Marketing Plan at Apple Inc

As Apple Inc. has become the number one since the return of Steve Jobs in 1996 with successive launch of blockbuster products such as Mac book Air, I-Pod and I-Phone, which have not only redefined the product category but challenged the recession making Apple, become the second most valued company on the planet. This has made Steve Jobs the darling of the customers and investors and his health concerns have put question mark on succession of leadership. But since the medical leave of Steve Jobs the company, Tim Cook has become an acting CEO and that showcases that there is a plan for sustainable leadership at Apple Inc. But there are other potential candidates, who also have proved their mettle as part of success matrix at Apple Inc. and these include:

1.      Craig Federighi, senior vice president, software engineering responsible for Operating system development for all Apple products (Mangalindan,P,J 2011)

2.      Ron Johnson, senior vice president, retail responsible of developing and launching the Apple 300 retail across the globe (Mangalindan,P,J 2011)

3.      Bob Mansfield, senior vice president, Mac Hardware Engineering responsible for developing MacBook Air and iMac and now incharge of iPod and iPhone (Mangalindan,P,J 2011)

4.      Scott Forstall,senior vice president,in charge of iOS software and according to Cleve Nettles"Forstall is the man if SJ(Steve Jobs) gets to pick (his successor)" (Mangalindan,P,J 2011)

5.      Peter Oppenheimer, senior vice president, Chief Financial Officer responsible for treasury, corporate development, human resources and reporting the latest financials to analysts and media, weighing in on company performance and offering guidance on where revenues and profits (Mangalindan,P,J 2011).

6.      Bruce Sewell, senior vice president, general counsel to defend the company and preserving its intellectual property, whether it's a lost iPhone prototype or a patent lawsuit (Mangalindan,P,J 2011).

7.      Jeff Williams, senior vice president, operations ,who reports to COO Tim Cook and is largely responsible for managing the product parts supply chain and making sure all products, from that new MacBook Air to the iPad 2, pass the company's strict quality control standards(Mangalindan,P,J 2011).

8.      Eddy Cue, vice president, internet services manages iTunes and the App Store, two of the company's most important properties, along with iBooks, Apple's e-books foray. It's a far cry from his start with Apple in 1989, working as a junior desktop support staffer (Mangalindan,P,J 2011).

9.      Katie Cotton ,vice president, worldwide corporate communications ,who is a  gatekeeper to Steve Jobs and manages, the media for anything Jobs-related -- interviews, questions about his health -- and it's Cotton again who contributes to product launches and reportedly, the upkeep of Apple and its CEO's appealing, yet enigmatic image, making her one of the most powerful women in Silicon Valley(Mangalindan,P,J 2011).

10.  Dr. Guy (Bud) Tribble, vice president, software Tech, a veteran who led the development of the operating system for the first Macintosh in the early 1980s and currently defining the software engineering group's technical direction, but insiders also single him out as the company's unofficial CTO(Mangalindan,P,J 2011).

11.  Greg Joswiak, vice president, marketing manages promotion of the iPhone and iPod, but he also plays an active role in their development, working with the company's engineering teams to design the next wave of devices, down to features and price (Mangalindan,P,J 2011).

Apple’s challenge might be also to find a leader from outside, who would be charismatic and visionary like Steve Jobs or from the current management pool.