Though stories of the early days of Apple tend to revolve around the two Steves (Jobs and Wozniak), Apple's first CEO was actually Michael Scott, chosen by Mark Markkula, Apple's first backer.
In an interview with Scott, Business Insider teased out some intimate details of the Apple that once was. According to Scott, plenty has changed to then, but some things-- including the infamously hotheaded Apple guru Steve Jobs--have stayed pretty much the same.
Scott recalls that in those busy first days, "Jobs did the talking, and Woz was the quiet one." Jobs' garrulousness, however, did not translate into a friendly managerial style. In fact, though Scott doesn't get into the already public details of Jobs' famous temper, it seems that Jobs has always been quick-tempered.
"I don't know how much he's changed being a manager, but he would not, for instance… he was never allowed to have much of a staff while he was there because he would not supervise them," said Scott. "He wouldn't make sure they got their reviews on time or that they got their raises, or that they got the health they need. You have to take care of the people as well as the product. As they say he yells at people, at times you have to yell, but at times you have to be supportive too, and I would say that that's still what makes Steve, Steve."
Scott also describes the extent of Jobs' competitive nature.
"If we were negotiating price for parts, we could negotiate a price with a vendor and at the last minute, Steve would come in and bang on the table and demand to get one more penny off. And of course they would give him one more penny off. Then he'd crow 'Well I see you didn't do as good a job as you could've getting the price down.'"
Still, Scott concludes that for all his faults, "Steve just wants to be Steve."
"Steve's never shy about telling you what he wants and where he stands," he said. "He's very straightforward to deal with. Unlike other people that don't tell you what they mean. If you're a politician versus a businessman, that attitude can have its ups and downs."