14 DAY TRIAL // Apple's recently-appointed Senior Vice President of Technologies, Bob Mansfield, is no longer on the executive board at Apple. A company spokesman has confirmed Mansfield is no longer on the executive team.
But that’s as far as the story stretches. There’s no word on why Mansfield no longer appears in the executive bios page, or why he’s still on Apple’s payroll.
Yes, although Mansfield is no longer an exec at Apple, he is still reporting to Tim Cook on his work in the special projects division.
This, according to company spokesman Steve Dowling, who tells All Things D, “Bob is no longer going to be on Apple’s executive team, but will remain at Apple working on special projects reporting to Tim.”
Despite the apparently sudden change, the news isn’t a surprise either. Avid Apple fans will remember that Mansfield originally showed intent to leave the Cupertino giant last year, when Apple announced his retirement.
The SVP eventually stayed on board after Apple convinced him (with some hefty bonuses) to work in a special projects division, reporting to the CEO.
It isn’t clear who is behind the decision to leave the Apple executive team short of an SVP (Tim Cook or Mansfield himself).
The news could be concerning for financial analysts and investors alike, who are expecting a widely rumored iWatch to come out of Mansfield’s division.
Then again, Apple hasn’t announced anything regarding his potential departure. But the company is known to take its time replacing key executives, making the transition to a new face as gradual as possible.
Mansfield could stick around as a special advisor even after someone else is appointed in his role.
With the company’s 2012 announcement that Mansfield was about to leave, it shouldn’t come as a shock that he is eventually going down that route.