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Apple Design : Jonathan Ive

Jonathan Ive’s creative mind first began developing in Chingford, Essex where he grew up. Ive spent the beginning stages of his career at Newcastle Polytechnic (now Northumbria University) where he began studying Industrial Design. However, he only worked at London company Tangerine for a brief period until he realized that his creative potential was not being fully utilized. In 1992, Ive made both a brave and smart move to travel across seas to the United States to join one of Tangerine’s clients: Apple Inc. Little did he know at the time that this decision was monumental to his development and growth in his field of work.

Although it took Jonathan awhile to realize this because when he first joined Apple, they were experiencing a very unprofitable period. Executive leader Steve Jobs was released from the company. In addition, Microsoft was the leader in computer operating systems at the time and Apple was not putting up a good fight due to the rift in the Apple team.

It was not until 1997, when Steve Jobs returned to the Apple team did things start to really pick up for both the company and Jonathan. He was given a promotion to Senior Vice President of Industrial Design, which enabled his creative juices to finally break past the surface. His very first innovative design was the iMac G3 that “is regarded as the birth of the ‘new-Apple’ and brought Jonathan Ive to the attention of the world.” (1)


Soon after the iMac G3 came the iBook, PowerBook, and other Apple products that began to take over the technology field. Jonathan’s brilliant design ideas continue to influence every Apple product there is.

Not only is Jonathan Ive extremely talented and an expert at industrial design, but Ive is known for his great people skills and praises all his Apple team members. He makes a point to recognize the necessity of collaborative work as a group of minds is always more beneficial than just one.

Ive’s team works together in a large open studio in San Francisco where personal space is far from private. However, the environment helps to stimulate group interaction and a constant flow of ideas. The more ideas you have going on at a time, the greater the chances are you are to stumble upon the world’s masterwork. "One of the hallmarks of the team I think is this sense of looking to be wrong," said Jonathan Ive. "It's the inquisitiveness, the sense of exploration. It's about being excited to be wrong because then you've discovered something new." (2) One of the things that makes the Apple team so strong is that they are not just a bunch of stylists looking to have other people create their work for them. “They're leading innovators in the use of new materials and production processes.” (3)

1. http://www.jonathanive.com/

2. http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_39/b4002414.htm

3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Ive