Apple Expands Hiring Freeze, Delays Bonuses for Some Employees

[fdw777]

Agreed

 

[I7guy]

Note: I respond to your criticism in the following two paragraphs. The remaining is explanation and example. Feel free to disregard.

Regarding the errors, I agree with some of your points. My point, however, was that Apple itself recognized these errors despite their initial firmness.

I am not suggesting any particular error with any particular product, though I do have my opinions. Rather, I'm opining that if you look at Apple, as a company, there is a lot of "our stuff don't stink" or worse "our products sell themselves" attitude.

As one particular example, over the past few years: Apple changed the terms for third party repair stores and resellers which basically eliminated the small business model of Apple Certified Repairs. I know of several local resellers where the new terms put them out of business entirely. This shows Hubris in thinking that all customers, especially business customers, will blindly continue to buy Apple despite repairs and support now being significantly more difficult. Driving to an Apple Store or spending hours on the phone with Apple Support isn't realistic in the business world. Having a third-party, certified technician come to your office, at your convenience is far more efficient.

In my opinion Apples thinking is not the revenue but the possibility of reputational damage done by third party repairers.

I could go on regarding hubris in the following examples:
1. The iPhone 14 without a new chip. Making a huge deal of Dynamic Island, a feature which, in a typical iPhone iteration, would be nothing more than a minor update.

It has a new chip, just not the chip they wanted. Dynamic Island is very cool, I love it on our 14PM. The real headliner is the movement after several years to reduce the footprint of the face id hardware and then innovate around the top of phone area.

2. Missing the self imposed two-year timeline to move to Apple Silicone which, again, appears to be a neglect of Apple's most loyal, pro-level, customers.

Unforseen things happen.

3. Not repairing the known issues with external monitors on the MBP.

Can't speak to this.

4. The Magic Mouse charging port on the bottom of the device, making it impossible to use while charging.

I personally have no problem with this. Of course this is one thing where YMMV.

Lastly, and, IMO, most egregious, is that MacOS is no longer stable upon release. There once was a time when MacOS was a reliable upgrade every 12 - 18 months and most bugs were fixed within the first 6 - 8 weeks. I now wait a full product cycle prior to upgrading due to the heavy prominence of mission-critical bugs. Yes, some of these are third-party, but is due to Apple's changing the System Library and support. This is largely a problem of the past 5 years and is unacceptable in the business world.

I can't speak to this either. My kids have Macbooks and I don't here them complaining and we regular discuss things computer related.

In conclusion:
Apple is a great company lead by a talented and dedicated team. My critic is limited to some of their decisions and, what appears to be an attitude of hubris. Spending lots of resources on new products is great but doing so, while neglecting current product lines, is undisciplined.

Yes I agree somethings could have been differently or better. Apple isn't perfect, they will never be perfect. Perfection is the enemy of great.

As I have said on these forums many times previously, when being criticized as an Apple fan-boy, I buy Apple products so long as I believe they provide a better user-experience than the competition. I still believe that to be true, certainly vis-a-vis Android and even compared to Microsoft, though I do have a new appreciation for the latter as Windows has become far more stable in recent years.

Hope this explains things.

Agreed.

 

[DeepIn2U]

Despite tim getting this huge amount of money, he said in an interview that he ll gift all his money to charities - so not necessarily a bad thing after all.

Tim Cook Donates Almost $5M Worth of Apple Shares to Charity

Apple CEO Tim Cook recently donated 23,215 shares of Apple stock to charity, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission...

www.macrumors.com

https://amp.theguardian.com/technology/2015/mar/26/tim-cook-apple-donate-800m-fortune-charity

But WHEN?!

 

[Abazigal]

Apple is a great company lead by a talented and dedicated team. My critic is limited to some of their decisions and, what appears to be an attitude of hubris. Spending lots of resources on new products is great but doing so, while neglecting current product lines, is undisciplined.

I feel it's one thing to point out certain aspects of Apple that you feel are flawed or that you don't like, and it's another to think that it's part of some greater malaise.

Second, I would also like to throw the question back to you. Is it really hubris (because we are seeing it from our POV) or could Apple have their own reasons for doing what they do (if, as per my earlier statement, we start with Apple and then look outwards). It doesn't mean we have to like those reasons, much less accept them, but then again, you don't run a successful business by giving people everything they want (which is what many people here don't seem to understand).

Now to address your individual points:

1) Clamping down on individual repair businesses seems to tie in with Apple's overarching strategy of controlling every aspect of the user experience, which began under Steve Jobs.

2) No new chip in the iPhone 14 - sucks for sure. Could be a supply-chain constraint, a cost-cutting feature, or maybe Apple simply feels the A15 suffices for the iPhone 14?

3) Missing the deadline to release the Mac Pro can be explained by Covid and the move to working from home, which has probably affect the various teams' ability to effectively collaborate with one another and slowed down numerous project timelines. I would also like to this frame this in the context that for the year 2022, Apple released the following within an 8-month time frame, which I feel is very impressive at a time when other companies are grappling with their own supply chain constraints.

