Tim Cook is stepping down after 11 consequential years as CEO of Apple, one of the most innovative companies in the world. Following founder and visionary creator Steve Jobs, Cook was the right person for the job as Apple organized and consolidated Jobs’s brilliant insights in product development, then scaled them — and the company — across the globe.

Born in a small town in Alabama, Cook attended Auburn University and Duke University. He worked at IBM before being recruited by Jobs to join Apple in Silicon Valley, where he put his operational talents to work. As CEO, under Cook’s leadership, Apple became the most valuable publicly traded company in the world, growing into a multi-trillion-dollar enterprise while expanding its services revenue stream. Under his leadership, functionality was enhanced across Apple products, the integrity of its ecosystem was maintained, and multiple manufacturing bases were added to its supply chain. Along the way, Apple became an economic powerhouse.

Tim Cook will continue to impact the company as executive chairman. John Ternus will become the new CEO.