Why Apple CEO John Ternus is taking a hands-on approach to design

Apple CEO John Ternus is taking a more active role in managing the company’s organization than his predecessor, regularly working inside Apple’s design studio-a move that helps in restructuring the company during his tenure.

The 51-year-old has integrated himself into Apple’s industrial design and human interface teams since becoming CEO working directly in the studio several times a week and sometimes visiting multiple times in a single day.

This presents a significant marked contrast to Tim Cook, who commonly visited Apple’s design studio for around an hour each month while serving as CEO.

Ternus' active engagement comes as Apple operates without a single conventional design chief overseeing full-stack product architecture instead the company’s human interface teams work separately with Ternus now taking hands-on leadership from the top of the company.

He has already indicated that product development will be a top priority of his tenure. The report further indicates that key plans are in place to streamline layers of management and give engineers direct access to senior executives.

Furthermore, his increased involvement in design also gives Apple’s CEO major influence over significant decisions spanning both the physical configuration of future products and their user interfaces.