Apple vs Nokia: Comparative Analysis of Empathy in Business Practices

This report undertakes a comparative analysis of Apple and Nokia, focusing on the central theme of empathy in their business operations. The introduction highlights the significance of empathy in creating positive customer and employee experiences, as well as its impact on innovation. The report then delves into sub-themes, including empathy's role in diversity and inclusion, examining how Apple's inclusive practices contrast with Nokia's past shortcomings, and the effects on innovation and employee satisfaction. It explores the relationship between empathy and employee productivity, discussing how empathetic leadership fosters a positive work environment and enhances performance. Finally, the report investigates the importance of a people-centric approach, emphasizing the need for businesses to understand and empathize with their customers' needs to drive successful innovation and customer service. The report draws on various research studies to support its arguments, ultimately illustrating how the incorporation of empathy can significantly contribute to a company's success in the competitive market.

Apple vs Nokia
4. Introduction
For most companies, especially those in the tech sector,
creating products that meet customers’ demands and give
them an edge over competitors is their chief objective.
Nevertheless, as many of them have found, there are several
other factors affecting the success of a business. As many tech
companies have now discovered, creating environments and
experiences – for both customers and employees – that is
predicated on empathy, can easily translate into improved
customer management and satisfaction (Forbes, 2022).
According to Riess (2017), empathy is critical in improving the
interpersonal as well as societal capacities of individuals or
groups and enables the improved sharing of experiences and
needs between said individuals/groups, by creating an
emotional bridge that facilitates prosocial behaviour. Building a
system run on a foundation of empathy not only improves the
experience of customers but also facilitates the improved
creativity of staff and their treatment of customers.
Unfortunately, several technology companies failed to see the
importance of this attribute and are paying the price for this
oversight.
4.1 Empathy as a Central Theme in Apple and Nokia
With the continuous evolution of technology, the need to
incorporate empathy into technological processes is important
(Seiler and Craig, 2016). Especially for companies in the
technology industry, it has been pointed out that innovation
can be fuelled through improved empathy. This factor has been
identified as a central theme necessary for the growth and
success of companies. For organisations such as Apple and
Nokia, a high level of empathy can successfully enable them to
understand the problems and experiences of users that can
drive their creativity to innovate and solve these problems
(Forbes, 2019). Undoubtedly, good technological products can
help improve customer experiences, but incorporating empathy
into their innovative processes and relationship with customers
is the core of achieving success (Rosner, 2015). Several

subthemes have also been identified under this central theme
of empathy and are discussed thoroughly.
4.2 Sub-themes
a. Empathy and Diversity and Inclusion
In creating workspaces that are equitable and inclusive for all,
it is pertinent that organisations have leaders and an
organisational culture shrouded in empathy. Such leaders with
a considerable level of empathy have been noted to be more
effective at fostering a diverse and inclusive workspace, as well
as creating better solutions that are diverse and inclusivefor
customers (Asare, 2018). Leveraging on diversity and inclusion
can effectively lead to more vigorous innovations that can drive
the growth of a business(Østergaardet al, 2011).
Several researchers contend that there is a significant
relationship that exists between an organisation’s level of
diversity and inclusion and its success. This research led to the
formulation of a model known as the cognitive diversity
hypothesis that explains the importance of diversity to the
growth of a company. The theory suggests thatthe inclusion of
multiple people with cultural differences between them can
foster creative problem solving and innovation (Thibodeau,
2018).In a study conducted by Watson et al (1993) to compare
the difference in group performance between culturally
homogenous and heterogeneous groups in a workspace, it was
found that even thoughhomogeneous groups outperform
culturally diverse groups in the early stages, eventually,
heterogeneous groups leverage the wide range of ideas
present in the group to choose from when solving a problem or
innovating.This theory notes that organisations will benefit
more from having a diverse group of people from various
cultures who can introduce multiple perspectives to operational
activities. Nonetheless, the authors pointed out that the reason
culturally homogenous groups outdo their heterogenous
counterparts in the early stages is solely due to the time it
takes for the latter group to familiarise with each other. This
indicates clearly that organisations who have embraced an
organisational culture of ethnically diverse groups perform
better in creativity and innovation.

