How Apple Became What it Is

Organizational behavior is a study that encompasses the examination and analysis of the influence that persons, groups, and structure have on behavior within organizations with the main intent of employing such understanding on behavior so as to make organizations function in a more effective manner. In other words, it is the analysis of what individuals undertake in an organization and how their behavior has an influence on the performance of the organization.

By having an understanding of the manner in which interrelation and working together with others in the organization, followed by improvements can be undertaken for a company. An apparent characteristic of organizational behavior is discerning the detailed behaviors of personnel or groups of workers in diverse settings or how they respond to certain occasions or circumstances (Robbins and Judge, 2013).

Organization's Background and Nature of its Business Apple Inc., formerly known as Apple Computer, Inc., is a transnational American organization that is based in the state of California that creates, develops, and retails end user electronics, computer software and separate PCs. The company is renowned for its hardware products such as the Macbooks which is a product line of computers, the iPod, the iPhone, and the iPad. The organization was founded in the year 1976 and registered as Apple Computer, Inc.

But the organization altered its name in the year 2007 replicating its enthused concentration and emphasis on consumer electronics once the company unveiled the iPhone. Apple is by far the largest publicly traded company globally in terms of market capitalization with just over three hundred and fifty retail stores in about ten different nations and over sixty thousand permanent and full-time personnel and just about three thousand provisional full-time employees across the whole world. Apple Inc.

is the second biggest company in the information technology sector, ranking just below Samsung Electronics on the basis of revenue generated. Apple Inc. efficaciously makes use of interlacing numerous key organizational behavior concepts to greatly improve and augment the strength of the organization. This paper will make an analysis, evaluation and recommendation of three of these concepts which include organizational leadership, organizational culture, and organizational structure.

Organizational Culture Organizational culture also referred to as corporate culture is considered to encompass the association and affiliation between members of the organization and the manner in which they interact and interconnect with each other as they undertake their duties and roles for the organization. Having confidence in and partaking in similar objectives and expectations within an organization is what outlines the organizational culture.

An organization that has resilient and solid mutual beliefs and strives towards a common objective and vision is able to have an effective and efficient business operation. Organizational culture has noticeable features and characteristics that take account of day-to-day observations of work practices within the organization or through individual considerations or understandings from members of the organization who are directly influenced by occurrences that have taken place (Stokyo, 2009). Progressively more managers are making use of the aspect of organizational or corporate culture.

This is not quite difficult to understand exactly why. Several managers want to be acquainted with the manner in which individuals come to discuss and talk about insights, understandings, and outlooks, in addition to how place of work representation forms the manner in which individuals experience and act. The objective might not be conformism as such, as there are innumerable advantages to logical diversity.

Nevertheless, there is an extensive conviction that certain kinds of logical cohesion can decrease fruitless conflict, encourage teamwork, and line up work in the direction of a sole determination, all devoid of the necessity for domineering administration. In addition, cultural pride can boost the emotions and stimulate the minds to attaining the objective or purpose. Organizational culture is a theoretically influential dynamism (Stokyo, 2009). This paper will analyze, evaluate and recommend the manner in which to improve the organizational culture of Apple Inc. through different elements of organizational culture as follows: 1.

Business Ethics Value is deemed to be the core or center of organizational culture which consists of vital and significant philosophies and notions that are mutually shared by the employees of an organization. The basic reasoning that offers a backing for the necessity for ethical guiding principles is that activities in organizations are the outcome of decisions by individuals and human beings have a tendency to seek out validation for their activities further than the tenet of cash (Price, 2007).

Business ethics are a group of principles and philosophies which an organization puts up with and represents. As a whole, it encompasses its obligation to its stakeholders, stockholders, personnel, consumer and the general public. It also concerns itself with the economy, political affairs and the environs as well (Ferrell, 2004). The vital and essential belief or standard of business ethics in Apple Inc. is considered to be the use of good judgment.

The company clearly and evidently in its mission statement as the organization asserts that it is devoted and dedicated to safeguarding the environment and making certain of the health and safety of its personnel as well as that of the global community (Blodget, 2013). In as much as Apple Inc. has established a constant and steady code of business ethics, the organization has not been fruitful in executing them and in turn has not nurtured a comprehensive ethical corporate culture.

The vital principles and ideals laid out by the organization in its mission statement are not mirrored in the manner in which they undertake business. It can be deemed unethical for the company to undertake profit maximization to its stockholders with the disregard of the work and life balance of its personnel. Generation of profits is not considered inappropriate, but the manner in which the organization overworks itself to attain revenues is deemed wrong.

