Daijiworld Media Network – New Delhi
New Delhi, July 9: Indian-American tech executive Sabih Khan has been appointed as the new chief operating officer (COO) of Apple Inc, marking a major milestone in the company’s leadership transition.
Khan, a seasoned Apple veteran with three decades of experience, will officially take over later this month, succeeding current COO Jeff Williams.
Khan is currently serving as vice-president of operations and has played a critical role in developing and managing Apple’s vast global supply chain. His appointment was met with high praise from Apple CEO Tim Cook, who called Khan a “brilliant strategist and one of the central architects of Apple’s supply chain.”
“Sabih leads with heart and values, and I know he will make an exceptional chief operating officer. He helped ensure that Apple can be nimble in response to global challenges,” Cook said in a statement.
Jeff Williams, who has held the COO position since 2015, will continue working with Apple until his retirement later this year, during which time he will oversee the company’s design team and the Apple watch division.
Who is Sabih Khan?
Sabih Khan was born in 1966 in Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, and moved to Singapore at the age of 10. He went on to pursue his undergraduate education at Tufts University, earning a bachelor’s degree in economics and mechanical engineering, and later obtained a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in the United States.
Before joining Apple, Khan worked at GE Plastics (now SABIC) as an application development and key account technical leader.
He began his journey with Apple in 1995 and has since played a crucial role in streamlining and transforming the company’s global operations. In 2019, he was appointed senior vice president of operations, a role in which he helped expand Apple’s green manufacturing partnerships and championed environmental sustainability initiatives.
In addition to overseeing planning, procurement, manufacturing, logistics, and product fulfilment, Khan has been in charge of product quality and has led Apple’s supplier responsibility programmes, which aim to safeguard and educate workers at global manufacturing sites.
Earlier, Tim Cook had commended Khan for his leadership in reducing Apple’s carbon footprint by over 60%. He noted that the 59-year-old executive had introduced new technologies and advanced methods that not only enhanced manufacturing but also boosted Apple's production capacity in the United States.
Khan’s promotion is seen as a testament to his long-standing contributions and Apple’s continued focus on sustainable, ethical, and innovative global operations.