Innovation/Vision
They built their company on innovation, providing products that were new and needed. They accept the risks inherent in following their vision, and work to develop leadership products that command the profit margins they strive for.
Individual Performance
They expect individual commitment and performance above the standard for their industry. Only thus will they make the profits that permit them to seek their other corporate objectives. Each employee can and must make a difference. In the final analysis, individuals determine the character and strength of Apple.
Team Spirit
Teamwork is essential to Apple's success, for the job is too big to be done by one person. Individuals are encouraged to interact with all levels of management, sharing ideas and suggestions to improve Apple's effectiveness and quality of life. It takes all of them to win. They support each other and share the victories and rewards together. They are enthusiastic about what they do.
Quality/Excellence
They care about what they do. They build into Apple products a level of quality, performance, and value that will earn the respect and loyalty of our customers. At Apple, quality management is critical to their continued success.
Individual Reward
They recognize each person's contribution to Apple's success, and they share the financial rewards that flow from high performance. They recognize also that rewards must be psychological as well as financial, and we strive for an atmosphere where each individual can share the adventure and excitement of working at Apple.
Good Management
The attitudes and behaviors of managers toward their people are of primary importance. Employees should be able to trust the motives and integrity of their supervisors. It is the responsibility of management to create a productive environment where Apple Values flourish.
Overview of Compensation Strategy
Disposable employees
At one point it was said that Apple is an exploitative hell. It richly compensates its C-suite, while offering stressful low-paying jobs and disposes of its employees after a short time, once they are burnt out (Denning, 2012)
“In the service sector, companies provide a little bit of training and hope their employees leave after a few years,” says Arne L. Kalleberg, a professor of sociology at the University of North Carolina.
And despite everything, Apple is a fun place to work. has assembled an interesting cross section of Apple workers who regret the low pay but recognize the value of having worked there.
Apple provides its employees with many life skills that can be used anywhere. One of the trainings attended is on par with a Master’s level Communication course. From dealing with escalated issues, facilitating group trainings and everything in between, Apple provided skills that one continues to use daily.
The most important principle
Delight your customers
In the case of Apple, the big plus is how well it is implementing the most important principle:
- The goal of the firm is to delight its customers
Making money is the result of achieving that goal, not the goal itself. Apple has shown how incredibly profitable it can be to devote a whole organization to that goal.
Apple has often done a good job in its retail stores of , coordinating work with agile methods and systematically tracking whether .
Communicate to your employees as adults
When a firm delights its customers, it can make many other mistakes and still be extremely successful. One principle that Apple’s former CEO Steve Jobs consistently flouted include:
- Communicate with your employees as adults
Steve Jobs often treated his staff abominably, berating them publicly and acting in a n. Yet many of his staff forgave him for his bad behavior because he was usually doing it in a good cause.
- Deliver a better experience for the customer
His ferocious determination to look at the world through the eyes of the customer was something his employees could respect, even if the communication style was regrettable.
Compensate your employees fairly
Another important practice of radical management is to compensate your employees in a way that is perceived as fair. What is fair in any particular case will depend on the circumstances. What does seem unfair both to outsiders and to many Apple’s employees is that Apple is paying its CEO the maximum that it can get away with, while paying its retail employees the minimum that it can get away with.
Clearly, Tim Cook would stay with Apple for compensation much less than $570 million, while clearly many employees leave because of the low compensation.
For the last ten years, Apple has taken advantage of the strong demand for its jobs, particularly in today’s weak economy when Apple is seen as a “cool” place to work.
- It has no difficulty replacing those workers that it disposes of
It has apparently made a tactical decision that the costs of selecting and training new workers is worth the turnover rate that its low pay generates.
Whether this will prove to be wise in the long term remains to be seen. Over the long haul, the advantages of a steady committed workforce should generally outweigh any short-term gains that can be made by pushing workers hard, paying them little and disposing of them when they burn out.
