Eric Schmidt: Steve Jobs was the best CEO of the past century

When Steve Jobs resigned from his title of CEO at Apple, the internet mourned.

But it also rallied, celebrating his many amazing accomplishments. The company's stock didn't plunge, as many said it would over the past few years, largely because he built such a strong foundation that his successor, Tim Cook, would have difficulty messing it up.

Myriad positive sentiments have been express regarding Steves, now Apple's chairman, but none so grand as that of Google chairman Eric Schmidt's. In a conversation with Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff, Eric said, "Steve Jobs gave the best performance by a CEO in 50 years, maybe 100 years. He not only built Apple once, but twice." Apple has rivalled Exxon as the world's most valuable company, and its phenomonel iPhone and iPad sales—as well as surging Macbook sales—have been serious drivers in the mobile revolution.

Many will disagree with Eric's statement, but few can argue Steve is among the best of all time and Apple's imprint in modern history has plenty of room to further its visionary's legacy.