Report on Business Ethics: Apple's Case, Theories, and Sustainability

This report delves into the realm of business ethics, using the case study of Apple's slowed-down iPhones as a focal point. It begins with a personal reflection on a group discussion regarding Apple's ethical conduct, highlighting the author's initial defense of the company's marketing strategies and subsequent understanding of the ethical implications. The report analyzes stakeholder perspectives, including customers, suppliers, and competitors, revealing the negative impact of Apple's actions on customer trust and market image. Furthermore, it evaluates the importance of business ethics, emphasizing moral guidelines, social responsibilities, and risk minimization. The report also identifies and examines normative and descriptive business ethics theories, linking them to Apple's practices. Finally, it investigates and evaluates approaches to sustainability and corporate social responsibility, underscoring the need for long-term growth and ethical business practices. Desklib provides access to similar solved assignments and study tools for students.

Business Ethics

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION .........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................3
TASK 1: REFLECTION..................................................................................................................3
Analyse stakeholders perspective on business behaviour...........................................................4
Evaluate the importance of business ethics.................................................................................5
Identify and examine normative and descriptive business ethics theories..................................6
Investigate and evaluate approaches of sustainability and corporate social responsibility.........7
TASK 2: CASE STUDY REPORT.................................................................................................8
Making informed judgements of business ethics dilemmas.......................................................8
Accessing and utilising the learning outcomes in the subject area.............................................9
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................9
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................10

INTRODUCTION
Business ethics are defined as the study of such business policies and procedures which
are used within businesses. These are regarded as such aspects which are covered by the business
so that appropriate business responsibilities can be executed. Business ethics are regarded as
such practices in which appropriate aspects can be executed and business can be conduct in easy
manner as well. Following business ethics such practices can be adopted by the business which
are beneficial and such processes can be eliminated which are risky for the organisation.
This report is based on a case study named Apple’s Slowed Down iPhones. The case
study says that apple has fined due to slowing down of their older iPhones in order to enhance
market demand and sales for their new iPhones. In this manner the company is facing issues
related with lawsuits as the company is allegedly slowing down their devices without intimating
their customers. Following to the case the company has apologized and gave this activity a title
of misunderstanding and offered deal of battery replacements for $29 instead of $79 for older
phones. As Apple claimed that once the battery is replaced the life of the phones.
MAIN BODY
TASK 1: REFLECTION
I have participated in the group discussion where the discussion was made on the case
study of Apple’s Slowed Down iPhones. There were total 8 members in one group discussion
and each and every one got the chance to speak about their opinions on the case study of
business ethics related to the Apple company. Discussion was on to decide that whether we have
to speak in the favour of Apple company or in against of it with proper justification and good
fluent communication in the answer for better understanding fact which I have to convey to other
people in a more presentable manner so that I can speak in a easy language in order to reduce
any complication while understanding any opinions. I have spoked in favour of Apple company
because I felt that their doings contains the marketing strategies of new iPhones sale in an
upgraded manner. I have also justified my answer by providing the valid reasons of doings by
the organization. Talking about my performance, I felt that I performed on the average basis
because the major topic was the business ethics and the case study provided was totally relating
to it but then also as per my opinion I had spoken in favour of the company because I was not
knowing that how can I go against if I don't its proper justification so I spoke of whatever I

