Apple’s recent iOS 8.0.1 FUBAR and the 2012 Apple Maps mess reportedly have something in common: the same mid-level manager, who was in charge of overseeing both projects. The Peter Principle is alive and well in corporate America.
[The manager] was removed from the maps team after the software gave users unreliable directions and mislabeled landmarks, though he remained in charge of testing for iOS, said one person, who asked not to be identified since the information isn’t public.
The employee in question – who some publications have named, but we won’t, as he’s probably dealing with enough sh#t right now – has worked at Apple since 2000, and is in charge of a global software testing team of more than 100 people.
The Bloomberg report notes that engineers who test new software are sometimes unable to get their hands on the latest iPhones until they’re released to the public, “resulting in updates that may not have gone through tests that are are rigorous as those for the latest handsets,” and internal “turf wars” can also impact quality testing.
Internal turf battles also can impact quality testing, according to a former senior manager. Teams responsible for testing cellular and Wi-Fi connectivity will sometimes sign off on a product release, then [the manager’s] team will discover later that it’s not compatible with another feature, the person said.
iOS 8.0.1 was released on Wednesday, and contained critical bugs that disabled cellular service and the Touch ID sensor on iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus handsets. Apple reports that affected handsets numbered “less than 40,000.”
Apple released iOS 8.0.2 on Thursday evening, which fixed the cellular and Touch ID issues on the affected devices.
