Though Apple’s products are popular now, a few years ago the company was perceived as being in a disastrous situation, Fred Anderson, Apple’s chief financial officer, said during a speech Thursday. He was the premiere speaker in a year-long series sponsored by the Business School’s High-Tech Club at the University of Michigan.
“People thought we were in a death spiral — they didn’t think we’d make it,” Anderson said. In his speech he helped explain how a company can reinvent itself and turn profits around, despite pessimistic predictions from experts, the Michigan Daily reports.
“Apple’s an innovator, and we refused to mortgage our future,” Anderson said. He cites the Power Mac G5, Mac OS X 10.3 (“Panther”) and iPods as examples of Apple’s continuing innovation, according to the Michigan Daily.
The chief financial officer seems pretty busy with speaking engagements these days. Anderson will speak at the Lehman Brothers 2003 Semiconductor and Computer Systems Conference on Wednesday, Nov. 19 at 3 p.m. (Pacific). Anderson’s presentation will be audio Webcast.