Apple’s Scott Forstall and retail stores head John Browett are on the way out
SFGate.com reports that Apple announced a major shakeup today with mobile software chief, Scott Forstall, and retail stores head, John Browett, on their way out the door! Since Wall Street traders needed scuba gear today, 
(just kidding) there could be no immediate reaction in the stock market – Hurricane Sandy had shut down trading. SFGate says that Scott Forstall at one time appeared to be the heir apparent to Steve Jobs.
IMHO, they are better off without Forstall!
The company announced that Forstall, who appears to be the fall guy for the failure of Apple Maps and Siri to meet expectations, will be leaving Apple next year. He will serve as an adviser to Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook in the interim, but his role is being reduced immediately.
And Browett, who took over Apple’s retail stores division in April, is also leaving and a search for his replacement is already underway, Apple said in a statement posted on its website.
(I have been testing Siri and Apple Maps both before and AFTER my iPhone 5 hardware was replaced for the “WiFi-with-WPA2-security-connectivity-flakiness” problem, and I do not think that all of the criticism is warranted. Either someone had an UNREAL expectation about Apple Maps and Siri [Apple is NOT a <map> data base company <no matter HOW much NIH Syndrome is present there>; Apple Maps is a new product, and UNREAL expectations are COMMON in high tech. ], or I have been asking Siri the WRONG questions [aside from “How much wood could a woodchuck chuck? ].)
The Apple statement says that Jony Ive, Bob Mansfield, Eddy Cue (I have always respected Eddy. I don’t think that I have met the other gentlemen.), and Craig Federighi are adding responsibilities to their roles. Good luck, gentlemen!
My instincts are usually right with regard to the character of people. Partially, this ability results from my personality type, and partially, from all of the training my senses got/get while interacting with customers in person and on the phone. Although I never met Scott Forstall, I have watched him in action in person and on QuickTime, and I did not particularly like him. Apparently, someone at Apple felt the same way! 😉 I felt the same way about my “Apple manager,” while I was based on site in Valley Green 5 and 6 in 2000-2001. Later, that manager was fired by Apple. I strongly suspect that my “Apple manager” flipped the fuel valve to “reserve tank” on my motorcycle (he rides) when I visited a good friend at Apple for lunch in 2002, long after Netscape and my on-site role at Apple. A “practical joke” with potentially dangerous consequences for me….
As for the newly hired head of retail stores, John Browett, I have never met him nor seen him in action. SFGate continues:
In September, Cook issued an unusual public apology for Apple Maps “falling short,” leading Apple observers to question the future of Forstall, a longtime Apple executive who was ultimately in charge of Maps and voice-activated assistant Siri. Apple said parts of his job will be shared by the other senior executives.
Eddy Cue, senior vice president of Internet software and services, “will take on the additional responsibility of Siri and Maps, placing all of our online services in one group,” Apple said.
You can read all of the details in the Apple release.
Cook is quite right about the integration. Nobody does it better than Apple!
-Bill at
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