Total compensation strategies
Recent history suggests the lag won't last for long. Production will ramp up as managers scramble to hire and train, leaving a performance gap that needs filling. How to prepare? (Mills, 2012)
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Reward trainers
Apple models the behavior they want and expect from their employees. Then, they train the floor managers to implement best practices quickly. But also don't stop there. Implement a series of small rewards for achieving milestones and be creative and personal in how they gift.
Springing for a surprise lunch of favorite food is more meaningful than a gift card.
- Reward small failures
Productivity is a process so in Apple, we treat it like one. We allow staff to team up and try small experiments for boosting output, setting aside rewards for both victories and failures knowing that anything that moves the floor closer to achieving permanent gains is a win.
- Reward efficiency
Apple doesn't obsess over output at the expense of everything else. They structure rewards that allow employees to "bank" and use time saved via productivity enhancements as vacation or sick time. After all, a more efficient floor will have a much easier time ramping up output when a client calls with yet another urgent production assignment.
- Reward partnerships
In Apple Company more isn't always better when it comes to developing and refining a manufacturing process, but there will always be appropriate moments to bring in outside experts. Think of a tooling vendor who might be willing to demonstrate an early prototype for your floor in exchange for an endorsement. Apple asks workers to submit ideas and then reward those that are picked up.
- Reward outcomes.
Finally, remember the endgame. Apple identifies tangible, measurable goals before embarking on any productivity-boosting campaign. They assign leaders to implement the plan and then get prepared to reward achievements. In the process, workers come to see that performance isn't just a corporate mandate but a shared goal that comes with shared rewards.
Analysis of compensation strategies
Pay is one of the most important elements of any organization. It is what compensates drives, motivates, and rewards employees for the work they do. Or it does the opposite of these things.
What is a strategic compensation strategy of Apple Company? Simply stated, it is the compensation of employees in ways that enhance motivation and growth, while at the same time aligning their efforts with the objectives, philosophies, and culture of the organization (Bohlander &Snell, 2010).
Compensation includes all forms of pay and rewards received by employees for the performance of their job. Employees desire compensation systems that they perceive as being fair and commensurate with their skills and expectations.
An effective compensation and benefit system will contribute to organizational effectiveness.
Apple has one of the largest numbers of employers compared to other related companies. The firm currently employs 72,800 permanent full-time employees and 3,300 temporary full-time employees worldwide. However, since 2007 the firm has gained about 25% of its staff (Camm, 2011).
From the research that has been presented, it is because the firm has an effective compensation and benefit system. In order for Apple to remain an effective organization, their compensation and benefit system needs to be maintained.
The current compensation system is being perceived as unfair and uncompetitive in the marketplace.
An effective compensation and benefit system will contribute to the effectiveness of the organization. To survive and be successful in a global economy, Apple must be competitive (Henderson, 2006). In order for any organization to be effective they must attract and hire people who have knowledge, skills, aptitudes, and attitudes.
An organization designs and implements a reward system to focus worker attention on the specific behaviors the organization considers necessary to achieve its desired objectives and goals (Henderson, 2006).
A successful strategic compensation plan allows the business to compete in the market for the best employees in the industry.
Recommendation
Apple can be a tough place to work.
Employees have to put up with , crazy hours and non-stop pressure to perform at the top of their game.
However, working at Apple isn't all bad. We went through hundreds of reviews from current and former Apple employees on the job site Glassdoor.com. While there definitely seem to be more complaints than compliments about the company, we did find plenty of things that employees love about working for Apple (Fiegerman, 2012).
- Make employees feel like their work has a big impact on the world.
The biggest perk of working at Apple, at least based on the number of reviews that mentioned it, is a feeling that your work really matters and has an impact on the world. We saw this point made in dozens of reviews from current and former Apple employees from departments throughout the company.
"Engineers at Apple get to make real contributions that will benefit tens or hundreds of millions of people every day. That's awesome," one software engineer wrote. Likewise, a store manager said, "I joined Apple because I wanted to be part of something bigger than myself."
Others described the thrill of being part of the cutting edge and the pride that comes with doing meaningful work. Apple, for its part, clearly tries to hammer this point home for employees starting on day one by handing out about doing meaningful work ().
