"How can Nikon can be run by smart people and Canon gets some marketing folks to run the company"??
Nikon fell asleep some years ago, to the extent that Canon no longer perceived them as a threat and Nikons market share started falling. Then they woke up and we have a resurgent Nikon. Something similar has affected Canon more recently and they had been responding. Maybe the response has been too little too late? Who Knows, only time will tell.