The position of " chief designer " has been key for Apple, which has prioritized the appearance of its devices throughout the brand's history . That's why it was a big event that former chief design officer Johnny Ive stepped down in 2019.
Apple will no longer have a chief designer, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman . Evans Hankey , who took over the position of chief designer after the departure of Jony Ive, who has signed many iconic Apple products, also announced that he will leave the company this year.
The design team will report to Jeff Williams
The Cupertino tech giant will not be able to appoint a replacement after Evans Hankey quits . In other words, there will not be a position as chief designer in the company. Instead, the entire design team will report directly to Apple COO Jeff Williams .
We'll see how Apple shelving the chief designer position will affect the company's future products . But there are many examples in history that such innovative companies have gotten worse as managers become more involved in everything .