Apple as an organization is keen on increasing working hours for its employees with the main intent of generating even greater revenues but fails to consider the work life balance of its employees which they lack (Koetsier, 2013). 2.

Secrecy / Privacy Milton Friedman made the argument that the sole social responsibility of an organization is to employ its resources and dynamism on activities that are planned and intended to increase the level of profit with the understanding that it remains within the guidelines, taking part in open commercial activities and devoid of dishonesty (Lahdesmaki, 2012). However, Apple as an organization operated differently from this. The company activates and functions on a secured and sealed business information policy. Apple Inc.

sustains a culture of privacy or secrecy and in turn enforces or carries out severe penalties on workers who encroach upon the regulation by distributing information (Edwards, 2013). The corporate culture of secrecy of the organization to some extent brings about disapproval and condemnation on their absence of transparency and results in several inquiries regarding their genuineness. The organization's fascination with sustaining security could harm the corporation and its trademark in the postmodern epoch of providing stakeholders and the general public with transparency.

However, bearing this in mind, it is imperative to take note that the secretive protection policy of information that is executed by the company has facilitated it in maintaining the discretion of its patented products and safeguard its trade top-secret information. Nevertheless the component of privacy that has empowered this has suffered a progressively more expensive price and has come to be ethically and morally unjustifiable (Daniels Fund Ethics Initiative, 2012). It is recommended that the company can be open to the public regarding its activities without revealing too much detail.

This in turn can be effective for all the parties as all the consumers will stop being harassed and threatened over information being sought out about company operations. Organizational Leadership Robbins and Judge (2013) define leadership to be the capability or proficiency of influencing a group in the direction of achieving or attaining a purpose or a set of objectives.

It is imperative to note that leadership does not purely arise from managers or supervisors who are handed such positions but there is leadership which emanates outside the official structure of the organization. There is a great necessity for strong levels of leadership and also management in organizations in order to attain optimum levels of efficiency.

There is a great need for leaders in the present day to contest and defy the status quo, come up with ideas for the forthcoming periods, and motivate and inspire members of the organizations to strive to achieve the goals and objectives that are set out. Different Styles of Leadership Different managers make use of particularly different styles of management which vary and extend from dictatorial and controlling styles to laissez-faire and facilitative styles of leadership.

Transformational and transactional styles of leadership are stark contraries with regards to the fundamental philosophies of management and motivation. These two styles of leadership were developed by Bass (1985) and Burns (1978). Transactional leadership takes place when one individual makes the move in contacting other individuals with the resolve to interchange something valuable. In other words, it is the leaders who make the approach to the followers. On the other hand, transformational leadership is centered in more than submission and obedience of the followers.

It encompasses a change in the principles, the wishes, and the ideals of the followers. The outcome of transforming leadership is an association of shared motivation and boost that translates followers into leaders and might translate leaders into agents of good and ethics (Kuhnert and Lewis, 1987). Transformational Style of Leadership Apple, as an organization has experienced both of these styles of organizational leadership. Steve Jobs, the former CEO of Apple Inc. was an enigmatic leader who possessed a resilient desire for innovation and motivation.

On the basis of the models of leadership developed by Bass and Burns, Jobs can be deemed to have been a transformational leader considering the fact that he managed to stimulate and impact the personnel at the organization to achieve the greatest extent of productivity. It can easily be considered that the advancement, development and progression of Apple were greatly helped by his astounding dynamism, enthralling character and articulateness (Reschke, 2014).

Transformational leaders are understood to employ their power and supremacy to basically restructure, therefore altering the longstanding and previous ways of undertaking things. This is precisely what Steve Jobs did as experts consider that he motivated the workers at Apple to materialize and come up with original and exceptional products by discerning in a different way compared to other companies. However, the downside to this style of leadership style is that, responsibility is given priority over personal attention.

This is mirrored in the report that, Apple Inc., workers perceived the organization as a clubs instead of a family and that the organization regarded assignment and success to be more significant compared to the practice or relations made. Additionally, an additional downside to the transformational leadership style is the perception of the leader as an indispensable figure as it is a structure or system that is centered on the leader (Kuhnert and Lewis, 1987). The company greatly feared what life would be devoid of Steve Jobs.

Transactional Style of Leadership Tim Cook, the successor to Jobs, is the current CEO of Apple Inc. The style of leadership employed and expressed by Cook is entirely different from that of Jobs.