March - Mac Studio, Studio Display, iPad Air, iPhone SE

June - MacBook Air, 13-inch MacBook Pro

September - iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 14 Pro Max, Apple Watch Series 8, Apple Watch SE, Apple Watch Ultra, Apple Watch Hermès, AirPods Pro (2nd gen)

October - iPad (10th gen), iPad Pro, Apple TV 4K (3rd gen)

Followed by the Mac mini, M2 MBP, iPad Pro and HomePod (albeit reintroduced). In this context, I can see why the Mac Pro was delayed. Not that it's not important, but it's ultimately a niche, low-volume product, and Apple has way larger priorities to settle.

4) External monitor support - seems they are working on it, based on the patches for the studio display?

5) I find that Apple product design can be quite polarising in that they often contain small design cues that try to nudge users towards a certain use case as envisioned by the designers. I suspect it's the same thing with the Magic Mouse port. The design team didn't want an open port to mar the smooth polished surface of the Magic Mouse, and they felt that a wireless mouse should not be used with wires (which extends to charging). It's an annoyance when you need to do both at the same, but I find it more amusing than irritating. It's also what I like about Apple though - that they (tend to) march to their own beat and not care two hoots about everyone else thinks.

I also won't comment on the annual release cadence for the various OSes, in part because I use macOS in a more personal setting, and it does feel stable enough for me to use at the point of release.

Nor do I view this as an attitude of hubris. Perhaps one can make the argument that maybe Apple has too much on their plate, and so some product categories (namely the more profitable ones) invariably get prioritised more than others (Apple is likely moving mountains just to ensure the iPhone and Apple Watch get updated annually). It seems more like a company having to grapple with the reality of operating in an ever-evolving business landscape.

Consider how the competition is faring. Google has shuttered so many products that's basically a meme at this point. Facebook burned billions on a pointless venture and is losing tons of money to ATT. Samsung's foldable push and Microsoft's own Surface line are not gaining traction. Netflix and Spotify are still not profitable. To date, people can only cite Airpower as an example of Apple announcing vapourware (big whoop), and your biggest bugbear is them not releasing the Mac Pro, while simultaneously ignoring every other milestone they have hit in the previous year.

I hear you, I sense your frustration (maybe it hits you harder than it does me), but I ultimately reject your statement that this is hubris on Apple's side.

 

[I7guy]

The issue is that this leaves businesses without a means of support. I’ve never had an issue with third-party specialists.

Because you didn't have an issue doesn't mean others haven't.

They’ve been honest and very responsive. It’s Apple that is difficult to deal with when it comes to repairs: bring it in or ship it in doesn’t work on a mission critical machine.

I can't speak for Mac. As I don't own any, although my kids use them. I haven't had issues with iphones though.

Regarding the specific things I brought up, they are simply examples of Apple acting with hubris.

I disagree and we have different opinions - which is fine, since that is what this discussion forum is about.

You can explain away portions

The same way you can say it's hubris.

but it shows how their decisions can be distorted with “we do no wrong” think.

I'm not sure it really says "apple can do no wrong". My guess is they have to tread carefully and have a plan in place, lest they get hit with a class action lawsuit, which as we know, lawyers would salivate to do, even for a something as minor as a tiny scratch on the hand.

MacOS may be great for someone using Apple apps and no external monitor. In the business world, my experience has been very different. Apple’s most stable releases have all been pre 2018.

I can't speak for MacOS.

 

[HMFIC03]

I understand the hiring freeze, but come on Apple, you can afford to give employees their bonuses on time.

Bonuses I would think for the most part would be performance based. Most of the OS’s the past serval years have had more bugs and more updates that I can ever remember.. this story like so many other companies, is about the quality, or lack of, in regards if it’s employees.

 

[I7guy]

Bonuses I would think for the most part would be performance based.

Yes, that is what a bonus is.

Most of the OS’s the past serval years have had more bugs and more updates that I can ever remember..

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/is-ios-16-and-the-iphone-14-launch-the-worst-ever-not-so-fast.2361027/

this story like so many other companies, is about the quality, or lack of, in regards if it’s employees.

What lack of quality or innovation? Innovation is a sliding scale based on personal definition. So is the definition of “lack of quality”…it’s a broad term indicative that no software or hardware is 100% errata free.

 

[citysnaps]

But WHEN?!

Whenever he feels like it.

Just like you and everyone else, Cook is a private person and under no obligation to broadcast to the world his personal/private matters.

 

[citysnaps]

The issue is that this leaves businesses without a means of support. I’ve never had an issue with third-party specialists. They’ve been honest and very responsive. It’s Apple that is difficult to deal with when it comes to repairs: bring it in or ship it in doesn’t work on a mission critical machine.

Regarding the specific things I brought up, they are simply examples of Apple acting with hubris. You can explain away portions but it shows how their decisions can be distorted with “we do no wrong” think. MacOS may be great for someone using Apple apps and no external monitor. In the business world, my experience has been very different. Apple’s most stable releases have all been pre 2018.

It seems that you should find another tech manufacturer that operates in the manner and in alignment with YOUR wishes. And find happiness. There are lots of options out there.

Personally, I would never support a company with my $$$ if I didn't feel comfortable with the manner in which they choose to do business. You shouldn't either.

 

[_Spinn_]

Things are looking rough this year.

 

[fromgophonetoiphone]

You don't think they are overly paid?

I'm genuinely curious. Are you in a role that assesses compensation--and I don't mean just engineer compensation but actually EXEC compensation? What is a fair amount they should be paid? I'm sure any one of us would gladly take a CEO job for a mere $1 million. Should be no problem for companies to hire us and get massive savings right?