Tim Cook: Leading the Apple empire

Before Tim Cook was the CEO of one of the biggest tech companies in the world, he was just another notable alum from Duke University's Fuqua School of Business. Cook, an Alabama native, spent the early part of his career at IBM, where he moved up the ranks to become the computer corporation's North American Fulfillment director. After pit stops at Intelligent Electronics and Compaq, Cook touched down at Apple in 1998. As COO, Cook raised was a big part of raising profits and later became CEO after the unfortunate death of Steve Jobs. One of his biggest acquisitions during his time as CEO was Beats Electronics, which Apple purchased for $3 billion. Cook, one of the world's highest-paid CEOs, presently presides over a roughly $500 billion company in Apple.