Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, took over the reins of the company in 2011 after the death of Steve Jobs. Since then, Apple’s shares and value in the markets have not stopped growing, multiplying by ten in recent times. However, recently Tim Cook has hinted that he does not see himself within the company in the next ten years, so we all wonder who will be Tim Cook’s heir?
Departing from Steve Jobs
Following the line of Steve Jobs, Tim Cook could appoint as Apple CEO after his departure to Currently, Williams holds the position of chief operating officer, being the same position that Tim Cook held before ascending to the highest echelon of the company. In this circumstance, it could be the person, who follows Cook if he wants to create some kind of hereditary line within the company. Williams, is a very objective person, very hard-working. However, he is close to 60 years of age, an age that is a handicap when it comes to acting as CEO of the company, because it would prevent him from spending many years in charge of it.
A second candidate could be O’Brien , who has spent his entire life at Apple and is currently Apple’s senior vice president of retail and people. Before occupying his current position, he carried out tasks related to the position of human resources of the company and employees. He is five years younger than Tom Cook, knows how the company works, holds a prominent position in the company and is aware of Apple’s ambition and culture, so he could be a strong candidate for Cook’s succession.
Secondary candidates
There are also a number of candidates who can occupy the position of Tim Cook after his departure, however, there are a number of circumstances that lose relevance compared to other candidates. First up, we highlight Catherine Adams, Legal and Global Security Advisor. However, his arrival at Apple in 2017 and not being widely known makes him part of a secondary position.
Due to his position in the company and connoisseur of the future of technology, John Gianandrea Apple’s senior vice president of machine learning and artificial intelligence strategy, and who reached that position after his departure from Google in 2018. However, he is in the Same situation as Catherine Adams, she has been in the company for a very short time and is not a recognized figure among many users of the brand, so she is not a strong candidate despite her weight in the Californian company.
He says he doesn’t want to be, but…
One of the most charismatic people within Apple is without a doubt Craig Federighi, vice president of Software Engineering for both macOS and iOS at Apple. However, he has stated many times that he is very happy where he is, and that at the moment he is not considering being CEO of Apple. However, from a business and software growth point of view, Federigui is a very loved person and all fans of the bitten apple, so accepting his position would be well received by all and it would be known for sure that there would be the direction that the company would take with his appointment.
The return of the vice president of software would lead to the return of a technologist to the company, that is, a person passionate about technology and innovation, leaving aside a constant mathematical and financial analysis such as Tim Cook.