Apple is one technology company that has realised the
importance and effected a cultural and inclusive business
operation. Apple has made great strides in embracing a diverse
and inclusive policy by hiring people from various cultural
groups and gender. This policy as is boldly stated on Apple’s
Inclusion and Diversity page (Apple, 2021) claims that for
Apple, “Inclusion inspires innovation.” Apple’s show of empathy
towards diversity and inclusion was reiterated in 2017 when the
Apple VP on diversity and inclusion in a statement noted that
understanding diversity is at the heart of Apple’s work and
creating an environment that is inclusive for women, coloured
people, diverse sexual orientation, and all underrepresented
minorities is the most important commitment Apple has made
to improve racial and gender diversity (Panzarino, 2017).
According to the company’s inclusion and diversity page, as of
2021, Apple has witnessed an 89% increase in the number of
female employees, 74% increase in employees from minority
groups in the U.S., a 71% increase in Black employees, and an
overwhelming 104% increase in the number of employees from
Hispanic/Latino groups (Apple, 2021).
In contrast, Nokia had been fingered in the past for having a
diverse workforce, albeit a non-inclusive one. Research
revealed that several of the minority groups at Nokia felt like
they had less access to opportunities and did not receive fair
treatment. The study argued that decisions affecting women,
people of different sexual orientation, age, ethnicity, religion,
and those living with disabilities, were usually prejudiced and
their impacts negative (Primus, n.d.). This disconnect in
empathy from the company on its diversity and inclusion
practices is likely to have contributed to the failings of the
company. As has already been noted by Østergaardet al
(2011), companies that take advantage of inclusivity and
diversity in its workplace innovate better and enjoy increased
growth.
However, as was noted by Gaudiano and Hunt (2016), most
companies like Apple who are big on diversity and inclusion
have a tendency to apply a traditional reductionist approach in
the implementation of the process. It was pointed out by the
authors that this strategy is flawed and sometimes cannot

solve modern day business problems. It was also noted that
this process sometimes lead to discrimination against female,
LGBTQ and minority workers, as they might be viewed by other
workers as being favoured only because of their gender, sexual
orientation, or colour(Dobbin and Kalev, 2016). Furthermore,
the implementation of a diverse and inclusive culture has been
noted to cause an imbalance in the organisation’s leadership
structure. Gaudiano and Hunt (2016) added that increasing
diversity and inclusion in the hiring process of an organisation
quickly leads to a pyramid-shaped distribution, where women
and minorities are stuck at the bottom of the organisation,
while white males continuously dominate key leadership
positions.
b. Empathy and Employee Productivity
For modern day businesses, empathy has been identified as a
key factor in the relationship between the organisation and its
employees. Rahman (2016) argued that empathy and trust are
key ingredients in enabling organisations develop better
workplace environments. The research noted that with the
rapid pace of globalisation been witnessed, multinational
organisations have to carefully manage employees from
diverse cultures, time zones and cultural work cultures. Without
a doubt, there is a need for these organisations to improve
their empathy skills to build a strong organisational structure
and ensure the success and longevity of the business.
Empathy has been identified as an important tool for the
development of leadership skills that are significant in the
development of reliable and goal-driven employees (Undung&
Guzman, 2009). It therefore follows that for companies to enjoy
success and growth, empathy has to be factored into their
organisational processes. This is corroborated by Voss et al
(2010) and Feng et al (2004) when in their studies they argued
that organisations who emphasise and practice empathetic
work behaviour enable their employees to appreciate other
perspectives and opinions better, making the work environment
more enjoyable and productive, as well as develop trust and

