The World’s Most Admired Companies: Built for brilliance

The most important trend in the World's Most Admired Companies ranking isn't the concentration of tech firms at the top, striking though that is. The list holds an even larger and more powerful pattern: Seven of those top 10 companies are one-man phenomena. Apple, Google, Amazon, Starbucks, Southwest Airlines, Berkshire Hathaway, FedEx -- each is the reflection of a single individual (or two, at Google) who is still around, with the notable exception of Apple's Steve Jobs, gone less than 18 months.