Management and Operations: Apple Case Study - Analysis and Strategies

This report delves into the management and operations of Apple, examining key approaches like Six Sigma and Total Quality Management (TQM). It analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of these theoretical approaches, highlighting their impact on customer satisfaction and operational efficiency. The report further explores the roles of management and leadership in implementing these strategies, emphasizing how leaders and managers facilitate the application of Six Sigma and TQM to address issues of customer order fulfillment and product quality. It also considers the influence of the business environment, including stakeholder relationships, competing interests, and potential conflicts, on Apple's operational decision-making processes. The conclusion summarizes the significance of effective management and operations in achieving organizational goals, emphasizing the importance of adapting to environmental factors and making informed decisions to enhance overall performance. The report provides valuable insights into Apple's strategies to mitigate issues of quality and customer order fulfillment.

Management and
operations

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................................................3
TASK2.............................................................................................................................................3
Key approaches of management and operations:........................................................................3
Strengths and weakness of theoretical approaches.....................................................................4
Roles of management and leadership..........................................................................................4
Factors of business environment.................................................................................................5
Impacts on decision-making process of managers/ leaders:.......................................................6
CONCLUSION ...............................................................................................................................6
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................7

INTRODUCTION
Management and operations is referred as the process that is related to planning whole
organisational goals and objectives, organise resources as well as supervise them in efficient
manner in order to achieve defined goals in context of production, manufacturing of product and
services. The respective process ensures that organisation convert all inputs in outputs in most
efficient manner. In this report the chosen organisation is Apple which is an American
multinational technology company founded in 1 April,1976 by Steve jobs. Headquarter of
organisation is in Cupertino, California and it is engaged in developing computer software,
consumer electronics and online services. In this report lean production, sales and operations
planning and TQM is being discussed, strengths and weakness and roles of leaders and
management is being covered.
TASK2
Key approaches of management and operations:
In an organisation various theoretical approaches are adopted that help it to
administration as well as management department to conduct all function in efficient manner in
order to achieve all defined goals and objectives. Apple adopts these approaches in order to
identify various customer fulfilment issues as well as quality issues in organisation. These
theoretical approaches are discussed below:
Six sigma: Six sigma is referred as the tool and technology that enables the organisation
to reduce the variances, eliminate various defected process and help organisation to find the root
causes because of that the errors occurred (Cavka, Staub-French and Poirier, 2017). The
respective approach allows Apple to creates continuous improvements in process in order to
provide better quality products and services to customers. It facilitates the respective
organisation to reduce the wastage in production process to enhance organisational profit margin.
There are various factors are included in six sigma process that are defined below:
Define: In this step all problems related to customer order fulfilment are defined and their
impacts on Apple is identified.
Measure: In six sigma proves of continuous improvement are measured that facilitates
the Apple to fulfil all customers orders as per changing needs and requirements.

Analyse: The whole problem and its mitigation factors are analysed in order to improve
customer order fulfilment issue properly.
Improve: After analysing problems appropriately, improvement steps are taken by the
Apple in order to improve customer order fulfilments.
Control: In this step, Apple assures that improvements are sustainable for long period
and provide competitive advantages.
Total quality management: Total quality management is defined as the effective
management approach that is applied by the Apple to attain the goal of long-term success
through satisfying customers. The respective approach is related to enhancing the quality of
products, services as well as the organisation culture to ensure organisational growth and
development (Chen, 2020). Through implementing TQM approach Apple solve the issue of
quality. As it is the customer centric approach that ensures the continuous improvement of
respective organisation. There are various principles are included in this approach that facilitates
the Apple to resolve the issue of quality are discussed below:
 It is customer-centric process that improves the quality of products through providing
training to employees and updating software.
 It is the integrated system that consist various specialist at all organisational structural
departments.
 Apple continuous improve the quality of products and fulfil customer orders efficient
according to their requirements.
Apple implement these approaches in business to access various customers fulfilment
issues as well as produce better quality products by reducing the cost of production in order to
satisfy customers (Donohue, Katok and Leider, 2018). These approaches facilitate the
organisation to enhance organisational profitability ration as well.
Strengths and weakness of theoretical approaches
Both the theoretical approaches such as six sigma and total quality management
facilitates the Apple to reduce the cost of production of goods and help to provide quality
products in order to fulfil customer order requirements as well (Haddud and Khare, 2020).
Respective approaches help the organization to eliminate the various elements that do not
enhance the value of products that facilitates the organization to offer better quality products to
the customers Strengths and weakness are discussed below:

