Question
Social Performance of Organizations
Tags: BUS475, Social Performance
Prepare and present a video that is a maximum of five to seven (5-7) minutes OR write a four to six (4-6) page paper in which you:Specify the nature, structure, and types of products or services of Apple, and identify two (2) key factors in the organization’s external environment that can affect its success. Provide explanation to support the rationale.
Suggest five (5) ways in which the primary stakeholders can influence the organization’s financial performance. Provide support for the response.
Specify one (1) controversial corporate social responsibility concern associated with Apple.
Sample paper
Social Performance of Apple Inc
Question one
Nature of Apple Inc.
Apple Inc. an American company that specializes in the production of high technologically integrated products. It specializes in the manufacture of computers, and computer-associated products peddled to outmatch competitor’s products while availing quality and better software services to its customers at the same time. Apple Company in mainly is focused on the production of computers and its associated products. It faces competition from other electronic firms producing similar products such as Dell and Samsung (Aguinis & Glavas, 2012). In essence, for every product on Apple’s roster, it is arguably inevitable to find a non-apple substitute.
Apple Company faces limited competition from Dell and Microsoft as it specializes in manufacturing user-friendly computers resulting in its competitive advantage hence increased market share. A monopolistic competition firm initiates its unique price on a particular market segment or niche peddled by the notion that products’ differentiation meets specific consumer’s taste and preferences (Sutherland, 2012). The price determination is thus pegged at firms:
- Objective
- Cost function
- Government regulations
- Demand for products.
- Types of Products
The range of items and services the company gives to consumers in various market segments such as iPhones products, iPods, iPads, MacAir, MacBook, Apple laptops and desktops, Apple TVs, guarantee services and proper packaging are all attributable to the combined efforts of the Company’s workforce.
The Apple Company uses a Unique Selling Proposition, ‘we provide a lifestyle with our products.’ The Company instead offer the USP with its products including iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus that speak for themselves thereby providing unique features that could not be met by Samsung and LG Companies during the time of market introduction (Elliot, 2012). Apple Inc, therefore, uses its user experience (UX) as the USP with the beautiful and simple to use products to sell.
Question B
Factors outside the company that directly or indirectly impact the company’s ability to function is what is referred to as the external environment of the organization. Mentioned below are two of the key factors considered most influential specifically regarding Apple’s success:
- a) Customers
Customers are inclusive of the external elements that can be influenced via different channels such as marketing of products and strategic use of corporate information (Aguinis & Glavas, 2012). Consequently, the relationship between the company and its consumers should be embedded on finding ways to influence them to purchase the product.
To improve on sales, the key variable is to improve on marketing. As a result, market research is a tool used in assessing the effectiveness of marketing messages to improve on what is short on expectations for future marketing programs.
- b) Economy
The economy is considered a very significant variable regarding elements of any organization’s external environment. The company must implement strategies on how to monitor the economy and mechanisms of reacting to it rather than finding ways to manipulate it. Factors influenced by the economy include:
- Marketing products
- Kind of target markets
- Money spent on business growth
Question two
The success of the Apple Company is anchored on its ability satisfy the stakeholders as well as corporate social responsibilities. The stakeholders always impose demands which in turn translate to the corporate social responsibilities that subsequently influence the performance of the organization (Aguinis & Glavas, 2012). In the case of Apple, stakeholders virtually dictate the business through the perception of customers alongside sales revenues. Taking into account the continued high value of the Apple’s brand, the organization efficiently accounts for its stakeholder in its policies as well as strategies.
The company addresses the environmental concerns of its stakeholders via a policy on sustainable material sourcing. The organization has a robust and holistic approach used to address the stakeholders’ interests significant to its business. Different Apple’s stakeholders group compel it to improve and the organization, in turn, affects these stakeholders through the satisfaction of their interests.
Apple’s stakeholders have a range of concerns that encompass the quality of the products as well as function, employment practices, business sustainability, and financial performances. Such interests, therefore, highlights the need for the organization’s holistic approach in corporate social responsibilities efforts already being used by the firm in its aims to satisfy key stakeholders groups (Elliot, 2012).
The mechanisms through which primary stakeholders influence Apple’s organizational financial performance is manifested through customers, employees, shareholders, top management and suppliers.
The customers impact the environmental organization strategy via the price, and by demanding particular quality as well as by recycling. The firm gives priority to the clients in devising the corporate social responsibility policies and strategies. The customer has their primary interest of having effective as well as efficient products which are reasonably priced. The firm has environmental programs for recycling as well as responsible sourcing thereby addressing the demands for business sustainability by the customers.
The suppliers will influence as well as affect the environmental strategy by the source of energy Apple has as well as by adding the practical ideas as well as improvement of processes. The employees of suppliers, as well as distributors, are significant in the supply chain since they are indirect stakeholders in the business and dictate the organization’s social responsibilities.
The top management also influences the organizational performance by long as well as short-term goals and by their budget for the green investments (Elliot, 2012). The perception of managers as well as their opinions has an impact on the degree to which Apple will implement its environmental practices.
The employees also significantly influence the organizational performance through their substantial participation by coming up with new solutions as well as improvements in the waste and energy reduction in the process of production. The primary interest of employees are proper compensation as well as career development, and hence they determine the human resource capabilities of the firm innovate as well as develop successful practices. Apple addresses their concern through compensation packages competitive in the Silicon Valley (Avetisyan & Ferrary, 2013).
The investors are the major stakeholders as well as determinants of the Apple’s corporate social responsibility programs in its businesses. The investors’ primary interest is in the ROI maximizations. Apple addresses the concerns of investors via excellent financial performance since it is currently one of the most profitable firm globally.
Question B
Controversial Corporate social responsibility associated with Apple Inc
Corporate Social Responsibility movement is a representation of a growing awareness that depicts that the actions taken by a company have unintended consequences to the external environment. It is the principal responsibility of the business to address them.
Apple upholds one of its ethical value that dictates that each worker in its supply chain is entitled to safe and ethical working conditions (Avetisyan & Ferrary, 2013). Subsequently, that is one of the slogans behind its ideologies and it is something that the Company cannot compromise. The responsibility, however, is not only embedded in the management team but also of Apple’s employees. In 2012, Apple faced scrutiny regarding supply chain practices; the Company, however, countered this by joining the Fair Labour Association. The company also strengthened some of its policies and management institutions. Perfection in the products has been hiked, and the same is being manifested in the supply chain. Some of the key lessons the company derived from the crisis include making more emphasis on designing supplier responsibility programs (Backer, 2013). Another crucial lesson is transparency in all institutions of work. The company has ensured that transparency has been added to its annual reports and in the code of conducts.
References
Aguinis, H., & Glavas, A. (2012). What we know and don’t know about corporate social responsibility a review and research agenda. Journal of Management, 38(4), 932-968.
Avetisyan, E., & Ferrary, M. (2013). Dynamics of Stakeholders’ Implications in the Institutionalization of the CSR Field in France and in the United States. Journal of Business Ethics, 115(1), 115-133.
Backer, L. C. (2013). Transnational Corporations’ Outward Expression of Inward Self-Constitution: The Enforcement of Human Rights by Apple, Inc. Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies, 20(2), 805-879.
Elliot, Jay, (2012). Leading Apple with Steve Jobs: Management Lessons from a Controversial Genius. Hoboken, N.J: Wiley. Internet resource.
Sutherland, A. (2012). The story of Apple. New York: Rosen Central.