analysed and evaluated the case study of Apple. But after the judgements and feedbacks along
with the comments by the judges who were judging all of us with the criteria of knowledge and
communication along with the confidence in speaking and the way of giving the justification of
the answer which is followed by the voice and tone as well so that they can also judge the
presentation manner each and every student has in their own. I was expecting the average level
of comments by the judges but I received good comments from the judges and the reason being
is that I have taken the step in a very confident manner in going with the favour of Apple
company which depicts the business mind and also the communication that the way I have
delivered the content because I have given the justification in a proper tone and voice in a very
manipulative and influencing manner which also shows the courage of speaking against of every
one and putting my individual opinion in front of others in a very satisfying and confident
manner. I have gained many skills from my entire experience of group discussion on the topic of
business ethics in the form of discussing about the case study on Apple company are such that
the I have improved my research skills and thinking skills along with the communication and
problem solving skills which is followed by the gaining of business and calculative mindset and
the most important part is to gain the knowledge about what exactly the business ethics are and
why its is important to follow for each and every business. This is the whole experience and
performance of my group discussion.
Analyse stakeholders perspective on business behaviour
Stakeholders are one of the essential aspect of the business which are associated with
providing direct and indirect impact to the business. The role of stakeholders within an
organisation is to define future of the organisation so that the organisation may get ample
opportunities for succession (Spinello, 2019). In the context of case study of Apple this is
examined that the role of stakeholders is to take such corrective actions so that business benefits
can be given. Apple is having various numbers of stakeholders and by the movement of slowing
down of iPhone the company has impacted their stakeholders. Following is the details of Apple's
stakeholder and their perspective over the above situation:
Customers: Customers of Apple were very anxious and unhappy after knowing about their
movement of slowing down of their older range of Iphones. As this was revealed that the
company made this movement in order to promote their new range of phones and to increase
their sales. In this manner customers of Apple filed a case against the company and Apple got a

letter accusing regarding slowing down of their old phones. Apple has a very prominent base of
customers due to which the company is having higher market image. After the case Apple has
lost their market image and response of their customers was to quit the brand as the company is
leading to market new range of their phones in unethical manner (Roloff and Zyphur, 2019).
This can be said that customers of Apple were in the view that the company has not executed
appropriate and ethical business behaviour.
Suppliers: Suppliers of the organisation is having major impact over the business as they are the
persons or authorities which are providing raw material to the organisation. In the context of
Apple as the company is manufacturing mobile phones so that they are including various raw
materials in manufacturing processes. In this manner when the company decided to slow down
older range of their phones so the company would have stopped taking raw materials from their
various suppliers due to up-gradation of technology and minimised demands of those raw raw
material any more. This is the major reason that suppliers of Apple reacted as the company was
not heading towards ethical working.
Competitors: Competitors are defined as such sellers which are existed in the same industry and
running their business in providing homogeneous products or services. In the context of Apple
as the company is not having such close competitors due to their higher and robust market
image. Besides this as in relation to mentioned case study the competitors had taken advantages
due to unethical movement of the company. In this regard their competitors have analysed that
Apple is having weaker point related with their market image so their competitors are having
ample opportunities to grow in the market. This is being analsyed that Apple is leading the
market in such a manner that market gap is given by the company to their competitors.
Evaluate the importance of business ethics
Business ethics are defined as such standards which are essential for execution of
business functions in specific manner. For an organisation adoption of business ethics are leading
to develop such edges in which acceptable behaviours can be executed. Business ethics within
the organisations are leading to develop such aspects in which trust of different stakeholders can
be attained which is helpful for overall business success (Storchevoy, 2018). In the context of
Apple, the company is facing ethical issues in their functionality which is disadvantageous for
the organisation. In this manner adoption of several ethics are essential for the organisation as

this are significant for managing the business and various issues as well. In this terms importance
of ethics within Apple is elaborated as under:
Moral guidelines: Ethics are associated with providing such moral values which are used within
the organisation in order to upgrade their working and to attain business endeavour. Business
ethics are providing such guidance to the business in which proper insights can be attained . In
the context of Apple this is being analysed that the company is having ethics issues within their
organisation which has impacted their market goodwill (Anderson, 2018). Working with ethics
within Apple would have lead the organisation to gain such benefits which are long terms and
helps in gaining significant aspects in ethical manner.
Social responsibilities: With the help of ethics within the business social responsibilities can be
created within the organisation and this is highly effective for the business in gaining edge over
the competitors. Social responsibilities are something which is helpful for the society to get
developmental opportunities and cover various dimensions to attain overall success. In the
context of Apple as the company is associated with a legal issue and using ethics could
minimise negative impact of these issues. Ethics are playing significant role in managing the
business and gaining such edge which could be helpful in accumulating overall business
processes.
Minimises risk: Risks are the factors which are associated with every business and these could
lead into acquiring such adverse impacts in profitability and business functions. With the help
using ethics within organisation positive brand image can be built up (Jabbar, Ali, Mohamed and
Jalil, 2018). In terms of ethics these are leading the business to use fuller skills of employees
which could acquire appropriate customers treatment. In this manner various business skills of
the organisation can be upgraded and these are associated with gaining such market insights and
ethical behaviour as well.
Identify and examine normative and descriptive business ethics theories
There are three normative theories used within business such as stakeholders theory,
social contract theory and stockholders theory. Stockholders theory is supporting business ethics
community in which various members are accepting the theory. On the other hand stakeholders
theory is one of the widely accepted theory in which different stakeholders are added and
business benefits can be given in respect of ethics. At last social contract theory is associated

