Apple CEO Steve Jobs used the stock market holiday Monday to announce to employees that he is taking another medical leave of absence. Jobs, who had a liver transplant in 2009, did not disclose the reason for this absence.
“At my request, the board of directors has granted me a medical leave of absence so I can focus on my health. I will continue as CEO and be involved in major strategic decisions for the company,” Jobs said in his brief email to staffers. COO Tim Cook will handle day-to-day management, as he did when Jobs was out in 2009. Jobs concluded by saying that he and his family “would deeply appreciate respect for our privacy.”
Apple is due to report its Q4 and full year 2010 results on Tuesday (1/18). Wall Street analysts will be hoping for some more insight on what’s going on with Jobs – but they are likely to be disappointed. He and the company have a history of disclosing very little about his health issues or whether any succession planning has been done. The CEO beat pancreatic cancer in 2004 and came back from the liver transplant in 2009, so speculation is all over the board about why he is taking medical leave this time.
Jobs is also a director of The Walt Disney Company
Photo credit: Matthew Yohe
