Big shakeup at Apple

Apple announced that Chief Operating Officer Jeff Williams will retire at the end of the year, as the company faces challenges with its business and leadership.

Jeff Williams talks to customers at an Apple Store in California in 2024. Photo: Bloomberg .

In an announcement on July 8, Apple said that Chief Operating Officer (COO) Jeff Williams will retire at the end of the year. This is a major change in the leadership at Apple, especially when the company is going through a period of turmoil like the current one.

Williams will step down as COO in July before retiring at the end of the year. He will still oversee the design and health division. Sabih Khan will replace Williams as COO, while Apple's design division is expected to report directly to CEO Tim Cook.

Jeff Williams' Achievements

Williams, 62, was once considered a possible successor to Tim Cook because of his title and similarities. However, the relatively short age gap (2 years) and Williams' desire to retire early caused Apple to change its plans.

Currently, Vice President of Hardware Engineering John Ternus is considered the most likely candidate to take over the CEO position after Cook retires, according to Bloomberg sources.

“He’s clearly not seen as a replacement for Tim Cook. He’s close to Tim’s age, so (it) doesn’t make much sense. The operations team at Apple will really miss Jeff,” Bob Mansfield, Apple’s former head of hardware engineering, said of Williams.

Williams joined Apple in 1998 before becoming COO in 2015. Before that, he worked at IBM since the 1980s. At Apple, one of Williams' achievements was the ability to build a supply chain that could handle hundreds of millions of devices a year, able to source components from thousands of suppliers around the world .

For more than 10 years, Williams has been a close senior associate of Cook, overseeing supply chain operations, Apple Watch development, and AppleCare customer care. With many important decisions to make, Williams' departure is considered one of the major personnel changes at Apple.

“Jeff’s importance and contributions to Apple are immense, even if they are not always visible to the public. I am saddened as a shareholder that time has passed and the old leadership team has largely disintegrated,” said Tony Blevins, former vice president of purchasing at Apple.

Jeff Williams at the Apple WWDC 2025 conference. Photo: Bloomberg .

Apple's announcement did not specify who would take over Williams' remaining responsibilities, which include Apple Watch engineering and health technology.

Earlier this year, Apple moved some hardware projects like Vision Pro and robotics to Ternus, while the Siri voice assistant and visionOS software were assigned to Vice President of Software Engineering Craig Federighi.

“Jeff’s true legacy is the incredible teams he built. While he will be greatly missed, some of his future work has been handed over to some incredible people,” CEO Tim Cook said in a statement.

Challenges for the successor

Commenting on his successor, Mansfield said that it would be difficult to replace Williams because Sabih Khan had great influence throughout the company.

“Sabih is very much like Tim Cook. Jeff is a bit more product oriented, while Sabih is just an excellent operator, his management style can be similar to Tim’s,” said Matthew Moore, a former operations engineer at Apple.

Moore added that Khan had run the operations team at Apple, so things could run smoothly. But what was important was his ability to manage other departments previously overseen by Williams.

Khan, a 30-year veteran of Apple, joined the executive team in 2019 as head of supply chain management, including purchasing and manufacturing. His new role will face challenges ranging from tariffs to slowing iPhone sales.

Sabih Khan currently holds the position of Vice President of Operations at Apple. Photo: Apple .

According to Bloomberg , the change in leadership comes at a time when Apple's operations are facing many difficulties.

In recent months, Apple has shifted iPhone production from China to India to mitigate the impact of tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump. In the coming years, the company could make other changes, including moving more assembly operations out of China and adding robots and advanced technology to its manufacturing processes.

The new role means Khan will be involved in running more divisions, including the struggling AI division. Previously, a leader in the AI ​​model development team at Apple unexpectedly joined Meta.

Apple also faces legal challenges, including mandatory changes to the App Store in the EU and a lawsuit from the US Department of Justice over a $20 billion /year deal with Google. All of this comes amid a lack of innovation in Apple’s hardware products.

As COO, Williams often appears at events to talk about new products, including the Apple Watch and health. Khan is more private, but he will need to make more public appearances as COO.

Jeff Williams will leave his position as Apple COO in July. Photo: Bloomberg .

With this change, Apple is internally expecting Khan’s subordinate Priya Balasubramaniam to take on a larger role in supply chain management. Last year, Apple promoted Molly Anderson to Vice President of Hardware Design, reporting directly to Williams.

Williams' departure represents a change in Apple's leadership. Last year, CFO Luca Maestri stepped down to prepare for retirement. Dan Riccio, Apple's former head of hardware engineering, is retiring in 2024.

Phil Schiller, Vice President of Worldwide Marketing, also moved to a smaller position overseeing the App Store from 2020. A year earlier, “design wizard” Jony Ive left Apple to start his own company.

According to Bloomberg , most of Apple's senior executives are approaching retirement age, so a comprehensive change to the company's leadership has long been predicted by insiders.

Source: https://znews.vn/bien-dong-lon-tai-apple-post1567243.html