Apple has entered a new chapter: John Ternus’s first day as CEO, succeeding Tim Cook after 15 years. The hardware veteran takes the helm of a $4.7 trillion company facing two sharp pressures — Apple’s still-unsettled place in AI and a global memory shortage that’s already pushing up device prices. His first major public test comes September 9th at the company’s special media event, expected to feature new iPhones and Apple Watches, as investors watch whether he can evolve Apple beyond his predecessor’s iterative playbook.
Ternus is tasked with convincing shareholders, employees and customers that he can lead the company into the future and that he’s not just doing what the old boss would do.
“What worked for Tim Cook is not going to be the same that works for John Ternus,” [Kathy Gersch, CEO of Kotter, a consulting firm focused on leadership changes and transitions], said in an interview. “The company is in a new environment. It’s going to have to keep evolving and competing.”
Ternus’ hardware expertise and his decades spent hiring engineering talent could be a boon for Apple as it enters a potentially new era of devices, said Gene Munster, managing partner at Deepwater Asset Management.
“They went with a product person, and I think that’s important,” Munster said. In the next couple years, Munster said, Ternus needs to “light up recruiting and bring in awesome talent, because they still need to reinvent themselves.”
It’s a challenge Ternus has been pondering for years, and one he talked about with CNBC in 2023.
“From the very beginning, we’re thinking about how are all these pieces going to come together to make the best possible product for our customers,” he said.
MacDailyNews Take: Apple should always be run by a product person.
Please help support MacDailyNews — and enjoy subscriber-only articles, comments, chat, and more — by subscribing to our Substack: macdailynews.substack.com. Thank you!
Support MacDailyNews at no extra cost to you by using this link to shop at Amazon.