Strengths of Six sigma:
 Six sigma approach helps the Apple company to improve organisational sales and stock
value.
 It improves the value of customers through providing better quality products according to
customer order.
Weaknesses of Six sigma:
 Six sigma approach is difficult to implement because it requires total participation of
organisational members.
 It is complicated as well as time consuming process that limits its importance.
Strength of total quality management
 TQM facilitates the Apple to provide better quality products at low cost.
 It enhances the employee engagement that reduce turnover
Weakness of total quality management:
 Resistance to change is the biggest problem because quality parameters are changed.
 To improve product quality proper training is provided to employees that enhance cost.
Roles of management and leadership
Management of an organisation plays important role in conducting all business activities
in effective and efficient manner (Wang and Liu, 2017). there are different type of roles are
performed by the leaders and managers to execute six sigma and TQM approaches in order to
solve the issue of customer order fulfilment and quality. roles that are discussed below:
Roles of leaders and managers in six sigma: There are various role are performed by the
leaders and managers to implement the six-sigma approach properly.
 Managers develop effective planning to produce the order to customer and develop the
effective working environment in which employees perform in better way. According to
approach used managers defined all roles and responsibilities of employees clearly and
communicate them all information to ensure that they produce customer order efficiently.
 Leaders of Apple lead all employees to fulfil their responsibility properly by producing
customer order properly. Remove all barriers that are raised in production process and
draft the project as well to remove the issue of customer order fulfilment.
Roles of leadership and management in total quality management: In order to solve the
issue of quality Apple implement the TQM approach.

 Managers of organisation prepare a road-map or product portfolio that includes all
information and quality measures and communicate the information at production level.
Managers examine employee performance in order to ensure that the approach is
implemented in production.
 Leaders guide and motivates employees to produce the better-quality products in order to
fulfil all customers requirement appropriately (Mirheli, 2020). Leaders build team and
allocate all resources are work according to strategies.
Factors of business environment
Business environment is determined as the collection of various internal as well as
external factors that are closely related to the business and affects its functions and activities.
Every organisation performs all organisational functions in business environment so, all factors
should be evaluated appropriately. Apple analyse all environmental factors in order to identify
various business opportunities to gain sustainable competitive advantages.
Stakeholder relationship: Stakeholder are referred as the parties who have interest in
business they can affected by the business activities or affect business. Stakeholder are
employees, suppliers, inverters and customers. Through applying the TQM and six sigma
approach Apple is able to fulfil customer order with providing quality products that enhance
sales and profitability of organisation which is profitable for stakeholders as well.
Competing interests: Competing interests is exist in situation when decisions,
interpretation of data as well as presentation of information of managers is getting affected by
their personal and financial relationship with another respective organization and people. As
there are various competitors of Apple approaches applied affect the implication of six-sigma
and TQM approach (Phogat and Gupta, 2017).
Source of conflicts: In the business environment various sources are available that
creates the conflicts among the organisation that impacts on functionality and performance.
Apple face this problem of conflicts that are raised because of lack of clarification of roles of
human resources, communication barriers. These conflicts affect the TQM and six-sigma
approaches to carry appropriately in order to produce better quality products in order to resolve
issues of quality.

Impacts on decision-making process of managers/ leaders:
Decision making is the very important role that is performed by the managers that
contains the process of selecting the suitable and appropriate course of action among a number of
alternative options. Apple managers take effective decisions that facilitates the organisation to
complete whole task in defined manner and attain all goals and objectives (Wamba, 2018). As
decisions of leaders and managers may different from each other like managers supports to
implement the six-sigma approach and leaders want to implement the TQM for enhancing the
quality if production that impacts on overall decision-making of organisation. There are various
factors within business environment that affect the decision-making process of managers as well
as leaders. Effective stakeholder relationship, competing interests and conflicts are the factor that
play important role in decision regarding implement the suitable approaches such as total quality
management and six sigma in order to mitigate the issue of quality and customer order
fulfilment. Personal objectives as well as conflicts also impacts on decision-making of managers
and leaders. Both approaches help Apple to mitigate both issue of quality management and
Customer order fulfilment. Apple analyse all factors and take effective decision to implement the
TQM and six-sigma to satisfy customer requirements.
CONCLUSION
As the above report in cal be concluded that operations and management is the process to
manage all organisation as well as operational activities in effective and efficient manner. There
are various theoretical approaches that help organisation to achieve goals and objectives.
Business environment factors affect the decision making process of managers.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Cavka, H. B., Staub-French, S. and Poirier, E. A., 2017. Developing owner information
requirements for BIM-enabled project delivery and asset management. Automation in
construction. 83. pp.169-183.
Chen, S., and et. al., 2020. Cloud Computing Value Chains: Research from the Operations
Management Perspective. Available at SSRN.
Donohue, K., Katok, E. and Leider, S. eds., 2018. The handbook of behavioral operations.
Haddud, A. and Khare, A., 2020. Digitalizing supply chains potential benefits and impact on lean
operations. International Journal of Lean Six Sigma.
Mirheli, A., and et. al., 2020. Utilization management of highway operations
equipment. Transportation Research Record. 2674(9).pp.202-215.
Phogat, S. and Gupta, A. K., 2017. Identification of problems in maintenance operations and
comparison with manufacturing operations: a review. Journal of Quality in
Maintenance Engineering.
Wamba, S. F., and et. al., 2018. Big data analytics in operations and supply chain
management. Annals of Operations Research. 270(1). pp.1-4.
Wang, H. and Liu, Z. L., 2017. Foreword: Interdisciplinary Mathematical Research on
Operations Management.