Comprehensive Strategic Planning Report on Apple Inc. Business

This report provides a detailed strategic analysis of Apple Inc., examining its business strategies, competitive landscape, and internal/external environments. It includes a SWOT analysis, identifying Apple's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, as well as a PESTLE analysis, assessing the political, economic, social, technological, legal, and environmental factors affecting the company. The report discusses Apple's position in the PC, consumer electronics, and software industries, highlighting its corporate culture and competitive advantages. Recommendations are made for strategic improvements, including focusing on customer demands, enhancing product compatibility, and expanding into developing markets. The analysis aims to provide insights into Apple's strategic planning process and suggest avenues for sustainable growth and market leadership. Desklib provides this document, along with numerous other solved assignments and past papers, to aid students in their academic pursuits.

Running head: STRATEGIC PLANNING
Strategic Planning of Apple Inc.
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Author Note

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Executive Summary
The organizational management differ according to the needs of the organizational structure.
Strategies are set in order to manage resources, operations and employees in an organization in
order to strive towards success. An organization sets its own objectives in order to sustain the
needs and shifting taste of the society. In this paper, we have discussed the strategic measures
which adopted by Apple Inc. The study also helped in recognizing the areas which can be
worked on, in order to gain more acceptance in the market. The company can focus on
manufacturing products which suit the demands and desires of the customers. They may also
concentrate on as curating products which are compatible with other software and hardware,
which is a popular complaint among the customers while addressing the demographic
preferences. These might prove to be effective in planning strategies for the company to make
sustainable growth.

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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
Discussion........................................................................................................................................3
The PC Industry...........................................................................................................................4
Consumer Electronics and Software Industry.............................................................................5
SWOT Analysis...........................................................................................................................5
PESTLE Analysis........................................................................................................................8
Recommendation...........................................................................................................................11
Organizational structure.............................................................................................................12
Corporate structure....................................................................................................................13
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................13
References......................................................................................................................................14

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Introduction
The leading companies assess their management strategies by analyzing their strategic
planning according to the timeline of the company and its development. Simply analyzing the
company’s resources and management with respect to the industry can provide an estimation of
strengths and weaknesses it has. These evaluations are necessary for setting objectives which are
to be executed in future. It is a less formal and continuous process for companies which are
smaller in proportion. A meeting of the board which is responsible for planning and executing
strategies, gathers and discusses the important aspects, from which they take functional
alternatives which can be effective for future progression. While its far more complex and
elaborate for bigger and multinational companies. This report focuses on the strategic planning
of Apple Inc. and different aspect of strategic management for the company.
Apple Inc., which was previously known as Apple Computer, manufactures personal
computers, software, servers and consumer electrics. The company was founded by Steve
Wozniak and Steve Jobs in 1976, bearing the name Apple Computers. It also engages in
distributing digital media content. The core products of Apple Inc. include iPhones, iPod,
Macintosh computer line and iPads. They also have retail stores all across the globe. The
company primarily focused on manufacturing personal computers, for over three decades which
also led them to facing low market shares (Cusumano, Yoffie and Gawer 2019). The return of
Steve Jobs, after a prolonged period, also welcomed newer philosophy of creating products
which are easily recognizable by the customers, which was instilled through the production of
Original iMac. With iPod Music Player the company saw newer heights ofsuccess, for which

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they were inspired to broaden their area of offerings with the launch of iTunes in 2003. Apple
was acclaimed as the corporation which was most traded according to market capitalization in
the world in 2015. The worldwide revenue collection of the company is ever increasing with a
total amount of $156 billion in the year 2012.
Discussion
In the technology industry, though Apple is one of the most leading name, yet there are
daunting competitors such as Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Samsung and so on. The computer is
reputed for having unique product lines with premium pricing. However, it is witnessing a rise in
competition within the computer and mobile industry for the growing demand (Allurwar, Nawale
and Patel 2016). The upsurge in competition for the fast growth in investments by the
companies in cloud computing is intensifying the market conditions for Apple. The competition
of Apple varies in different categories with its biggest challengers. However, the company has
emerged as a dominant brand in the industry with its holistic view of development and
innovation towards creating products according to contemporary needs.
An important factor which has been responsible for Apple’s success is its corporate
culture. The success is much owed to the beliefs and values which is promoted in the culture
towards building community standards (Payne 2017). There can be seen commitment and effort
among the partners and employees alike, towards the organization. This acts as a reason behind
their brand loyalty and achievements. Thus Apple gets placed much ahead of many of the
competitor brands which also have great market presence and competitive revenue collection.

