Apple Product Priorities for the John Ternus Era
Hello everyone. Apple updated its leadership page earlier today to reflect the official change in CEO. John Ternus’s bio mentions his work leading Apple’s efforts at improving device reliability, durability, repairability, and environmental sustainability. All of those items will continue to be prioritized by Ternus as CEO. In addition, a few other executive bios were updated to reflect some shifts in oversight. A big one is the App Store moving from Phil Schiller to Eddy Cue. Apple Events oversight moves from Phil Schiller over to Kristin Quayle and Communications.
Speaking of priorities, today’s article will take us deep into product strategy territory as we assess where the most intrigue is found in Apple’s product line. This exercise will require us to first assess Apple’s current product strategy. We will then turn to what drives Apple’s product development priorities. Let’s jump in.
Apple Product Priorities for the John Ternus Era
Apple breaks out its product line into the following nine categories (as depicted on Apple’s website).
iPhone
Pad
AirPods
Watch
Mac
TV & Home (Apple TV 4K, HomePod, and HomePod mini)
Vision
Entertainment (Apple TV, Music, Apple Arcade, Apple Fitness+, Apple News+, Apple Podcasts, Apple Books, App Store)
Accessories (includes AirTag, Beats)
The naming and segmentation strategy that Apple utilizes for its various product categories will evolve over time, reflecting both changes in the product line and sales trends.
When it comes to broader product strategy, the “push” strategy that Apple employs (since 2019) continues to serve the company well. There isn’t an expiration date found with the concept of pushing all major product categories forward simultaneously. One characteristic of Apple’s older pull strategy was elevating product categories that were viewed as most effective at making technology more personal. This resulted in other product categories fighting not to be left behind. The change from a pull to push system manifested itself with each product category being given a defined and unique role to handle within the Apple ecosystem. The product categories have been allowed to stay true to their inherent design language. The iPad and Mac have been the primary benefactors arising from Apple’s shift to a push system.
The perceived risk found with a push strategy - supporting legacy workflows to the detriment of Apple’s long-standing mission of making technology more personal and relevant – has been kept in check.
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