improve performance in organisations.In their research,
Mahsudet al (2010) emphasised that empathy leads to the
development of better workplace environments and since it
involves emotion, it helps stimulate the cognitive abilities of
workers to be more productive.
The relationship between empathy and employee productivity
cannot be overstated. Several researchers have pointed out the
importance of this attribute, many of them claiming it is a
veritable source of gaining competitive advantage in the global
market. Goleman (2001) posits that leaders who understand
the people who work with them is an advantage, as it helps
such leaders make correct business decisions and also carry
them out successfully. This is important for organizations as a
way to enjoy competitive advantage in the current global
market. To achieve this competitive advantage, however,
employees must first clearly comprehend the organisation’s
vision. The easiest way for employees to understand this vision
is by working with managers who are empathetic. According to
Hoffman (2009), business organisations that aspire to have a
great relationship with employees to easily motivate them into
achieving all their organisational goals and objectives must
show a high level of empathy. This thought is echoed by
Boseman (2008) who noted that empathetic leaders inspire
their employees to perform above and beyond their abilities,
which, in turn, leads to an increase in employees’ self-esteem
(Boseman, 2008).
It has been noted that Apple has implemented certain
processes that foster empathy towards employees. This has, in
turn, led to a decreased staff turnover in the last few years and
contributed to the company been ranked as one of the best
places to work globally by Glassdoor (Markovic, n.d.). According
to research, it has been found that Apple, determined to show
genuine empathy towards the wellbeing of its employees
routinely interviewed them to enquire how they felt about the
various work processes and whether they would like anything
to change. This singular act has been noted as all-important in
ensuring staff retention, while also encouraging staff to perform

even better than before because they feel valued (Markovic,
n.d.).
Conversely, a research conducted by Pezeshki (2016) to
investigate some of the factors that led to the fall of Nokia. It
was found followingan in-depth investigation and interviews
with top and middle managers, engineers, and experts, that
there was a deep sense of organisational fear enabled by a
corporate culture where leaders displayed erratic bouts of
anger, frightening middle managers and afraid to tell their
superiors the truth. This organisational structure, thus,
effectively hampered the emergent behaviour of information
transfer from low level staff to the top management level.
The vital role empathy plays in an organisation’s success is
visibly highlighted by the empathy theory propounded by
Johannes Volkelt. The theory states thatpeople will more likely
react based on the behaviour they have observed from another
person by stimulating mental processes that enable them to
reciprocate a similar behaviour (Mitscherling, 2020). As applied
to businesses, it therefore stands true that employees will most
likely behave in a way that matches the behaviour that their
superiors display. So, if their superiors show enough empathy
towards them and others, they will act accordingly and vice
versa.
c. Empathy and People-Centric Approach
In the modern globalised world where customers are spoilt for
choice, the need for business organisations to be people-centric
is important. This is necessary both in the way they service
customers and how they innovate. Innovators who have been
able to empathize with the needs, frustrations, and motivations
of customers, have achieved some of the most profound
success (Kumar, 2017). It therefore follows that organisations
who integrate empathy with their innovate and service
processes stand a greater chance to succeed in the modern
global market compared to their counterparts who do not.

Kumar (2017) noted that organisations in the technology
industry hoping to design effective solutions for users can only
do so when they develop empathy for these users. This
empathy can, however, only be achieved either through proper
feedbackfrom users or visualising what users might need and
not through prior heldassumptionsand beliefs for what might
work. For modern businesses, empathy is a critical element to
help proffer solutions to pressing problems in all areas of the
business. Not only this, but it has been discovered that when
organisations apply empathy over varied interpersonal
circumstances and cultures, the resultant effect is an improved
quality in the products and services offered to
customers(Kumar, 2017).
To build an effective bridge between producers and customers,
business organisations must have effective CRM policies and
procedures in place. One of the ways of developing this
connection is through constant feedback and interactions with
customers. Interactions with customers are an opportunity for a
business to gather feedback that helps them better understand
a customer’s expectations and preferences concerning the
company’s products and services (Eko, 2014; Thakur and
Chetty, 2019). These interactions are especially useful as they
help the organisation bring to focus the problems customers
need solved and enable it to empathize with these customers.
This is a sure way to drive innovation in any organisation.
To ensure the growth of companies, there must be a concerted
effort from managers and front-line employees to show
empathy to customer needs and complaints. Most innovative
companies such as Apple, Google, and Samsung now fully
understand that empathizing with users' experiences, being in
tune with their emotions, and honouring customers' sensory
perceptions is the easiest way to create successful products
(Gehani, 2016). However, it has been noted that this same
advancement of technology can likely erode correct customer-
centric approaches by companies if not checked and properly
managed (Gorry and Westbrook, 2011).
As the founder of Apple, Steve Jobs once opined that customer
experience should be the first step for any business before

