Apple executive shakeup: Scott Forstall and John Browett are leaving the company

Huge news out of Apple today, as the company's senior vice president of iOS software, Scott Forstall, will leave the company next year. Furthermore, John Browett -- head of Apple retail -- is also on his way out. The news was delivered late today, on a day that is littered with other news that the company may hope will bury the shakeups. It's practically a given that Forstall is taking the brunt of the impact from its decision to forge ahead with an obviously subpar Maps application, all while trumpeting it as one of the pillars of iOS 6.

As the shakeup unfolds, Jony Ive, Bob Mansfield, Eddy Cue and Craig Federighi will add more responsibilities to their roles. In other words, Tim Cook isn't about to usher in new help who may thwart the company's efforts to continue its breakneck pace. Curiously, Mansfield will be heaping more on his own plate just months after he had originally planned to retire. As for Ive? He'll be responsible for providing "leadership and direction for Human Interface (HI) across the company in addition to his role as the leader of Industrial Design." Eddy Cue will be gifted burdened with Siri and Maps, while also keeping an eye on the iTunes Store, the App Store, the iBookstore and iCloud. Needless to say, he probably won't be seeing too many walls outside of Cupertino for the foreseeable future. Federighi is being tasked to lead by iOS and OS X, while Mansfield chairs a new Technologies group that bundles Apple's wireless teams across the company.

http://www.engadget.com/2012/10/29/apple-executive-shakeup-scott-forstall-and-john-browett-out/

Apple is doomed.

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!