Luca Maestri, who has served as Apple’s chief financial officer since 2014, reports Bloomberg, citing the company’s official statement, from January 1st to give way to his successor, Kevan Parekh, who has been preparing for this step for some time. Maestri will not leave the company, but will oversee information technology and real estate.
Luca Maestri. Image Source: Apple
It cannot be argued that Maestri and his successor have a significant age difference. While Apple’s current CFO is 60 years old, Kevan Parekh is now 52 years old. Before his nomination to become Apple’s next CFO, he worked at the company in a similar capacity. CEO Tim Cook emphasized that Parekh “understands the company inside and out.” Cook praised Parekh’s business skills, suggesting he would make a “brilliant” CFO.
Parekh joined Apple about eleven years ago, almost simultaneously with Maestri. He is currently responsible for financial planning, investor relations and market research. Last year, he had to take on more responsibilities as one of the executives close to the CFO, Saori Casey, left Apple. Over the past few months, Parekh has increasingly participated in Apple management meetings and delved deeply into the specifics of the CFO’s job. Luca Maestri yesterday expressed “incredible confidence” in his successor.
The stock market initially reacted to this news by reducing the stock price by 1.7%, but during the trading session it regained almost all of the lost price. Analysts agreed that this personnel reshuffle is planned, and therefore was prepared a long time ago and does not depend on immediate circumstances. Maintaining functional ties to the company is typical for many retired Apple executives, and Maestri will be no exception in this sense. The Apple management team now has enough people approaching the age of 60, so the management team could be seriously updated in the coming years. Last week it became known that Vice President Matt Fischer, who is responsible for the App Store, will leave the company as a result of the reorganization, giving up the position to two of his deputies.