerable operational skills were focused on making sure that Apple could build millions of those products and deliver them to every corner of the world to meet customers' seemingly insatiable demand.

The genius behind Steve

????Their complementary skills, helped Apple (AAPL) engineer one of the most remarkable turnarounds in American history.

????In a news release, Apple director Art Levinson, the chairman of Genentech, speaking on behalf of Apple's board, expressed confidence in Cook. "The Board has complete confidence that Tim is the right person to be our next CEO," Levinson said. And he said that in his new role as chairman, Jobs "will continue to serve Apple with his unique insights, creativity and inspiration."

????Still, the unexpected resignation of Jobs is raising new questions about his health. In his resignation letter, Jobs said: "I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple's C.E.O., I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come."

????Jobs, who has battled pancreatic cancer since 2004 and underwent a liver transplant two years ago, did not discuss his health, and an Apple spokesman declined to comment.

????By all accounts, Cook , who is 50, has done an admirable job of steering Apple in Jobs's absence. But as he assumes the CEO role on a more permanent basis, Cook will have to prove that he can succeed without Jobs at his side.

????The test, however, is not likely to come immediately. While investors may be spooked by Jobs's resignation, the company has been on a remarkable, multi-year streak, built on the success of the iPhone and iPad and the resurgence of the Macintosh. That's not likely to end overnight.