HRM Strategies of Apple Inc. | Organizational Behavior

ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR

Table of Contents
1.0 Executive Summary.........................................................................................................................3
2.0 Introduction.....................................................................................................................................3
3.0 Organizational Overview.................................................................................................................3
4.0 Research Questions..........................................................................................................................5
5.0 Interview and Background...............................................................................................................5
6.0 SWOT Analysis...............................................................................................................................6
7.0 Analysis and Discussion..................................................................................................................6
7.1 OB Concept One: Job Satisfaction...............................................................................................7
7.1.1 Analysis................................................................................................................................7
7.1.2 Alternative............................................................................................................................8
7.2 OB Concept Two: Reward System..............................................................................................8
7.2.1 Analysis................................................................................................................................8
7.2.2. Alternative...........................................................................................................................9
7.3 OB Concept Three: Group Cohesiveness.....................................................................................9
7.3.1 Analysis................................................................................................................................9
7.3.2 Alternative..........................................................................................................................11
7.4 OB Concept Four: Leadership Role...........................................................................................11
7.4.1 Analysis..............................................................................................................................11
7.4.2 Alternative..........................................................................................................................11
8.0 Recommendation...........................................................................................................................12
9.0 Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................12
References...........................................................................................................................................13
Appendices..........................................................................................................................................15
Page 2 of 15

1.0 Executive Summary
The paper provides a detailed analysis of HRM strategies of Apple Inc, and its various loopholes that
the management may need to consider while formulating future strategies in the HR horizon. The
researcher has conducted mixed research in the paper where 3 managers and 6 employees of the
company have been interviewed based on the close-ended questionnaire. In addition, the researcher
conducted secondary research through corporate websites, journal articles, and web references to
identify the relevant data. Based on the analysis, finally, the recommendations have been provided
with respect to the stretched working hours of the company which may be considered to be one of the
biggest flaws in the HR policy of the company, as alleged by many researchers' time to time.
2.0 Introduction
Analysis of the Human Resource Management (HRM) strategy of a business is one of the most
significant aspects in the corporate study as the process of HRM involves one of the most Critical
Success Factors (CSFs) of a business organization that is its human resource or manpower. An
efficiently managed workforce may contribute towards the operational excellence of a firm and
therefore HR managers may need to prioritize efficient strategy making and policy formulations with
respect to the workforce of the company (Mogensen, 2018). The instant paper delves into such an
analysis of few key aspects of human resource management of Apple Inc., the US-based mobile and
telecommunication company known for its excellent products, value offering and a large number of
satisfied customer bases across the world. In the report, the researcher has identified four key aspects
of HRM strategy of the company and inherent limitations of the same. Simultaneously the respective
alternatives have also been provided in the backdrop of the relevant theoretical framework. Based on
the discussion, finally, recommendations have been made to the management of the company for the
long-term sustainability of the business.
3.0 Organizational Overview
 Name of the company – Apple Inc (hereinafter may be referred to as “Apple” or the
company or the business, as the case may be).
 Activity – The company is involved in designing and manufacturing and distribution of
smartphones, computers, related accessories and also a number of related services such as
digital content, iCloud, licensing, etc. Established in the year 1977, the US-based company
has a wide world presence across several countries in the globe with a considerably growing
number of satisfied customer bases for several years since its inception ("Annual Report
2019", 2020).
 Products and Services – The company is involved in the manufacturing and distribution of
products like iPhone, Mac, iPad, Wearables & Home Accessories like Apple TV, Apple
Watch, etc. On the other hand, services include digital content stores (Apple Store), streaming
services, Apple Care, iCloud, Licensing, etc.
 Major Country of Operation – US, Canada, Europe and across the world as well
Page 3 of 15

 Customers – The company has an installed base of the device to the extent of 1.4 billion for
the year 2019 and out the same, 900 million customers solely use iPhones only (Clover,
2019).
 Revenue Growth and Financial Performance – The company has been growing
significantly for years in terms of revenue as well as net profit. Apple is known for its cash
richness and the overall business has been running under the efficient leadership of Tim
Cook, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), focusing on shareholders' satisfaction through
dividends for years.
Figure 1: Revenue and Key Performance Indicators of Apple for 2015-2019
(Source: "Annual Report 2019", 2020)
 Stock Performance – The stock of the company has been listed in several stock exchanges
across the world including renowned indices like NASDAQ etc. The figure below shows the
stock price performance for the last several years in NASDAQ and the figure depicts a
growing stock depicting a positive and consistent performance of the company.
Page 4 of 15