Apple's Denise Young Smith to leave Inclusion & Diversity post by end of 2017
Though in the job for just 7 months, Apple's first-ever VP of Inclusion and Diversity, Denise Young Smith, is leaving the company at the end of the year.
Her replacement -- confirmed by an Apple spokesperson -- is Christie Smith, a 17-year veteran as a principal with Deloitte, TechCrunch said. The latter is expected to report to Apple's VP for People, Deirdre O'Brien.
Prior to her Inclusion and Diversity role, Denise Young Smith served three years as Apple's head of human resources.
Smith has actually been talking with CEO Tim Cook about moving on since a year ago, one TechCrunch source claimed. In the past few months the company has allegedly been hunting for a replacement. She already has one position lined up -- that of executive-in-residence at Cornell Tech, starting this January.
Smith generated controversy last month with comments at the One Young World Summit in Bogota, Colombia.
"Diversity is the human experience," she said. "I get a little bit frustrated when diversity or the term diversity is tagged to the people of color, or the women, or the LGBT. There can be 12 white blue-eyed blonde men in a room and they are going to be diverse too because they're going to bring a different life experience and life perspective to the conversation."
She later issued an apology letter internal to Apple, saying that her comments "were not representative of how I think about diversity or how Apple sees it."
Her replacement -- confirmed by an Apple spokesperson -- is Christie Smith, a 17-year veteran as a principal with Deloitte, TechCrunch said. The latter is expected to report to Apple's VP for People, Deirdre O'Brien.
Prior to her Inclusion and Diversity role, Denise Young Smith served three years as Apple's head of human resources.
Smith has actually been talking with CEO Tim Cook about moving on since a year ago, one TechCrunch source claimed. In the past few months the company has allegedly been hunting for a replacement. She already has one position lined up -- that of executive-in-residence at Cornell Tech, starting this January.
Smith generated controversy last month with comments at the One Young World Summit in Bogota, Colombia.
"Diversity is the human experience," she said. "I get a little bit frustrated when diversity or the term diversity is tagged to the people of color, or the women, or the LGBT. There can be 12 white blue-eyed blonde men in a room and they are going to be diverse too because they're going to bring a different life experience and life perspective to the conversation."
She later issued an apology letter internal to Apple, saying that her comments "were not representative of how I think about diversity or how Apple sees it."
Comments
Don't be jerks.
It's shame she's leaving. She actually had the courage to make an honest statement--followed by a cowardly and obviously forced retraction.
That comment was brilliant, inclusive and very Apple.
”17-year-old-veteran”
It’s good Apple is getting young blood but it’s not fair if she’s replacing Denise because of that brilliant comment.
It’s sad Mike has to say that but it’s true. I saw an Apple Store News Story turn into left vs. right.
I am a person of color and I approve of this message.
As for this issue, I don't think anyone's gonna to get too worked up. I don't think there was ever much controversy about Ms Smith, it seemed more about the position itself, which has already been hashed out pretty thoroughly. Even back then, a large contingent just decided to retreat to their own safe space anyway, rather than engage in a logical, productive discussion.
Wait… they’re both named Smith!
Whether or not that's why she's leaving, I don't know. But, I was frankly a bit shocked she didn't get into more hot-water than she did over those comments, as they are heresy to the majority of the diversity movement going on in tech, or coming from the political/academic 'left'.