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The PC Industry
Apple started their business as a company with the name ‘Apple Computer’ and their
primary focus was the Personal Computer industry. The company offered their Macintosh PCs
initially in the market which was rapidly developing. After the release of their first product in the
market, Apple soon emerged as the leading brand. However it also had to go through a downfall
because Compaq and IBM were offering products at cheaper rates. This helped the other two
companies gain better market shares as compared to apple. A survey which was conducted by
Gartner Dataquest had statistics which revealed Hewlett Packard and Dell as the new leaders of
the market in 2006. The companies had market shares of 17.4% and 13.9% respectively (Bakator
and Petrović 2016). However, the key to success in the PC and technology industry is come up
with newer inventions. There are many companies who have climbed the ladder in the PC
industry by offering products at cheaper prices having newer inventions. Hence, this empowers
the buyers with a lot of options to choose from. However, to curtail the bargaining power of the
buyers, Apple has integrated hardware and software in the Personal Computers (Dolata 2017).
They have also utilized this strategy in their mobile phone ranges. Apple continues to follow this
strategy which they had instrumented to lower the bargaining power of the customers with the
rise of leading competitive brands.
A strategy which Apple adapted to sustain the market conditions but was majorly
critiqued was due to the execution of integrated software and hardware platforms. It is said that
Apple could have gained a greater market share by having licensed its software like Microsoft
(Farrell and Speh 2017). Nonetheless, it can also be evaluated as a measure by which Apple has
profited as it has satisfied the customer base with innovative products and features. These
products do not just have integrated hardware and software configuration, it also provides the

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customer with high quality experiences ( Jackson and Ahuja 2016). The premium products which
the customers purchase have gathered acclamation of being worthy of the prices they have to pay
for them. Thus, Apple also achieves the aspect of customer satisfaction which they highly regard
as one of the primary goals.
Consumer Electronics and Software Industry
Apple is flourishing as a force in the Consumer Electronic market as these include the
gadgets and equipment which are needed on a daily basis. There has been growing dependency
on these gadgets as they have added ease and convenience to our lives. Products used for
entertainment, communication and office productivity are manufactured by Apples with which
they have created the demand and favorable conditions in the industry (Kanagal 2015). The
industry has seen a transformational shift because of hard economic conditions. Apple has
empowered the company with the better aspects of mobility and digitalization. It has enriched
their business by realizing the need to revolutionize their technological developments. On the
other hand, Apple has to compete with the leading brands who focus on the production of
software solely. Microsoft and IBM has proved to be the leaders in the market. In order to
compete with these leading companies whose expertise lies in software production, Apple will
have to develop software high efficiency and innovation. In case of the phones, Apple with its
own operating software, iOS, have faced competitive market for the growing preference for
Android software instead of iOS. Thus, to sustain the
SWOT Analysis
Apple Inc. has utilized the strengths and opportunities to overcome the weaknesses and
threats, which the market environment. Even after the strengths being more powering for Apple

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Inc., the threats are increasing because the industry is witnessing growth of demand as time is
passing by.
 Strengths
Apple has catered to its target consumers with products having innovative
features and configurations even when they were integrated with software of their own.
They developed a growing demand with the introduction of their first product, MacBook.
Later also addressed the growing individual demands with their diverse product ranges of
iPhone, iPad, iPad, iWatch. Apple is one of the names which comes at the top of the chart
for their revenue collection and is regarded as the second largest manufacturing company
of smart phones. The brand value was recorded to have estimated around $118.9 in 2015
(Palmatier and Sridhar 2017). Apart from these, the service and distribution of Apple is
exemplary as it also provides support in their retail stores.
 Weaknesses
Living up to the expectations and growing demand of the consumers, has been a
challenge for Apple Inc. The customers always look for something new and updated in
Apple products thus maintaining such standards while incorporating innovative features
and technologies is burdensome for the company (Lockamy 2017). Incompatibility of
Apple products with other software and accessories has been an issue since their
inception and evolution. There are great limitations within the company because of
interdependency on a few products. Thus, when there is a situation where one product or
software fails, other products also get affected. Therefore, this can lead to a collective
loss, if this is not corrected and optimized.
 Opportunities

