Foxconn Appoints New iPhone Division Leader Following Difficult Year

Foxconn Technology Group, a key manufacturing partner of Apple Inc., has appointed a new boss for its iPhone assembly business after a tumultuous year in China. This highlights the company's efforts to ready a new generation of leaders to help it navigate a post-Covid world.

At Taiwan-based Foxconn's annual year-end party on Sunday, Michael Chiang was identified as the new head of the division responsible for iPhone assembly. Chiang has been recently promoted to chief of the A business group, while Wang Charng-yang steps back to focus on a role on the board, according to people familiar with the matter.

This appointment is part of Chairman Young Liu's efforts to elevate younger executives at Foxconn's flagship unit Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. This is necessary to maintain the company's supply chain leadership in the face of growing competition from Chinese contenders. Additionally, Foxconn may face new rivals in India as Apple seeks to further diversify its production footprint following pandemic-related supply snarls and draconian restrictions that wrought havoc on device output in China.

Chiang is a longtime Foxconn manager who is experienced in meeting the high standards that Apple requires, according to one source. Wang was appointed to Hon Hai's board in the summer of 2022 and remains a director. His departure from the iPhone operations role is not connected to the Covid-related output disruptions that Foxconn suffered last year, according to the sources.

Chiang has a master’s degree in human resources development from California’s Claremont Graduate University. He joined Foxconn in 1999, according to an interview he did with an insurance broker company that was posted online in June 2021. In the interview, Chiang discusses his career development and how he has been able to progress within the company.

When Foxconn faced worker unrest at its main iPhone campus in Zhengzhou, China last year, Chiang played a key role in communicating with the local government and ensuring that Apple’s demands would be met, one of the people said.

Foxconn's appointment of a younger executive cohort highlights the company's efforts to navigate prolonged tensions between Washington and Beijing, diversify its manufacturing bases outside of China, and fend off Chinese challengers including Luxshare Precision Industry Co.

In an interview in 2021, Chiang said that he had gone to India three times to help Foxconn establish its manufacturing operations in the country.

"The biggest challenge we face in India is cultural shock, including its caste system," Chiang said. "It's brand new to us, and we're still trying to wrap our heads around it."

In an interview, Chiang also shared some details about how the iPhone is assembled.

"Android phones require only 100 workers per production line, but Apple's iPhone requires 1,200 workers," Chiang said, emphasizing Apple's high standards.

Liu took over as Hon Hai chairman from Foxconn founder Terry Gou in 2019. Since then, he has been filling key positions with younger employees by both recruiting seasoned hands externally and promoting staff internally. Chiang is the most high-profile appointment he has made so far.