What do you think?
Rate this book
Odyssey: Pepsi to Apple : A Journey of Adventure, Ideas, and the Future
In discussing his transition from Pepsi's president and CEO to marketing visionary of Apple Computers, the author shares his insights into marketing and management strategies and forecasts future business trends
450 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1987
24 people are currently reading
1049 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
July 10, 2019
Everyone knows the story of Steve Jobs and how he built Apple computers with Wozniak. We all have time and again sympathised with him when he was thrown out of the company he himself created - Apple.
But not many people know the reason why he was thrown out of his own company and who was responsible for it. Ironically, it was the man whom Jobs hired himself after chasing him for a long time. Once a top CEO of America, John Sculley was once a name to be reckoned with. It is said that he single-handedly increased the market share of Pepsi in the Coca-Cola dominated market and turned it into a leading cola brand.
The book “Odyssey” is his complete journey from his earlier days in Pepsi to his final days in Apple.
The book is well written, very insightful and if you are not biased because of your love for Jobs then you will like this book. This book contains the Sculley’s side of the story and what leads him to turn his guards against Jobs and ask him to leave the company. He says that he admired Jobs for his brilliant mind and expletive personality but there were few personality flaws of his which just wouldn’t work in the corporate sector. His personal friendship and professional relationship with Jobs is what constitutes the majority of the chapters in the book.
There is no doubt about the talent of Jobs. Later in 90s, Apple called him back when Apple ship was sinking and he came back to lift it again and not only that, with the launch of iPod, iPhone and iPod, he turned it the most valued company in the world.
In the world where end defines the mean, we don’t care what was the inside story as far as our hero is getting successful. However, the truth is far from what we actually know.
Success hides the flaws in public eyes and failures bring it on the front page of newspapers.
Steve Jobs was not a very well-behaved man when he started Apple and the success of Apple which was a fluke initially which made him even more arrogant than he was. Luckily it was also his arrogance that was responsible for turning Apple into a Tech giant.
The arrogance is not something you will be usually advised to practice in your life —
Why?
Because it doesn’t work.
It used to work when there were fewer options but not anymore because now people have more options for everything compared to what they had in the 70s.
The book is, of course, Sculley’s version of what happened. After Jobs was thrown out, the media, along with Jobs, turned Sculley into a villain who according to them usurped the company and backstabbed the man who trusted him. After reading the book you will know that Sculley was not the Villain that media and Jobs made him to be, rather he did what was in his power and was a pragmatic decision at that time; he did what any CEO in his position would have done.
Yes, the book is written by Sculley himself but that should not be the reason for you to find bias in his version of events. The man needs to be heard, at least by young entrepreneurs to know the right from wrong and wrong from right. It is time that we get to know his side too. The book was written way back but wasn’t successful as people had always been more sympathetic and loving towards the enigmatic personality of Steve Jobs. After all who can deny that Jobs was a master salesman and a great brand strategist.
Sculley gives due credit to Jobs wherever he was good but at the same time, he also mentions that there are certain rules for doing business and while working one needs to have some consideration for their peers and employees feeling; like empathy, which Jobs was completely oblivious to.
He won’t care about the company’s investment methods and capabilities and board meetings and he wouldn’t care about his investors. He wouldn’t care about the products made by his own company like Daisy computers which was headed by a separate team, not by Jobs team who handled Macintosh division. The Mackintosh team would constantly mock the Daisy team. They would daily harass the Daisy team by telling them that their product is inferior to Mac, which was a really abhorrent behaviour by any employees in any company. Instead of condemning it, Jobs was actually the one who as promoting it.
When Jobs was hunting for CEOs for Apple; Apple was at its peak and was challenging head-on another Tech giant IBM, which had more than 80% of market share at that time. His hunt took him to Sculley, who was working as CEO at Pepsi and was a hotshot there for his strategies that turned around the Pepsi market and took a major share of Coca cola’s market in the US with his unapologetic and aggressive marketing and advertising methods.
