“Apple’s first-ever vice president of diversity and inclusion, Denise Young Smith, is leaving Apple at the end of this year, TechCrunch has learned,” Megan Rose Dickey reports for TechCrunch.Young Smith, who has only been in the position since May of this year, previously served as Apple’s head of worldwide human resources for three years.”
“Taking over as VP of inclusion and diversity will be Christie Smith, who spent 17 years as a principal at Deloitte. In her career, Smith has focused on talent management, organizational design, inclusion, diversity and people solutions,” Dickey reports. “At Apple, she’ll report to Apple VP for People Deidre O’Brien, the company announced internally today.”
“Young Smith had been talking with Apple CEO Tim Cook about the next phase of her career and life since about a year ago, according to a source. Over the last few months, Apple has been searching for a successor to replace Young Smith,” Dickey reports. “It’s not quite clear, however, when exactly Young Smith decided she would leave Apple. But based on that timeline, it seems as though Young Smith made up her mind before those comments in Bogotá, Colombia [for which] she later apologized.”
MacDailyNews Take: Um, yeah, okay.
Color us cynical, but the timing is suspect. Starts in May. Makes “controversial” comment in October. Apologizes soon thereafter. Out before year end. Or, of course, it could all simply be coincidental.
Regardless of this particular case, we get the feeling there’s a whole lotta spinnin’ goin’ on nowadays from a whole lot of people and far-flung places. How about you?
“Young Smith’s planned departure from Apple comes shortly after Cornell Tech announced Young Smith would become an executive in residence starting this January.”
MacDailyNews Note: More info: Denise Young Smith is Cornell Tech’s next executive-in-residence
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: That was quick.
SEE ALSO:
Apple diversity chief Denise Young Smith apologizes to staff for statements made at summit – October 14, 2017
Apple’s first ever VP of diversity and inclusion says she focuses on everyone, not just minorities – October 11, 2017
Apple’s new Vice President of Inclusion and Diversity will report directly to CEO Tim Cook – May 24, 2017
Apple’s board has urged shareholders to reject proposal to tie executive compensation to racial diversity quotas – February 27, 2017
Apple Inc. fights shareholders group demand for more diversity – February 15, 2017
Apple touts diversity of recent hires – August 3, 2016
Apple inches toward workforce diversity – January 20, 2016
Diversity report shows Apple’s U.S. workforce still mainly white and male – January 19, 2016
Apple’s Board of Directors says a call for diversity is ‘unduly burdensome and not necessary’ – January 15, 2016
Apple leads Facebook, Intel, Cisco, Google on gender diversity among Bay Area companies – November 17, 2015
Apple’s latest diversity report shows progress – August 13, 2015
Tim Cook is ‘personally involved’ in improving diversity at Apple Inc. – July 14, 2015
Apple donates over $50 million to diversity efforts – March 10, 2015
Apple CEO Tim Cook met privately with Jesse Jackson regarding diversity – December 9, 2014
Apple adds Vice Presidents, more diversity to Executive Leadership Team – August 15, 2014
A message from Apple CEO Tim Cook on diversity – August 12, 2014
Jesse Jackson calls on Obama to scrutinize tech industry’s ‘lack of diversity’ – July 28, 2014
Tim Cook: Apple will release diversity data ‘at some point’ – July 9, 2014
Jesse Jackson targets tech’s lack of diversity; sends letter to Apple, Google, HP, others – March 19, 2014
Apple changes bylaws after facing criticism about lack of diversity on board – January 9, 2014