Apple PR veteran Steve Dowling named interim communications chief
Though the company was said to be looking outside of its ranks to find a new head of public relations, Apple's longtime corporate communications employee Steve Dowling was reportedly named interim PR chief last week by CEO Tim Cook.
Dowling's promotion was first revealed on Thursday by Re/code, and Apple confirmed the news. But his stay at the top may only be temporary, as Apple is said to still be evaluating outside candidates.
This summer, Cook was said to be personally overseeing the search for a new head of public relations at Apple. The CEO reportedly wants to put a "friendlier" face on his corporate communications team, which historically has been notoriously silent when dealing with the press.
Apple's previous head of public relations, Katie Cotton, left earlier this year after an 18-year tenure with the company. Cotton was known for being tight-lipped and selective in what statements were issued.
The position, officially titled vice president of corporate communications, reports directly to Cook. Dowling's veteran presence at Apple made him, along with Nat Kerris, a name frequently mentioned by company watchers as a likely candidate for the job.
Other noteworthy exits from Apple in recent years include former retail chief Ron Johnson, who left for an ill-fated stint as CEO of JC Penney; Scott Forstall, who was ousted from the company after struggles with the launch of iOS Maps; and John Browett, who was fired after a short tenure serving as Johnson's replacement.
The company's hardware engineering head, Bob Mansfield, announced his retirement in mid-2012, but the senior vice president was later convinced to stay. As of last July, Mansfield is no longer a part of Apple's executive team, but he continues to work on special projects.
Dowling's promotion was first revealed on Thursday by Re/code, and Apple confirmed the news. But his stay at the top may only be temporary, as Apple is said to still be evaluating outside candidates.
This summer, Cook was said to be personally overseeing the search for a new head of public relations at Apple. The CEO reportedly wants to put a "friendlier" face on his corporate communications team, which historically has been notoriously silent when dealing with the press.
Apple's previous head of public relations, Katie Cotton, left earlier this year after an 18-year tenure with the company. Cotton was known for being tight-lipped and selective in what statements were issued.
The position, officially titled vice president of corporate communications, reports directly to Cook. Dowling's veteran presence at Apple made him, along with Nat Kerris, a name frequently mentioned by company watchers as a likely candidate for the job.
Other noteworthy exits from Apple in recent years include former retail chief Ron Johnson, who left for an ill-fated stint as CEO of JC Penney; Scott Forstall, who was ousted from the company after struggles with the launch of iOS Maps; and John Browett, who was fired after a short tenure serving as Johnson's replacement.
The company's hardware engineering head, Bob Mansfield, announced his retirement in mid-2012, but the senior vice president was later convinced to stay. As of last July, Mansfield is no longer a part of Apple's executive team, but he continues to work on special projects.
Comments
Apple PR veteran Steve Dowling named interim communications chief
…Apple’s longtime corporate communications employee Steve Dowling was reportedly named interim PR chief…
So which is it?
Btw, here's a photo of Dowling (on the left)
[IMG]http://i60.tinypic.com/2rcwco0.jpg[/IMG]
So which is it?
Both.
In this case, corporate communications is a synonym for public relations.
?????????????
> ????WARPJOBS????
$97/hr pavivdv by Google, I am making a good salary from home $5500-$7000/week , which is amazing, under a year ago I was jobless in a horrible economy. I thank God every day I was blessed with these instructions and now it's my duty to pay it forward and share it with Everyone, Here is I started,,,
...............................................
????????????
In this case, corporate communications is a synonym for public relations.
That’s even better. I bet you could get away with giving yourself a few “promotions” on a résumé like that.
Well, the article does state that the official title is VP of Corporate Communications although the function is casually referred to as "PR" or "public relations."
On a resume, typically you would list your official title provided by the employer, not a title you make up yourself.
Dowling has been a "Steady Eddie" on Apple's PR team for a long, long time. He's earned his spurs. This is a job where you just can't put enough of a premium on experience and consistency. No more John Browetts in executive leadership, please.
I agree - Apple may be best to keep to a "home grown" employee for this role.
When it goes bad in PR it usually results in a Sh!tstorm in the media.
I can live with dumb fandroids whining about Apple's walled garden, but when 100% bullshit is being spread around it really pisses me off, and I wish Apple would do something about it.
In my opinion Apple really needs some new blood. This hands off, 'we're a marginalized underdog' approach is no longer working, and has not been working for a while now; and this ethos seems too firmly engrained. The 'above it all' approach just begins to look like (to 99.9% of the population) a tacit endorsement of whatever FUD is popular at the moment. It takes an event of astronomically bullshit proportions to get Apple PR to even budge. Peoples' attention and memory are too shot to learn that these episodes of FUD are baseless. samsungs propaganda machine is running full bore 24/7 and Apple doesn't seem to do jack shit about it. We all know bendgate is 100% bullshit, but half of all the people who have commented on my 6 have mentioned something about bending. Apple actually has a huge advantage in that people will listen to them, but they don't seem to use this. The tour of the iPhone testing labs was a great idea, but barely publicized.
I can live with dumb fandroids whining about Apple's walled garden, but when 100% bullshit is being spread around it really pisses me off, and I wish Apple would do something about it.
I can appreciate your frustration, but let me speak from experience as a communications director for a one-time Fortune 500 company, now long gone through a recap, asset sales, spinoffs and finally being acquired. It's a no-win practice to give legs to every non-issue piece of crap thrown at a company by dignifying it with a response.
"Bendgate"? Apple got a total of nine complaints? When was the last? A week ago? How much of an issue do you think this will be in a month? Three months? A year?
So you're pissed off and I'm pissed off - but being pissed off and reacting to every slur that comes along is no way to implement an effective, professional communications strategy. When there are issues that demand proactive behavior, Apple is first to step up to the plate in so many ways. Monitoring and setting labor standards for suppliers. Minimizing or eliminating its carbon footprint. Removing harmful chemicals from its processes and products. Radical new encryption to safeguard the privacy of users of its newest devices. To name a few.
The people who run Apple's communications walk the walk ... many times over. It's why in February Apple was named the world's most-admired company ... for the seventh year in a row, while Samsung came in ... 21st.
http://time.com/10351/fortune-worlds-most-admired-company-2014/
2) I hope you're right, and I'm wrong, about this being a minor issue (of course it's not anything catastrophic as Apple has earned strong loyalty from its customers and continues to sell at amazingly high volumes).
3) Everything you said makes complete sense.. if the audience is at least reasonably aware of technology. Why I think issues like this deserve more action from Apple is 1) the principle of standing up to slander/bullying, 2) to address those people not yet familiar with Apple's products and who are not in any way tech savvy, which I think is still a significant fraction of the population, and 3) the fact that this complete misinformation is being perpetuated by organizations that people assume should have some degree of professionalism and respectability (although people familiar with Apple know that these organizations lie through their teeth, e.g. bloomberg, msnbc, businessweek, etc.).
Does Apple really need a senior manager drawing a seven-digit "compensation package" to respond to every question with: