Organization and Management Case Study - Case for Critical Thinking

Introduction

This essay consists of two parts. In Part One, it identifies three management functions that Apple used at its workplace, which are planning, organising and controlling. Then, it describes how important these functions are to Apple in regard to the company's management development. In Part Two, focus is shifted to Apple's communication between its top management team and employees, and between the company and the stakeholders. Effectiveness of the communication is explained.

Part one: Management functions at Apple

Planning function

Apple development of its series revolutionary electronic products like iPod, iPhone and iPad shows the company's great business planning skills. As the case describes, from its market research, Apple realised that consumers had the demand for a device that could play music, watch movies and surf the Internet. On this basis, Apple decided to develop much more advanced products compared to the existing ones with integrated functions, to meet the potential customer needs. According to Schermerhorn and Davidson (2009), planning is to set target or goal and determine what actions need to take to achieve the goal. The materials highlighted above therefore, clearly show how planning function is carried out in Apple, to help the company to enhance its market performance. Moreover, it is mentioned in the case that "Apple hires people who are never satisfied, who are emotional about technology, and who collaborate in the spirit and pursuit of perfection". This explains how Apple ensures achieving goals by looking for the employees who fit its organisational goals and values, which could be regarded as an approach to management planning from the human resource perspective.

As the first step to do business, planning is the most fundamental function in the management process. Ideally, firms need to be clear about the goals they aim to achieve and what needs to be done in order to reach the goals. Apple's case lends support for this theoretical logic by showing how the company came up with the new product concepts and then leveraged its resources to develop the products. Arguably, in such a context, managers in Apple are less likely to make mistakes in their decision making process and all the managerial activities tend to be consistent with the goals. This could permit the company to compete effectively with other rivals in the market. It further corresponds with Bateman and Snell's (2007) statement that, one of the differences between a successful and unsuccessful manager lies within the planning procedure.

Organising function

The second function discussed in this essay is organising. According to Schermerhorn and Davidson (2009), organising is to create structures by clear jobs and working relationships, arrange all useful resources to support them and ensure them follow the plan. In this case, evidence of organising is that Apple empowers its staff, and clarifies their responsibilities in terms of production and sales. For instance, managers have regular reviews on Mondays for the previous week work performance. This is crucial to not only ensure satisfactory progress of the new products, but also adjust subsequent management activities based on the update information and feedbacks.

The importance of organising function is outlined in the literature. Allen (1998) for instance suggests that organising is vital for organisations to ensure management activities to be carried out in line with business goals, as well as follow the planning process. In Apple's case, if the managers and employees are not assigned with clear instructions and provided with enough resources, they would be confused with responsibilities and unprepared for accomplishing various tasks at the workplace. If they fail to complete their jobs and meet the expected work performance, as the consequence, the company as a whole would not be able to achieve the goals set up in the planning stage. In short, organising is crucial because it allows firms to create a well organised workplace where individual employees are committed to the tasks designated by the company. In the meantime, the resources of the company are allocated to support the business goals. As Deekay (2009) stated, organising helps in coordination of activities through unity of action.

Controlling function

Controlling refers to managers gathering and interpreting reports on performance for the purpose of making constructive action and change (Schermerhorn, Davidson 2009). Apple performs great controlling in its management process. As already mentioned, managers are required to have regular reviews on business progress and assess the past performance in relation to the prescribed business tasks. This demonstrates how Apple manages its controlling function.

Control function is important for firms because it guides the management to achieve goals and provides basis for future action (Kathryn and Bartol, 2005). Imaging Apple planed its goals and organised the key resources to support managerial actions, it then becomes vital for the company to assure that by each stage, business objectives are achieved. For this purpose, controlling is necessary because the management team must know the current situation of each business unit. Meanwhile, it has to be noted that the marketplace changes fast. An implication is that goals set up previously may have to be altered to reflect such changes. Thus, firms' management team should evaluate the current development process of business constantly, which further suggests the importance of controlling. The case provides similar evidence in this respect. For instance, employees in each department are expected to achieve specific goals and their performance is further assessed by managers in the weekly meetings.

Conclusion

Apple's managers work on many different tasks. Planning, organizing, and controlling are three of the main functions that have found in this case. There are must be considered in this management position. Apple's manager planning right direction, and well organising the resources, and controlling ensure the company meets standards and actually reaches set goals. Management is a balancing many different components in the company and a good manager will be able to keep the balance and keep employees motivated.

Reference

Allen, G. (1998). In Supervision. Retrieved