going back towards technology, and not the other way
around.Apple’s immense success has been largely hinged on
these words, as its massive growth has come from earning the
trust and loyalty of its customers through its exceptional
experience strategy (Cxj, 2020). Apple has managed to carve
an enviable niche in the global tech market by working
effectively in developing a strong sense of loyalty from its
customers. They have been able to do this by redesigning all
their products to customer-centric features. With an
organisational focus that places customers and their needs on a
pedestal, Apple has fashioned a persuasive customer
experience strategy to provide high quality products for
customers that ensure their satisfaction. Apple has been able to
enjoy competitive advantage in the global tech market because
having integrated into its organisational behaviour the tenets of
empathy for customer needs, the company has been able to
innovate and release products that cater particularly for the
needs of its customers and not only to make the company
money (Cxj, 2020).
In contrast, Nokia’s failure in the mobile industry can be traced
to its complacency and lack of innovation. When the iPhone
was launched by Apple in 2007, the first touchscreen phone
with massive impression on users, Nokia did not see the need
to innovate in this direction. Instead the company was still
reeling from its considerable success in its E-Series phones and
felt that whenever they were ready to innovate in the market
direction of Apple, their loyal customers would readily purchase
their products (Abdou and Hussein, 2020). However, when they
decided to get into the game, they had already lost. Nokia had
failed to understand the changing needs of its loyal customers,
instead trusting in the assumption of their strength. This lack of
empathy for its customers changing needs led to the collapse
of Nokia.
The need for organisations to innovate in a way that shows
clear communication between them and customers is
supported by the toaster principle. The principle notes that in
the past, companies designed their products and services and
brought them into the market. However, in modern times

where empathizing with the needs of customers is paramount,
organisations have to first understand the physical
environment of its proposed project and the interactions from
users. Understanding these factors are important to enable the
organisation to create a product that actually solves customer
problems and adds value (Kimbell, 2010).
d. Empathy and CSR
Corporate social responsibility is one topic that has become
increasingly important for many organisations. In simple terms,
it has been described as the methods adopted by a company to
improve its host community (Fronetics, 2018). In a research
Chourouet al (2020) to examine the relationship between
empathy and CSR, it was found that empathy is positively
associated with overall CSR, as well as with its social and
environmental components. Effective organisational CSR
projects not only enables a company to give back to its
community, but it also provides certain benefits for them. It has
been noted that as much as 55% of consumers are willing to
patronise a brand that is socially responsible(Fronetics, 2018).
Some of the other benefits of CSR for a company include:
1. Increased Employee Satisfaction: Research has shown
that the way a company shows empathy to its community
is most likely the way it treats its employees. Employees
who are given the opportunity to actively participate in the
organisation’s CSR projects develop a sense of community
and will enjoy greater satisfaction with their jobs. In a
study it was found that organisations with highly staff
actively engaged in CSR projects witness a 21% increase
in profit (Fronetics, 2018).
2. Improved Public Image: In today’s digital market,
companies that can show good CSR can drastically
improve their public image. Consumers are naturally wired
to feel good when they make purchases from companies
with good CSR activities (Fronetics, 2018).
3. Increased Customer Loyalty: According to a 2016
Neilson survey, 56% of individuals said a brand with