If you remember the series of ads where a monkey is seen sitting on a table and has two covered bottles in front of him. He is asked to taste and chose one. The monkey chooses one bottle and enjoys it more than the other after tasting it. It turns out to be a Pepsi bottle while the other bottle, which the monkey didn’t enjoy was Coke. This kind of ad campaigning was against advertising ethics at that time but Sculley played with his guts and the campaign became a hit.
Sculley was a hot cake when Jobs went to him and offered him the job. Shifting from a giant company like Pepsi to another newbie company that deals with yet-growing computer technology seemed odd to him at first and he refused. It was then that Jobs looked Sculley in the eyes and came up with the now famous line which made him changed his mind —
“Do you want to sell sugar water for the rest of your life, or do you want to come with me and change the world?”.
The book is good to read for people who are not Apple fanatics because true Apple fans are like cult group members, they don’t listen to anything against Apple and Steve Jobs. For everyone else, this book is a wise read and a must read if you are curious to know the truth of the other side.
But not many people know the reason why he was thrown out of his own company and who was responsible for it. Ironically, it was the man whom Jobs hired himself after chasing him for a long time. Once a top CEO of America, John Sculley was once a name to be reckoned with. It is said that he single-handedly increased the market share of Pepsi in the Coca-Cola dominated market and turned it into a leading cola brand.
The book “Odyssey” is his complete journey from his earlier days in Pepsi to his final days in Apple.
The book is well written, very insightful and if you are not biased because of your love for Jobs then you will like this book. This book contains the Sculley’s side of the story and what leads him to turn his guards against Jobs and ask him to leave the company. He says that he admired Jobs for his brilliant mind and expletive personality but there were few personality flaws of his which just wouldn’t work in the corporate sector. His personal friendship and professional relationship with Jobs is what constitutes the majority of the chapters in the book.
There is no doubt about the talent of Jobs. Later in 90s, Apple called him back when Apple ship was sinking and he came back to lift it again and not only that, with the launch of iPod, iPhone and iPod, he turned it the most valued company in the world.
In the world where end defines the mean, we don’t care what was the inside story as far as our hero is getting successful. However, the truth is far from what we actually know.
Success hides the flaws in public eyes and failures bring it on the front page of newspapers.
Steve Jobs was not a very well-behaved man when he started Apple and the success of Apple which was a fluke initially which made him even more arrogant than he was. Luckily it was also his arrogance that was responsible for turning Apple into a Tech giant.
The arrogance is not something you will be usually advised to practice in your life —
Why?
Because it doesn’t work.
It used to work when there were fewer options but not anymore because now people have more options for everything compared to what they had in the 70s.
The book is, of course, Sculley’s version of what happened. After Jobs was thrown out, the media, along with Jobs, turned Sculley into a villain who according to them usurped the company and backstabbed the man who trusted him. After reading the book you will know that Sculley was not the Villain that media and Jobs made him to be, rather he did what was in his power and was a pragmatic decision at that time; he did what any CEO in his position would have done.
Yes, the book is written by Sculley himself but that should not be the reason for you to find bias in his version of events. The man needs to be heard, at least by young entrepreneurs to know the right from wrong and wrong from right. It is time that we get to know his side too. The book was written way back but wasn’t successful as people had always been more sympathetic and loving towards the enigmatic personality of Steve Jobs. After all who can deny that Jobs was a master salesman and a great brand strategist.
Sculley gives due credit to Jobs wherever he was good but at the same time, he also mentions that there are certain rules for doing business and while working one needs to have some consideration for their peers and employees feeling; like empathy, which Jobs was completely oblivious to.
He won’t care about the company’s investment methods and capabilities and board meetings and he wouldn’t care about his investors. He wouldn’t care about the products made by his own company like Daisy computers which was headed by a separate team, not by Jobs team who handled Macintosh division. The Mackintosh team would constantly mock the Daisy team. They would daily harass the Daisy team by telling them that their product is inferior to Mac, which was a really abhorrent behaviour by any employees in any company. Instead of condemning it, Jobs was actually the one who as promoting it.