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There is a lot of scope for growth and technological advancement with respect to the
expansion of other companies. Companies like Facebook, Google and Instagram are
increasing their prospects in different ways. Apple proposed to launch Cars, which can
turn out to be something bearing immense prospects (Palmatier and Sridhar 2017). With
the progression of technology, we can always trust and expect Apple to take control of
the market condition and introduction of more anticipated products. The company can
also invest in expanding their business in countries seeing development and growth in
GDP. Apple has enhanced their digital presence with the launch of iWatch and Apple
TV. Digitalization can be addressed by bringing in products which will create more
demand among customers and scope for them to enlarge their commerce.
 Threats
Apple has enormous threats from the other competitive brands specializing on the
same kinds of products which can cause limiting effects. This can lead to a reduced scope
of expansion, performances and financial benefits. There is also a massive growth of
imitation of Apple products which can hardly be distinguished from the authentic ones
(Zhao, Calantone and Voorhees 2018), However, there should be fundamental measures
to control threats by adding add distinct features to the products. In addition to these
situations, labor cost rises in many countries might as well increase the cost of
manufacturing of the products. The company might face tough situations if the selling
prices go up, as a result of the increase in cost price.
SWOT Analysis of Apple
Strengths
 Leader in the Market
Weaknesses
 Incompatibility

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 Innovative Design and Technology  Customer Expectations
Opportunities
 Advancement of Technology
 Increasing Market Presence
Threats
 Imitation of Products
 Rise in the cost of labor
PESTLE Analysis
There are external factors linked which effect the business of the company. Strategic
measures can be implemented to cope up with the external factors which can either be threats or
opportunities. These would allow Apple to hold their position in the growing market despite
competition and external factors which pose limitations.
 Political Factors
The political factors which effect the business at large are the policies of government and
political conditioning of a place particularly. The situation was getting worse for Apple in
America as corporation taxation got higher due to the accumulation of large amount of cash.
They are also intending to limit import from China, in order to promote manufacturing in
America itself. Association of Apple with China has also been an issue for its expansion and
operation in other countries like Japan and United States.
 Economic Factors
The external factors which impact the business of a company has provided opportunities
for Apple in most of the cases. The growth of developing countries in with rapid force often

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becomes too much to compete in, due to the increase in demand. Unemployment, Inflation,
wage policies can be the factors effecting Apple’s business (Khan, Alam and Alam 2015).
Apple has proved to cater to the needs of the customers with products having innovative
features and configuration satiating the desires and demands. It is also very important that the
country in which the expansion is intended to have economic stability and favorable policies
for companies to- start their business. Hence, the varying currency rates becomes challenging
for Apple, like US dollar create negative impacts on exchanges made with Asian countries
like Pakistan, China and India.
 Social Factors
The social factors which impact the companies vary in different countries. The societal
condition and changing preferences effect the sale of products. The sentiments which
cultivate preferences should be acknowledged by the companies to promote sales. Therefore,
shifting taste and social changes also effect the sales of a company (Zhou and Gupta 2019).
A company must know how to adapt according to the changing tastes of the people. Average
population in the Asian countries does not prefer the premium product because of lifestyle
factors. Apple is still quite an unfamiliar brand in Africa because of its underdeveloped
economic structure. Therefore, Apple is more suitable a brand for developed countries and its
consumers.
 Technological Factors
Apple has witnessed great technological changes and shifts. It has also been in the midst
of turmoil where it could have lost the market presence because of the other competitive
brands in the market. The rise of different companies in the market poses great threat to

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Apple as the buyers get provision of bargaining power (Tansim 2018). This affects Apple’s
market presence. The growing demand and dependency on portable gadgets, particularly
phones have reduced the popularity and utility of personal computers. Thus MacBook’s
market has gone down while popularity of smart phones have increased. Google, one of the
leading brands which poses competition to Apple and its products, have launched payment
app. This has broadened perspectives of digital payment and exchange. Including such
innovations and technological advancement would add edge to Apple’s market and product
line. Apple creates limitations on their own products with the integration of hardware and
software. However, availability and compatibility of Apple product will make it more
accessible and acceptable to the customers.
 Legal Factors
Regulations enforced by the government on companies can restrict their operation
and can place the companies at huge disadvantage. It is reported that Apple is intending to
broaden their prospect by emerging as a brand manufacturing automobiles (Piao and Kleiner
2015). This can increase the costs of litigation and insurance, as this is a sector which is
regulated strictly. The increasing regulation on privacy can function as a force which limits
as well as provides opportunities. The scenario varies in different counties. Apple has faced
ample of criticism as well as fought long battles for their strict policy which regulates the
third-party services for repairing. Companies also tend to face challenges legally for not
providing services after selling their products, which shows dysfunction and flaws. These
policies and practices of the company might not get accommodated by the government. In
such case, legal challenges might arise.
 Environmental Factors