- Train the employees to get them to work with really, really smart people.
Steve Jobs was fond of saying he only wanted A-level people on his staff, and plenty of current and employees seemed to appreciate having the opportunity to be surrounded by really, really smart people.
As one employee based in Cupertino put it, there are "bright and talented people everywhere" at Apple. Others noted that this can make things competitive, but ultimately it brings out your best work.
- Make the employees feels that Apple is more like a startup than a giant corporation.
Apple may be the most valuable company in the world, but that doesn't mean it functions like a big company. Several employees wrote that one of the best things about Apple is that it operates more like a cluster of startups under the umbrella of a larger company.
As a result, you get the job security of a big company with the career flexibility that comes from working at a smaller operation.
"Apple is run like a bunch of small companies (work groups)," one senior software engineer wrote. "When your job gets old and boring and they all eventually do it is easy to move within the company to get a fresh outlook without having to change employers completely. Likewise, if you need to stretch or improve your skill set, there are plenty of opportunities for advancement."
- The salaries should be pretty good for employees in their different positions
Many employees ranging from engineers to managers praised the compensation and benefits that Apple provides. (The notable exception being employees who work in Apple's retail stores, though the company is reportedly planning to give these workers a raise this month so maybe they'll stop complaining.) In fact, an analysis of Apple salaries on the salary comparison website Payscale.com shows that many positions at the company earn well above the industry average.
- Part-time workers should also get benefits at Apple
While some retail workers complained about their salaries, many praised Apple for providing them with benefits even if they only worked part-time. At the moment, Apple offers all employees who work 20 hours or more a week with health and 401k benefits.
- Apple should make the commute much easier for its employees.
A few employees also noted Apple's commuting options as a positive of working at the company, including the company's shuttle service that transports employees from parts of the Bay Area to campus in Cupertino. Apple also provides a stipend to help cover the cost of employees commuting by bus, train and other means.
Conclusion
Considering the advantages and disadvantages our conclusion is that there must be an optimum in the scope and use of negotiating the employment relationship in order to serve conditions as fairness, fit, cost effectiveness and extra-role behavior.
Our report provides empirical data on how individualized employment relations take place in practice. It offers insight in different companies on the scope for, the actual use of and the effects of individual negotiations on different aspects of the employment relationship.
A successful negotiation hinges on the willingness of both the parties to hear each other and an ability to arrive at a common denominator in a spirit of accommodation. Hence, do not be overtly rigid and at the same time do not give in to the employer totally.
We believe that taking into account these criteria while developing the arena for individually employment relations will benefit both employers and employees.
References
- McShane, S., & Travaglione, T. (2005), Organizational Behavior on the Pacific Rim, McGraw-Hill, pp. 89-290.
- Sagie, A., & Elizur, D. (2002), " Work Values: A Theoretical Overview and a Model of Their Effects", Journal of Organizational Behavior, Vol. 17, pp.503-14.
- Schiffman, L., Bednall, D., O’Cass, A., Paladino, A., & Kanuk, L. (2005), Consumer Behavior, (3rd edn), Pearson Education Australia, French Frost, pp. 78-90.
- McShane-Von Glinow (2003). Organizational Behavior, Second Edition, McGraw-Hill Company, pp. 189-67.
- Toffler, B. (1991). Doing Ethics: An Approach to Business Ethics Consulting. Moral Education Forum, 16(4), pp. 14-20.
- Mills, J. (2012), “Ways to boost your line’s performance,” viewed 1 Dec, 2012.
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- Jovan. (2012), “compensation strategy,” viewed 1 Dec, 2012.
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- Camm, B. (2011), “Apple by the numbers,” viewed 2 Dec, 2012.
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- Fiegerman, S. (2012), “Why working at Apple is a dream job,” viewed on 3 Dec, 2012.
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- Lessin, J. (2012), “Apple gives into employees perks,” viewed 6 Dec, 2012.
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amakubi (student)