When Jobs was hunting for CEOs for Apple; Apple was at its peak and was challenging head-on another Tech giant IBM, which had more than 80% of market share at that time. His hunt took him to Sculley, who was working as CEO at Pepsi and was a hotshot there for his strategies that turned around the Pepsi market and took a major share of Coca cola’s market in the US with his unapologetic and aggressive marketing and advertising methods.
If you remember the series of ads where a monkey is seen sitting on a table and has two covered bottles in front of him. He is asked to taste and chose one. The monkey chooses one bottle and enjoys it more than the other after tasting it. It turns out to be a Pepsi bottle while the other bottle, which the monkey didn’t enjoy was Coke. This kind of ad campaigning was against advertising ethics at that time but Sculley played with his guts and the campaign became a hit.
Sculley was a hot cake when Jobs went to him and offered him the job. Shifting from a giant company like Pepsi to another newbie company that deals with yet-growing computer technology seemed odd to him at first and he refused. It was then that Jobs looked Sculley in the eyes and came up with the now famous line which made him changed his mind —
“Do you want to sell sugar water for the rest of your life, or do you want to come with me and change the world?”.
The book is good to read for people who are not Apple fanatics because true Apple fans are like cult group members, they don’t listen to anything against Apple and Steve Jobs. For everyone else, this book is a wise read and a must read if you are curious to know the truth of the other side.
December 22, 2007
Forget all the ghastly "how to be a businessman" books blocking most bookshop shelves. Read this the true hands on autobiography of one of the most exciting and gifted young Americna business men to come along in many a long year
December 27, 2011
An interesting perspective from the other side of Steven Jobs. John Sculley was brought in by Steven Jobs, and then Sculley ended up firing him from the company. This book was written in 1987, so Sculley had not gone through his downfall yet. But an interedting look at the "other side of Apple. Many of his prophecies in the Epilogue have come to be.
August 17, 2022
La otra cara de la moneda de la historia de Apple, una pena que el libro termine justo antes de entrar en la época mala de Sculley :D
August 3, 2014
An idolized view of Steve Jobs. Great for those who want more insight into Apple in the mid-80s and a great first account of some of the problems that you will encounter in new technology markets.
July 7, 2018
This was remarkably enjoyable. What I liked about it was the detail and the way it's written. I mean, I'm sure a lot of the conversations and scenes in the book are somewhat made-up - ie the exact wording - but that's ok - I'm sure the gist is right - at least from Sculley's side.
All the Pepsi side of things is interesting background before the meat, being the Apple part.
I feel like there was much more detail in this than, say, the Jobs biography - for example the whole section on Jobs wooing Sculley to come join them. It goes on for many many detailed pages and it was somewhat surprising to hear that even after the famous "do you want to spend the rest of your life selling sugared water" line, he still said no, but knew in his heart it was a forgone conclusion.
It gets slightly boring about 2/3rds through when he's talking about the restructuring and using lots of bizspeak. But it picks up again thankfully.
The essays at the end of each chapter are fairly hit and miss - a bit too high-falutin'.
The epilogue is quite fascinating - talking about the future of the 90's and the next century - about information being readily accessible on an information highway etc amongst other things - most of which has come to pass. Well done Sculley. One interesting idea that hasn't happened (yet) is how the Knowledge Navigator (ie your web browser/device) doesn't reconfigure the information according to your existing knowledge and learning preferences. Still a worthy problem to tackle.
A recommended read, even 30 years later(!)
All the Pepsi side of things is interesting background before the meat, being the Apple part.
I feel like there was much more detail in this than, say, the Jobs biography - for example the whole section on Jobs wooing Sculley to come join them. It goes on for many many detailed pages and it was somewhat surprising to hear that even after the famous "do you want to spend the rest of your life selling sugared water" line, he still said no, but knew in his heart it was a forgone conclusion.
It gets slightly boring about 2/3rds through when he's talking about the restructuring and using lots of bizspeak. But it picks up again thankfully.
