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Scott Forstall Profiled as Apple's 'CEO-in-Waiting'

Tuesday January 17, 2012 5:39 am PST by Eric Slivka
As we noted last September, Fortune's Adam Lashinsky has written a new book entitled Inside Apple: How America's Most Admired -- and Secretive -- Company Really Works, an unauthorized look at the inner workings of Apple. The book is due for release on January 25.

Fortune offers one tidbit from the book today, profiling Senior Vice President for iOS Software Scott Forstall as Apple's current "CEO-in-waiting". The book paints a similar picture to one offered by offered by BusinessWeek last October, portraying Forstall as an aggressively ambitious "mini-Steve".
He's young (43). Comfortable on stage (played Sweeney Todd in high school). Has serious nerd credentials (Stanford, NeXT). Shares Steve Jobs' obsession with detail (keeps a jeweler's loupe in his office to check every pixel on every icon). And the division he heads -- mobile software -- drives nearly 70% of Apple's (AAPL) income.

"He's a sharp, down-to-earth, and talented engineer, and a more-than-decent presenter," one entrepreneur told Adam Lashinsky. "He's the total package."
But Lashinsky also notes that Forstall's open ambition has ruffled a few feathers at Apple, reportedly stemming in part from efforts to consolidate his influence while Steve Jobs was on medical leave. Previous reports have suggested that Forstall's personality was at least partially responsible for "Godfather of the iPod" Tony Fadell leaving the company in 2010.

Tim Cook was awarded 1,000,000 restricted stock units in an effort to keep him in the role of Apple CEO until at least 2021. Roughly eight years Cook's junior, Forstall would be in a good position to succeed Cook at some point in the future should Apple be able to keep him within the senior executive team.

Inside Apple will be available from numerous retailers, including from Amazon as a hardcover book, Kindle e-book, and CD audiobook, and from Apple's iBookstore [iTunes Store].

Tag: Scott Forstall
[ 126 comments ]


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kolax
100 months ago
I've always thought he was a bit of a dick, so I think he'd fit well into the Apple CEO chair one day.
Rating: 23 Votes
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basesloaded190
100 months ago

yeah, have to agree with you there, sir. god knows what happens behind the scenes - he might be one of the best businessmen in the world, but he's onstage performance last keynote left me cold.


I was surprised too not to see him more excited about introducing a new product knowing one of his best friends was lying on his death bed. :rolleyes:
Rating: 20 Votes
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flynndean
100 months ago
Tim Cook has had the Permanent job full-time for only a few short months & his successor is already being identified?!

A LOT can change between now and 2021...
Rating: 14 Votes
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iRCL
100 months ago


(keeps a jeweler's loupe in his office to check every pixel on every icon)


This all sounds very amazing and romantic, except that's completely stupid. If he actually wanted to check every pixel, he would zoom in photoshop or another digital graphics editing software package that allows enlargement and observation of discrete pixels. If you're using a loupe with a real screen you're magnifying in the real analog world and that's ridiculous for a number of reasons. Do you know any graphic designer who would possibly do this? Of course not, and not because they aren't clever..

Sounds like yet another book full of hype and spin and nonsense

This silly book aside, this guy does seem sharp
Rating: 14 Votes
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hamean
100 months ago
and one other thing... Apple doesn't need the next Steve Jobs. It needs someone to make a name for themselves... their own name, their own way.
Rating: 12 Votes
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BobbyRond
100 months ago

yeah, have to agree with you there, sir. god knows what happens behind the scenes - he might be one of the best businessmen in the world, but he's onstage performance last keynote left me cold.


That Keynote left me cold too, but you do have to realize that he was on stage with a HUGE gap to fill, also knowing that Steve Jobs was in his final hours and not having anything really new to report. A lot of that Keynote consisted of repetition.

Steve Jobs did have a level of charisma that Tim Cook will never have. Let's just hope the following Keynotes will be interesting to look at again...
Rating: 9 Votes
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basesloaded190
100 months ago

Better than Tim Cook, good grief.


What wrong has Tim done thus far?
Rating: 9 Votes
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jhall527
100 months ago

yeah, have to agree with you there, sir. god knows what happens behind the scenes - he might be one of the best businessmen in the world, but he's onstage performance last keynote left me cold.


Wasn't his last onstage performance when they knew Jobs was in really bad shape, right before he passed away? I'd attribute his demeanor to that. Of course we won't really know for sure until the next time he is on stage.
Rating: 7 Votes
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Shrink
100 months ago

Scott is always smiling. It looks fake.

Not that that wouldn't make him a good CEO for Apple. But it seems to me he tries to hard to look enthusiastic.


I always have a bad feeling when I see him. Yes, he looks FAKE in every aspect. Creepy, with a sinister aura. Probably butt-kissing his superiors and kicking down on his underlings. So far, he is the only Apple manager that I disliked right from the moment when I first saw him in a public appearance.


It's remarkable to me how folks assume that they know anything about someone from their public persona.

If he looks enthusiasts - it's fake and insincere. If he is less than smiling and bubbly, he's a dud. How do you know whether he is genuinely enthusiastic..

Then it gets better. He's "fake", "creepy", and best of all - a "butt-kisser...kicking down his underlings". Remarkable knowing that, never having met him or seen his behavior at work.

It is hard enough to really know anything about an individual you have lived with for years - these posts indicate knowledge based on seeing him onstage for what, 1/2 an hour, an hour?

I know nothing about the man, except that he works at Apple and has made significant contributions to numerous products. I don't know if he is a great guy, a jerk, a butt-kisser or anything else about him. I suggest judging him based upon his actions, not some specious assumptions about him.
Rating: 7 Votes
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Joshwawilson
100 months ago
I'll be readin that book probably
Rating: 6 Votes

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