Jony Ive becomes Apple’s Chief Design Officer, trusted lieutenants take his previous roles

Sir Jony Ive is Apple’s most important executive not called Tim Cook (and that’s arguable), and he just got a promotion.

According to the Telegraph, Ive is now leading the newly minted Chief Design Officer position. Meanwhile, two close lieutenants, Alan Dye and Richard Howarth, are taking over Ive’s previous roles as vice presidents of User Interface and Industrial Design, respectively.

9to5Mac retrieved an internal Memo sent out by Cook, which suggests the new role will allow Ive will tackle larger projects. The memo notes the change is a reflection of the scope of the projects Ive has already been involved with recently, including Apple’s retail stores and the upcoming new Cupertino campus. Ive is also looking to travel more with some of the extra time afforded to him.

Dye and Howarth, meanwhile, will take over his day-to-day managerial roles. Dye started at Apple 9 years ago and collaborated with Ive on iOS and the Apple Watch, while Howarth has been part of the industrial design team for two decades.

When asked why he relinquished control over two departments he’d been so successful with, Ive noted he is still in charge of them; his title is ‘Chief Design Officer,’ after all. The difference is he doesn’t have to waste time with the boring management part of daily affairs.

➤ When Stephen Fry met Jony Ive: the self-confessed tech geek talks to Apple’s newly promoted chief design officer [The Telegraph]