The essays at the end of each chapter are fairly hit and miss - a bit too high-falutin'.
The epilogue is quite fascinating - talking about the future of the 90's and the next century - about information being readily accessible on an information highway etc amongst other things - most of which has come to pass. Well done Sculley. One interesting idea that hasn't happened (yet) is how the Knowledge Navigator (ie your web browser/device) doesn't reconfigure the information according to your existing knowledge and learning preferences. Still a worthy problem to tackle.
A recommended read, even 30 years later(!)
September 21, 2020
Well written. I was interested in the events leading up to, during and after the Steve Jobs - John Sculley relationship, so I skimmed through the rest of the book after Jobs was no longer mentioned. But it provides a fair account of the scenario who may have a biased opinion.
February 16, 2022
Incredibly narrated by John Sculley. Super motivating! Such an honest, absorbing, and easy-to-understand account. Gives a great understanding of the corporate work atmosphere of the decade and the enriching history of Apple Inc.
April 8, 2018
I read a little over half of the book, then I dropped it. It wasn't that interesting.
August 18, 2019
Para entender el fenómeno Apple y el fenómeno Steve Jobs
November 27, 2021
For my review, please visit: http://the-agency-review.com/odyssey
December 29, 2013
Are you waiting to gear head your career once you get the opportunity?
Then this book is for you. It talks about seizing the moment.
I loved the way this book describes people who love their work. These people live their work. Eat it, breathe it. There are so many people in this world who work for the sake of it. They won't ever make a book. But the Pepsi and Apple teams are way apart.
I read the book to draw inspiration for my own work. It was nothing short on the promise. I see this book as it states 'A journey of Adventure, Ideas'. I don't agree with 'the Future' part though. Don't get me wrong. Steve and the peers did see a future and eventually made it true. But this book is not about that. It is John Sculley's book. It ends at Ideas.
John is frank when he appreciates people who inspires him. He is sincere when is detests them. This sincerity makes the book enjoyable and eventually a tad too long on musings and their reinterpretations.
The best part of the book: It shares insights into the symptoms of success and failure, lessons and analysis. Coming from someone who was CEO to Apple for over 10 years, it sure is worth its salt. The book intends to share insights into management. These practical tips are driven home by the way they are backed with how they fit into the entire structure of an organization, what ticked and what didn't.
The not so good part: It is after all, not a management book. It is a person's personal story. It has true emotions. That, while making the book's content for credible, at times taking one's thought to- I wish I knew the other side of the story as well, to thinking how the one who has the last laugh is termed as the winner, to trapping you in the intimate fight between intellect and emotions, leaves the reader, wishing it would just end. Consequently, I thought the last 100 pages could be removed and the book will still be the same.
Guess I too am getting drowned in my emotions and this indicates, here, this review should end.
Read it to taste the truth of corporate and it's cost........
Then this book is for you. It talks about seizing the moment.
I loved the way this book describes people who love their work. These people live their work. Eat it, breathe it. There are so many people in this world who work for the sake of it. They won't ever make a book. But the Pepsi and Apple teams are way apart.
I read the book to draw inspiration for my own work. It was nothing short on the promise. I see this book as it states 'A journey of Adventure, Ideas'. I don't agree with 'the Future' part though. Don't get me wrong. Steve and the peers did see a future and eventually made it true. But this book is not about that. It is John Sculley's book. It ends at Ideas.
John is frank when he appreciates people who inspires him. He is sincere when is detests them. This sincerity makes the book enjoyable and eventually a tad too long on musings and their reinterpretations.
The best part of the book: It shares insights into the symptoms of success and failure, lessons and analysis. Coming from someone who was CEO to Apple for over 10 years, it sure is worth its salt. The book intends to share insights into management. These practical tips are driven home by the way they are backed with how they fit into the entire structure of an organization, what ticked and what didn't.
The not so good part: It is after all, not a management book. It is a person's personal story. It has true emotions. That, while making the book's content for credible, at times taking one's thought to- I wish I knew the other side of the story as well, to thinking how the one who has the last laugh is termed as the winner, to trapping you in the intimate fight between intellect and emotions, leaves the reader, wishing it would just end. Consequently, I thought the last 100 pages could be removed and the book will still be the same.
Guess I too am getting drowned in my emotions and this indicates, here, this review should end.
Read it to taste the truth of corporate and it's cost........
August 8, 2016
This book came as a STRONG recommendation from a colleague who's much much senior to me. Fortunately he loaned me his (expensive) copy. Marketing narration is nice. Personal narration is blah. Techniques and tips - some of them hold true even in today's digital age. But some are a total bore! Sculley who moved away from Pepsi (cos apparently he didn't wanna sell sugar water all his life) takes us through a lot of how big companies are to be managed and his vision and mission. If you read this as a marketing text, you will not be too disappointed. Or even to know about early Apple. But if you read it to know what happened behind the scenes between Steve Jobs and Sculley, you would be still clueless. And yes, I would probably suggest my HR Director or my MD to read this book since he needs to know about how incentives and compensation packages matter :) You can consider removing a lot of "How to's" in marketing and business and give it some space on your bookshelf.
July 26, 2013
This book was published in 1987. I intentionally deprived myself from knowing what happened next to Sculley. I was really surprised I liked it as much as I did. I loved the bits about Apple's culture. I wanted a pre-naughts view of Jobs too. Sculley could break down how driven people really operate; the personal details were amazing. Jobs was sometimes such a complete asshole; I do not know what to make of him. Sculley's greatest success is bringing in philosophy to a book which could have been boring business. The way he writes about Alan Kay, Mike Markkula; the details... the memorable Kay quotes... the texture of Markkula's study and how his home looks like. Big bad CEOs are not that boring, after all. But man, Sculley must have worked half his life for 16+ hours!!
August 30, 2013
John Sculley joined Apple when it had become graveyard of computers. He had worked in Pepsi and the company had beaten sale record of coca cola.Steve Jobs had the talent to recognize a talent. He offered Sculley a blank cheque in salary and Sculley who was already top brass in Pepsi, accepted the challenge to rescue a drowning company. Rest I think is history. The departing note of Jobs is a verse of Gita for management students.
If real life stories would be so interesting who would read the fiction.
If real life stories would be so interesting who would read the fiction.
August 1, 2013
Sculley had some good ideas, but in hindsight, the direction wasn't right for Apple. The book has too much of a corporate mentality to it, even while Sculley claims that he's part of some new-fangled corporate idea. It was a fun read, especially to contrast his relationship with Jobs to what is portrayed in the Steve Jobs bio. Still, tedious at times, especially knowing how wrong Sculley was about the near-future of Apple.
August 7, 2007
Actually John Sculley's biography...but written in a nice interesting manner..a must read for B- school graduates
June 4, 2012
A candid account of how working in different industries can create challenges never thought of.
Want to read
February 14, 201429/11/2013 1 0f 20 books for $10 the lot. for L
May 10, 2016
The interesting part in the book was Sculley's narration about his life at Pepsi, work culture at Apple and his relationship with Jobs. I felt the last two chapters of the book were a real drag.
March 18, 2016
Rating: 6/10
August 3, 2016
BAck then John Sculley took Steve Jobs's place and that was the definition of success - two decades later that viewpoint would show it's historical limitations
April 17, 2019
Kommt, wie man so schön sagt, nicht so gut rüber. Für mich noch immer noch ne fiese Möpp und das, obwohl er sich für HyperCard stark gemacht hat und Julian Jaynes zu seinen Lieblingsbüchern zählt.
May 3, 2017
Must to read. Very well written.
The best line of the book is
Do you want to sell sugar water for the rest of your life, or do you want to come with me and change the world..
Enjoy reading it.
The best line of the book is
Do you want to sell sugar water for the rest of your life, or do you want to come with me and change the world..
Enjoy reading it.
Read
February 15, 2018A wonderful book with important marketing insights...
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews