It's not a surprise, but Apple's highest executives are all within an arms reach of retirement. Expect to see fresh faces rising to fill most of those roles by 2030.

There has been a lot of talk about Apple CEO Tim Cook's succession plans, but that overshadows Apple's other problem. Its entire executive page is circling the retirement age, which could signal significant changes soon.

While most of us might think of retirement being at about 64 years old, the ultra-wealthy tend to take a different approach. They'll either stay in their seat of power until their faculties fail them and the board demands their removal, or they'll retire at the ripe young age of 60 or so to "spend time with their family."

When examining the Apple leadership page, Cook is certainly the one closest to retirement, at least by age. It shouldn't shock anyone to learn that nearly all of the top executives are over 60.

The youngest is John Ternus, who took over as SVP of Hardware Engineering in 2021. CFO Kevan Parekh took on the role in 2024, so he's also fresh at 53.

Otherwise, everyone has been in their leadership roles for years, if not decades. The lineup isn't all that different from a decade ago when Apple was introducing Apple Watch for the first time.

Some have studied the top companies in the United States in "eras" of operation. You have the founders' era with Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, and the like, then the latest era of financial gains with Tim Cook.

A lot of start-ups have risen in the past decade with the mentality "move fast and break things," which isn't a match for these supersized trillionaire brands. It's tough to say what the next era will bring, but many hope Apple will see a more daring set of leadership.

That, however, seems highly unlikely.

Whoever replaces Tim Cook will likely follow in his footsteps of being a highly methodical leader that relies upon numbers, not feelings. Those that follow in the SVP roles will likely complement the new CEO.

There will be increasing reports of shifting leadership inside of Apple angled to suggest the company is struggling to find its way and whatnot. Ignore the clickbait — it's just time for some leaders to move on.

Whatever the future holds for Apple, it's a big ship that's slow to turn. No matter how radical a new leader is, the company will take decades to change in any significant manner.

Expect Apple to continue to operate similarly for some time to come, especially as it navigates increasingly difficult global relations. The current trend is diversification of the global supply chain, which will likely drive decisions well past 2030, regardless of who is in charge.