Wow. Big deal indeed.
Forstall was rumoured to be jockeying for position as Cook's successor, and as head of iOS development, his work plays a vital role in about 75% of Apple's revenues. I would think it would take more than just Apple Maps to topple his career. Maybe he was letting ambition get in the way of performance?
Browett was taking a lot of heat for trying to cut costs (less staff, more product space) at Apple stores when the previous focus on customer service seemed to be working really well for Apple retail. Lots of accusations that he was pushing Apple retail to emulate Dixons, where he used to serve as CEO.
Ive rarely speaks publicly, but he did seem to have derision for some of the UI design going on at Apple. Looks like he has the chance to put his money where his mouth is.
The biggest promotion here is Federighi. He's only been in charge of Mac software for 18 months (enough time to bear full responsibility for Mountain Lion, which has been received quite favourably), and now he's in charge of all of Apple's most valuable software. He's an old veteran from NeXT, but... no pressure!
"The worst part about these reviews is they are [subjective]--and their scores often depend on how drunk you got the media at a Street Fighter event." — Mona Hamilton, Capcom Senior VP of Marketing
*Image indefinitely borrowed from BrainBoxLtd without his consent.