On the basis of the models of leadership developed by Bass and Burns, Jobs can be deemed to have been a transactional leader considering the fact that he has attempted to sustain the organization at the top level that it is in by simply making use of the capital it has and not creating innovative products like it used to (Lashinksy, 2012). Since the release of the iPad which was done before the demise of Jobs, the company up until now has not come up any new and innovative products.

Instead, the company is currently making different products from the same models such as the iPhone 6 (Associated Press, 2014). In addition, Cook has used the returns made by the company to pay out the shareholders in terms of dividends (Reschke, 2014). Transactional leaders are understood to largely focus on sustaining the relationships formed within and outside the organization rather than stimulating for innovation and ingenuity (Kuhnert and Lewis, 1987). This is precisely what Cook is instituting at Apple Inc.

However, the weakness to this style of leadership style is that, the organization concentrates on the relationships of the shareholders and the workers and fails to steer itself in the direction of innovation and productivity. At the moment, since the year 2010, Apple has not come up with a new product. Rival companies such as Samsung have come up with innovative products such as the wearable devices and Google has also come up with Google Glass.

The recommendation made is that it is imperative for the organization to consider its leadership style for the reason that it might lose its status as the biggest and most innovative company ion the world. Organizational Structure In order for an organization to attain success, there is a need for a reliable and resilient organizational structure. The manner in which any company sets up has a direct influence on its failure level or success level.

It is essential for an organization to structure and organize itself in a manner that will achieve its objectives and targets in an effective manner. In as much as the organizational structure of an entity places emphasis on the objectives and goals, it also commands the way in which the strategies and main concerns of the top executives are reported. Having a proper understanding of the organizational structure of a company, it becomes possible to know cross-functional interactions to organize work determinations and optimum outcomes (Robbins and Judge, 2013). Apple Inc.

has experienced changes in its organizational structure in the past number of years. Before the demise of Steve Jobs, the organization functioned and operated through him. This is in the sense that every decision made concerning a product or service had to go through him. The main advantage of this organizational structure is that decision making was easy and fast. This is because there was no need for consensus between different parties and shots were called by one individual. However, it was disadvantageous during some times.

This is because when the CEO placed focus on one product, other products would be disregarded and would be stalling before they progress (Yarow, 2013). However, the organizational structure was changed when Tim Cook took over as the CEO of the company. Presently, the company does not function through one individual but operated under a cooperative or combined structure. This kind of organizational structure is intended or planned to bring parties and teams together for a long run affiliation in order to work towards achieving a mutual objective or goal.

The main advantage of this structure is that it helps individuals in their personal work as well as their combined team work. In this structure, professionals work together to attain objectives autonomous of their position, and such actions and activities permits an effectual and operational partnership amongst diverse abilities. In addition, collaboration brings two minds to act as one which increases the level of productivity. There is a drawback to this structure though.

With the organization being used to years of individual work rather than that which is collaborative, it can be a problem to come to a consensus. This is for the reason that such individuals are strong willed and have different ideas of their own and therefore coming to a unified solution can be a problem for the organization (Yarow, 2013).

The strategic way to improve this which has been done has been to employ a manager to oversee this process and the vice president of the company has been given this task. Recommendation Based on the analysis and discussion done regarding the organizational behavior of Apple in terms of the different aspects, there are several recommendations that can be made for the company to improve itself through various strategic actions. To begin with, it is recommended that Apple Inc.

needs to interchange the work approach being employed from one that is individualistic into an approach that a more comprehensive team approach. This is the strategic action where formed teams become accountable and liable for the work and tasks done and not just individuals. Workers as individuals get valued and esteemed for the contributions they make but for the entire group or team would profit from any kind of prize.

This strategic action will aid in nurturing harmony and unanimity within the organization and decrease the extent of rivalry between personnel and at the same time get rid of hostile sentiments that might come about from bigoted and biased promotions. Team working in general is beneficial to the organization rather than individuals working separately. The organizational culture of working hard that is being implemented in Apple Inc.

is not deemed viable and maintainable for the forthcoming periods for the reason that it enforces lengthy and extensive demanding working hours for the personnel of the company. The strategic action that is recommended to improve the company is the institution of a more efficient shift working structure or flexible working hours. This system can be beneficial for the organization, for the reason that it makes sure that there is good productivity levels from the employees and at the same time the workers benefit from a proper.