Managing for Sustainability: Stakeholder Theory Report for Apple Inc.

This report provides an analysis of Apple Inc. through the framework of stakeholder theory, as defined by Edward Freeman. It examines Apple's stakeholder map, categorizing stakeholders by their interests and engagement levels (primary and secondary). The analysis identifies core stakeholders including customers, employees, government, investors, environmental bodies, local community, suppliers, and competitors. The report emphasizes the importance of aligning stakeholder interests with organizational goals for sustainable business practices. It highlights the need for Apple to strengthen communication and engagement with customer advocate groups, special interest groups, media, and environmental bodies. The report suggests engagement strategies such as tours of core operations, online forums, face-to-face interactions, and press conferences to enhance relationships and address stakeholder expectations. The conclusion acknowledges the challenges of satisfying all stakeholders but underscores the value of proactive engagement for long-term sustainability. The report is supported by relevant academic references.

Running Head: STAKEHOLDER THEORY 1
Managing for Sustainability
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STAKEHOLDER THEORY 2
The stakeholder theory by Edward Freeman states that an organization must create value for
all of its stakeholders and not just its shareholders (Freeman, 1994). The stakeholder map of Apple
Inc. organization has been designed by referring his definition of stakeholder theory. According to
him, great companies are the ones that align the interest of its stakeholders with that of the
organization.
Interest
Group
Stakeholder
Name
Perspectives /
Interests Priorities
Engagement level
engage inform monitor
Primary Customers High-quality
products and
services
High Need for
engagem
ent
- Need for
monitoring
Primary Employees Healthy work
environment
and scope to
develop as
professionals
High Need for
engagem
ent
- Need for
monitoring
Primary Government Ensure Apple
creates value for
the community
High - Need for
informing
-
Primary Investors Earn healthy
financial returns
High - Need for
informing
-
Secondar
y
Environmental
bodies
Make sure
Apple's
operations do
not have an
adverse impact
on the
operational
environment
Substantial - Need for
informing
Need for
monitoring
Primary Local
Community
High-quality
products and
services is
offered
Substantial Need for
engagem
ent
Need for
informing
-
Primary Suppliers and
Distributors
Expect proper
compensation
for quality
supplies
High - Need for
informing
Need for
monitoring
Secondar
y
Competitors Ensure
uniqueness of
offerings
Limited - - Need for
monitoring
Secondar
y
Customer
Advocate
Groups
Ensure that
Apple's goals
and objectives
are aligned with
High Need for
engaging
Need for
informing
-

STAKEHOLDER THEORY 3
that if its
customers
Secondar
y
Special
Interest
Groups
Business
operations must
be aligned with
their interests
Substantial - Need for
informing
Need for
monitoring
Secondar
y
Media Involve popular
brand
ambassadors
Limited - Need for
informing
-
The core stakeholder of Apple includes its customers, employees, government,
partners, suppliers, community, management team, environmental groups, trade unions,
political groups and competitors (Freeman et al., 2010). Apple has been able to have a
sustainable existence in the dynamic industrial setting because it designs its strategic model
based on the needs and requirements of its internal and external stakeholders.
Apple needs to strengthen its current level of communication and engagement with
the customer advocate groups, social interest groups, media and environmental bodies so that
its operations and offerings can match with the expectations of these groups. Even though
Apple Inc. designs its operations after taking into account the needs of these groups, it is very
challenging to satisfy all the stakeholders in the process (Freeman, Wicks & Parmar, 2004).
Some initial engagement strategies that Apple can introduce for those neglected but
powerful stakeholders include strengthening the business reputation by giving the
environmental bodies and customer advocate groups a tour of its core operations. This will
help them to understand the exact processes that are conducted by the concern. Similarly,
Apple must hold regular interactions with the special interest groups through the online
forum and the face-to-face forum so that their exact needs can be identified in the process
(Hörisch, Freeman & Schaltegger, 2014). In order to have a healthy professional relationship
with media, there is need to update the communication model. Apple is known to be a highly
innovate business; it must inform the media about its news inventions by holding a press
conference so that its sustainability could be enhanced.
References
Freeman, R. E. (1994). The politics of stakeholder theory: Some future directions. Business
ethics quarterly, 409-421.
Freeman, R. E., Harrison, J. S., Wicks, A. C., Parmar, B. L., & De Colle, S. (2010).
Stakeholder theory: The state of the art. Cambridge University Press.

STAKEHOLDER THEORY 4
Freeman, R. E., Wicks, A. C., & Parmar, B. (2004). Stakeholder theory and “the corporate
objective revisited”. Organization science, 15(3), 364-369.
Hörisch, J., Freeman, R. E., & Schaltegger, S. (2014). Applying stakeholder theory in
sustainability management: Links, similarities, dissimilarities, and a conceptual
framework. Organization & Environment, 27(4), 328-346.