Informal Discussion by Some Apple Directors Over CEO Succession

More from the WSJ:

It is also unclear whether Mr. Jobs was aware. In response to questions from The Wall Street Journal about the discussions, Mr. Jobs said Monday in an email, “I think it’s hogwash.” An Apple spokesman declined to comment

It appears there has been some informal discussion over who will be the next CEO of Apple, according to sources that spoke to Yukari Iwatani Kane of the Wall Street Journal:

Since Steve Jobs went on medical leave this winter, some members of Apple Inc.’s board have discussed CEO succession with executive recruiters and at least one head of a high-profile technology company, according to people familiar with the matter.

The conversations weren’t explicitly aimed at recruiting a new chief executive and were more of an informal exploration of the company’s options, said these people. The directors don’t appear to have been acting on behalf of the full board, some of these people said. Apple has seven directors, including Mr. Jobs.

According to Business Insider, Jobs doesn’t think highly of the WSJ’s story:

Steve Jobs tells the Journal he thinks its report is “hogwash”.

With Steve Jobs currently on a medical leave of absence, (although he did appear at the WWDC 2011 keynote), he is still involved with operations at the company from home.

With Apple ready to report their 2011 Q3 earnings at 2PM PST, this is some last minute drama to get into the headlines. COO Tim Cook has long been considered the logical choice to step in as CEO, as he has done so before.

[WSJ]