Visual Finance shows Steven Appleton's legacy at Micron
Posted by Robin Helweg-Larsen on Tue, Feb 14, 2012 @ 01:01 PM
The death of Micron CEO Steven Appleton this month comes at a time of difficulty and change for the company - but difficulty and change has been the norm for Micron and for the entire semiconductor industry for decades. Mr. Appleton was remarkable for his survival skills in several areas of high risk - he knew the risks and relished them.
As the Wall Street Journal reported:
Mr. Appleton was a stunt-plane flier who had survived a previous crash and also raced motorcycles, cars and off-road vehicles. He cut a maverick figure in the industry, guiding Micron through a turbulent battle against much larger Asian competitors in the boom-and-bust market for memory chips.
Micron is the last remaining U.S. competitor in an industry that American companies once dominated, showing a knack for endurance that earned Mr. Appleton the semiconductor industry's highest award in November.
Mr. Appleton's legacy is a company that posted a profit in its last Annual Report. In the semiconductor industry, that is always an accomplishment in itself.
Here are Micron's 2011 Financial Statements in Visual Finance view.
Andromeda Training has provided Income/Outcome business acumen training to managers at Micron for many years. We share their sense of loss, and wish them well in the future.
Robin Helweg-Larsen, President, Andromeda Training, Inc.