with dealing with such aspects in which such ethical practices are followed so that value free
aspects are given.
Descriptive ethical theories are associated with such group of practices in which business
aims are covered in ethical manner. There are various actions that are developing right and
wrong movement of the business (Carrington, Chatzidakis, Goworek and Shaw, 2020). In terms
of ethics descriptive ethics theories are associated with acquiring such direct implications in
business and its processes. Descriptive ethical theories are linked with practices used by Apple
so that to develop their business in such a way that overall business can be enhanced. This is
observed that for an organisation using such descriptive and normative theories appropriate
ethical practices can be enhanced which is one of the appropriate measure which may lead in
providing such business benefits.
Investigate and evaluate approaches of sustainability and corporate social responsibility
Sustainability is defined as the major constraint which is a long term aspects which helps
the business to grow for longer duration of time. The framework of sustainability is linked with
gaining such capabilities in the business by which long term growth can be seen. Stakeholders
are associated with such business aspects in which they try to figure out such collaborative
involvement. There are several aspects which are linked with sustainability which are elaborated
as under:
Economic: Economic aspects are linked with such practices which are used by the business in
order to lead in economic manner (Bint-Tariq and Nobanee, 2020). This is examined that when a
business is growing this will developing in gaining such aspects in which overall growth
opportunities can be inhaled. In the context of Apple as the company is having significant
business portfolio in the market and those are helping them to gain such benefits in terms of
profitability and sustainability.
Social: Social aspects are defined as such perspective in which views of society is getting higher
benefits. In this manner in order to gain sustainability customers are treated as the major
constraints in which appropriate business insights can be undertaken. In the context of Apple as
the company is developing various aspects related with gaining their customers by upgrading
their phones. At the same time Apple has met with such litigation and controversy of slowing
down their old phones. In this manner the company is facing such issues in their management
which is providing negativity in their functions.

Corporate social responsibility
Corporate social responsibility is defined as such movement in which various practices
are adopted by the business by which social benefits can be inhaled by the business. In the
context of Apple as the organisation is adopting various eco-friendly practices within their
business so that to upkeep aspects related to their growth and sustainability.
TASK 2: CASE STUDY REPORT
Making informed judgements of business ethics dilemmas
There are various informed judgements of business ethics dilemmas are such that
discrimination is one of the informed judgement of business ethics dilemmas which means that
generally organization discriminate in their employees and even in their customers as well which
is against the ethics of the business. Harassment is an another informed judgement of business
ethics dilemmas which means that most of the organizations are into the harassment unethical
activity for just fun or can be the overload work but less salary to the employees (Trevino and
Nelson, 2021). Unethical accounting is also an another informed judgement of business ethics
dilemmas which means that the people who are in the finance department usually do unethical
acts ion order to match their finances and expenses so that any problem could not be faced by
them in the future by the senior management. Health and safety is also one of the informed
judgement of business ethics dilemmas which means that organizations take health and safety in
a light manner and do not take the proper responsibility of the employee who are not well or
anything else (Ferrell, Harrison, Ferrell and Hair, 2019). Abuse of leadership authority is one of
the informed judgement of business ethics dilemmas which means that the employees who are
not satisfied with the work usually abuses the leaders for not taking care of them. Nepotism and
favouritism is an another informed judgement of business ethics dilemmas which means that the
people who performs good are on the priority and given extra benefits but equal treatment is
important that is why it is against ethics. Privacy is also one of the informed judgement of
business ethics dilemmas which means that it is related to the technical security privacy which
can associate with the social engineering and many many more. Making customers fool is also an
another informed judgement of business ethics dilemmas which means that company usually fool
customers in terms of the products and services offered by the organization which can directly
relate to the given case study of Apple (Purwanto, Mukharrom, Zhilyakov and Shankar, 2019).

