Shakeup at Apple or Business as Usual?
Apple has been the darling of Wall Street, a constant provider of mobile technology, and to some a religion. However, on October 30, 2012, CNN reported what some are saying is the worst news that could have hit Apple.
Scott Forstall, the senior vice president of iOS Software at Apple, has left the company. The press release on Apple’s website announcing his departure spells out the coming changes. Some say his departure is because of the Apple Maps debacle.
CNNMoney.com reports on the shakeup inside Apple and offers several possibilities as to how this might have gone down. In addition, the news agency asks the hypothetical question: Would Steve Jobs have released Apple Maps? It should be noted that Steve Jobs had some major screw-ups of his own, including the MobileMe Team debacle, the failed iTunes music-sharing service, and (for the older crowd ) the Lisa Computer.
May outlets have weighed in on the Steve Forstall departure. Forbes examined what most of us already have speculated: Steve Forstall was forced out. Wired.com lets us know why Apple (and all of us) will miss Scott Forstall while pointing out how difficult he was to work with, just like Steve Jobs. Finally, Mashable explores why he got fired and ties it directly to his refusal to co-apologize with Apple CEO Tim Cook.
We have to ask ourselves where will Scott Forstall end up. We know he is in his early forties, so we know he has many more years of innovation left in him.
The financial publication Forbes chimes in on where he will land, offering several possibilities: Google, Microsoft, Nokia, Hewlett-Packard, HTC, Amazon, Facebook, or Twitter. I think it’s safe to say he will end up somewhere big—after any non-compete agreements have run their course.
Business Insider calls Scott Forstall the most valuable free agent in the tech world, which I think has a lot of validity. I would venture to say that every major tech company in the world will have a Scott Forstall discussion at their next board meeting.
So now we are left wondering how Apple can move on and upward after this shakeup in the company’s upper ranks. I think the next two years will tell that story.
