Embrace Secrecy

“Inside Apple” Second Chapter – Embrace Secrecy.

Apple employees know something big is afoot when the carpenters appear in their office building. New walls are quickly erected. Doors are added, windows that once were transparent are now frosted. What’s more, your badge which got you into particular areas before the new construction no longer works there. End of Story

Secrecy takes two basic forms at Apple –external and internal

Internal Secrecy
Internal secrecy as those evidenced by mysterious wall and off limits areas. Unlike Google’s famously named “Googleplex” where a visitor can roam the inner courtyards and slip into an open door as employees come and go, Apple’s buildings are airtight. Yet the link between secrecy and productivity is another way Apple challenges long held management truths and notion of transparency as a corporate virtue. For new recruits, the secret keeping begins even before they learn which of these buildings they’ll be working in. Employees are hired in so called dummy positions, roles that aren’t explained in detail until after they join the company.

Reason why Apple embraces internal secrecy
Teams are purposely kept apart, sometimes because they are unknowingly competing against one another, but more often it is the Apple way to mind one’s own business. Like a horse fitted with blinders, the Apple employee charges forward to the exclusion of the rest. Apple employees and their projects are pieces of puzzle. The snapshot of the complete puzzle is known only at the highest reaches of the organization

External Secrecy
The obvious kind of secrecy that Apple uses a way of keeping its products and practices hidden from competitors and the rest of the outside world

Reasons why Apple embraces external secrecy

To create Anticipation
The aversion to pre-release publicity is a constant tradition at Apple. They believe releasing details ahead of time would dampen the anticipation. The rationale is that when apple launches a product, if it’s been a secret up until the launch, the amount of press, coverage and buzz is hugely valuable to the company.

Existing products are not cannibalized
If a consumer knows exactly what’s coming, they may hold off on a purchase for fear it will be superseded by the next generation. This may lead to dulling of demand for the products already awaiting purchase in retail shelves or warehouses worthless.

Competitors don’t get time to respond
Announcing products before they are ready gives the competition time to respond, it raises customer expectation, and critics start bashing an Idea than an actual product.

It will be interesting to see in the coming years if Apple is able to hold on to the trait of embracing secrecy with Tim Cook on board as the CEO.