Airbnb CEO says Steve Jobs taught him that obsessing over details isn’t about control—it’s about helping people think bigger and move faster. But Gen Z doesn’t agree

Airbnb cofounder and CEO Brian Chesky has an unusual take on one of work’s most hated leadership traits: micromanagement. Done right, he says, it can actually accelerate careers. And according to Chesky, Apple’s late cofounder Steve Jobs perfectly proves his point. 

“Steve Jobs is notorious for being [into] all the details; you could say he was a micromanager,” Chesky explained to CNBC. But after speaking to Jony Ive, who used to be Apple’s chief design officer, Chesky says that the negative label misses what was really happening.