Accessing and utilising the learning outcomes in the subject area
Learning outcomes in the subject area of business ethics as per the case study given of
Apple company are such that after completing the report, now it is easy to understand the
concept of business ethics and concept of normative ethical theories along with their roles and
differences between the non consequential and consequentialist approach. Moreover, evidence of
pre class preparation and application of theories, concepts and models along with the quality of
analysis and critical arguments in order to use the sources to support the arguments. Furthermore,
learning outcomes also includes the stakeholders analysis on business behaviour and importance
of business ethics with its managerial implications. Descriptive theories are also discussed in the
form of learning outcome along with the sustainability and corporate social responsibility
(DeTienne, Ellertson, Ingerson and Dudley, 2021).
CONCLUSION
It is concluded that business ethics is an important concept to learn and study so that its
applications can be applied in the real world organizations just like as per the given case study of
Apple company. Therefore, in order to better understand about the business ethics, it is important
to link the various concepts to the case study given so that the practical experience can be gained
in an appropriate manner. Hence, it is important to analyse the stakeholders perspectives on
business behaviour as per the given scenario and it is essential to examine the importance of
business ethics at an academic level and also its managerial implications. Moreover, it is
necessary to determine the most relevant normative and descriptive business ethics theories and
it is significant to gain the knowledge about various approaches to sustainability and corporate
social responsibility with regards to the given case study and personal knowledge as well.
Furthermore, it is crucial to assess the informed judgements of business ethics dilemmas and it is
vital to investigate about the accession and utilising the wide variety of learning resources in the
subject area of business ethics. Thereby, this report covers all such areas in order to better
understand the conception of business ethics as per the given scenario of case study on Apple
company.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Anderson, M.A., 2018. Assessing the correlation of culture with business ethics of company
managers in the United States and Mexico. In Ethical standards and practice in
international relations (pp. 73-99). IGI Global.
Bint-Tariq, M.N. and Nobanee, H., 2020. Business Ethics and Finance: A Mini-
Review. Available at SSRN 3538699.
Carrington, M., Chatzidakis, A., Goworek, H. and Shaw, D., 2020. Consumption ethics: a review
and analysis of future directions for interdisciplinary research. Journal of Business Ethics,
pp.1-24.
DeTienne, K.B., Ellertson, C.F., Ingerson, M.C. and Dudley, W.R., 2021. Moral development in
business ethics: An examination and critique. Journal of Business Ethics. 170(3). pp.429-
448.
Ferrell, O.C., Harrison, D.E., Ferrell, L. and Hair, J.F., 2019. Business ethics, corporate social
responsibility, and brand attitudes: An exploratory study. Journal of Business
Research, 95, pp.491-501.
Jabbar, S.F.A., Ali, H.M., Mohamed, Z.M. and Jalil, F., 2018. Business ethics: theory and
practice in an islamic context. In Regulations and Applications of Ethics in Business
Practice (pp. 257-271). Springer, Singapore.
Purwanto, R.M., Mukharrom, T., Zhilyakov, D.I. and Shankar, K., 2019. Study the importance
of business ethics and ethical marketing in digital era. Journal of Critical Reviews. 6(5).
pp.150-154.
Roloff, J. and Zyphur, M.J., 2019. Null findings, replications and preregistered studies in
business ethics research. Journal of Business Ethics. 160(3). pp.609-619.
Spinello, R.A., 2019. Business ethics: contemporary issues and cases. SAGE Publications.
Storchevoy, M., 2018. Business ethics: Normative, positive, and practical. In Business Ethics as
a Science (pp. 71-95). Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.
Trevino, L.K. and Nelson, K.A., 2021. Managing business ethics: Straight talk about how to do
it right. John Wiley & Sons.