popular for its CSR activities was a drive for them to
patronise the brand (Fronetics, 2018). This is so because
several customers would prefer to patronise and remain
loyal to companies whose corporate values align with
theirs.
4. Improved Creativity: As employees increasingly interact
with the host community and understand the most
important needs of this community, their innovative skills
will be improved (Fronetics, 2018). This is because
interactions improve their level of empathy and drive to
solve the pressing needs of the community using the
products and services of the company.
These findings are consistent with the research carried out by
Servera-Frances and Piqueras-Tomas (2019) where they noted
that the implementation of CSR policies by a company to
address the needs of consumers in a community confers on it a
considerable amount of competitive advantage. This is so
because CSR helps ameliorate the environmental and societal
impact of a business in a community. The research further
showed that consumers appreciate when organisations are
empathetic to their needs and centres their CSR projects
around those needs. This, in turn, leads to an increase in the
consumer’s trust for the company, in addition to intensifying
their loyalty and satisfaction to the company.
Since Tim Cook took over the affairs of Apple in 2011, the
company’s focus on CSR projects has increased. Since then,
Apple has been actively involved in several CSR projects to
support local communities. Some of these projects include: a
project in Oregon, USA, where it partners with Bluestone
Natural Farms to transform compostable materials produced in
Apple workshops into rich organic material to be used on the
farm. Also, in Philippines, Apple launched a 100-kilowatt rooftop
solar project for disadvantaged childrenat an educational area.
Additionally, in Thailand, Apple added a 50-kilowatt solar power
system and a 260-kilowatt-hour battery to supply clean
electricity to off-grid fishing community in Thailand (Dudovskiy,
2021).

Similarly, Nokia too understood the importance of effective CSR
practices. From Nokia’s Sustainability Report (2020), it is
obvious that the company prioritises CSR projects along the
lines of economic, legal, ethical, and discretionary
responsibilities.
One theory that upholds the importance of empathy in
achieving an organisation’s CSR objectives is the stakeholder
theory. The theory upholds that the people whose lives are
impacted by an organisation have a right and obligation to
participate in directing it (Business Ethics Workshop, n.d.). This,
therefore, suggests that organisations who show considerable
empathy in their dealings with their communities stand a
higher chance of gaining competitive advantage and achieving
success. Thus, a company must satisfy all of its stakeholders if
it is to thrive.
e. Empathy and Business Growth
According to a 2014 Nielson report, about 20% of new
businesses fail within the first two years because they fail to
concentrate on the needs of customers in developing products
and services (Koch, 2022). In a research by Herd and Mehta
(2019), it was found that empathy considerably changes the
way people think and innovate. The researchers highlighted
that in the context of product designing, the subtle action of an
innovator putting themselves in the shoes of another and
imagining the things they need and how they would feel, goes
a long way in sparking creative innovations.
Many organisations, realising the importance of interacting with
customers as a means to innovate and drive corporate growth
have since started taking suggestions from their customers to
develop new products and services. Business News Daily
published a research in 2016 in which they interviewed several
company executives and found that 82% of them believed that
there is a strong connection between creativity and the growth
of any business.Since product development is considerably
affected by emphatic interactions with customers, it therefore
implies that a company that prioritises its relationship with its

customers will innovate better and achieve significant growth
and competitive advantage. Failing to understand the
perspective of customers will eventually result in poorly
designed products and a switch in loyalty from customers
(Aulakh, 2018).
With its customer-centric approach to business operations,
Apple has been able to leverage its loyal customer base to
experience unmatched revenue growth. Between 2004 and
2020, Apple’s revenue jumped from $8 billion to $270 billion
(Statista, 2022). Although it can be argued that Apple products
are superior to that of its competitors, its major competitive
advantage comes from its customer-centric innovations
influenced by an effective organisational behaviour of
understanding the needs of customers. This is strengthened by
the statement on Apple’s Genius Training Manual written in
bold that, “TREAT EVERY CUSTOMER INTERACTION
WITH EMPATHY, NOT SYMPATHY”(Forbes, 2012). This
focused interest on customer needs has helped Apple enjoy
massive business growth. For the quarter ending in December
31, 2021, Apple generated a revenue of $123.945B, a 11.22%
increase year-over-year (Macrotrends, 2021).