Timothy Donald "Tim" Cook (born November 1, 1960) is an American business executive, and is the CEO of Apple Inc. Cook joined Apple in March 1998 as Senior Vice President (SVP) of Worldwide Operations he also served as Executive Vice President (EVP) of Worldwide Sales and Operations and was Chief Operating Officer (COO) until he was named the CEO of Apple on August 24, 2011, when he succeeded Steve Jobs. (Cook had previously served as acting CEO of Apple after Jobs began medical leave in January 2011.) In early 2012, he was awarded compensation of one million shares, vesting in 2016 and 2021, by Apple's Board of Directors