Company Description
Ethics can be defined as the principals of wrong and right or good or bad. There are so many people, who believe that ethics are religious, social and personal behaviors. In current business world, ethics are significant to the working environment, because all the employees of the organization have to follow code of conduct including policies, regulations, procedures etc. This report discusses different ethical aspects about Apple, Inc. In order to analyze Apple ethically, it includes positive and negative ethical aspects in its business processes. Apple has its both sides, Good Apple and Bad Apple as well. Furthermore, it applies relevant ethical theories to analyze these ethical practices.
Apple Inc. is an international Information Technology (IT) Company that is headquartered at Cupertino in California. It was founded in the year 1976 by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak. They firstly started the organization by building a computer circuit board, which was named as Apple I at Los Atlos in California. The company was established with the purpose of developing and selling personal computers. Now, Apple is engaged in designing, developing and selling of personal computers, communication devices, iPhones, network solutions, servers, digital music players and other related accessories. Wozniak and Jobs continued to develop new and innovative products. The company has opened more than 498 stores, which are situated in more than 22 countries (Apple Inc. 2017). The products of company are also sold all over the world through its online stores, resellers, direct sales force, and third party wholesalers etc. The most famous products of Apple include the product line of Mac-personal computers, iPhones, and iPod portable digital media players.
The organization provides the facility to users that audio books, music, games, movies and television programs can be downloaded from the iTunes store on windows and Mac computers. With the introduction of new products and services, Apple generated a good revenues and profits in Information Technology industry. In August 2011, Steve Jobs resigned from the post of CEO and Tim Cook was appointed as the new CEO of the company (Baker, 2017). Now, Apple Inc. has become the world’s largest Information Technology organization in terms of revenues. With this, it has become the second largest smart phone manufacturer after Samsung. In the year 2015, it has the position of first organization to be valued at more than 700$ billion. As of end of 2016, Apple is working with 116,000 employees. In addition, the company is also enjoying brand loyalty and it is ranked as the most valuable brand in the world (Apple Inc. 2017). The overall revenues for the year 2016 is totaled 215$ billion.
Evaluation of business practices of the company on positive and negative ethical aspects
Ethics are the moral values or principles, which generally regulate the conduct of a group or an individual. Ethics can be shown like a behavior standard by which the conduct of a person in judged. As the best IT organization, Apple has its two faces, one is “The Good Apple” and another is “The Bad Apple”. The Good Apple shows the positive ethical practices of Apple, which are good for the people and environment (Armstrong, Kotler, Harker & Brennan, 2015). The Bad Apple indicates the negative ethical aspects about Apple.
Apple Inc. is a well-established and well-known information technology organization in the world. Apple has its own strong principles, values and standards for the business. The organization has always made efforts to ensure that all of its employees and the people with whom they work show suitable conduct in all situations (Crane and Matten, 2016). According to the organization, there are four main principles, which contribute to the uprightness, such as; respect, honesty, compliance and confidentiality. These are the basic moral principles, which are followed by the employees of Apple.
First ethical practice is honesty that includes that Apple Inc. expects complete honesty from its employees and related people. It thinks that the employees act in ethical behavior at the time of business dealings (Shaw, 2016). There are various positive aspects, in which Apple is engaged ethically.
- Apple is expecting from its employees and related people to avoid the conditions where conflict may appear to occur or occur. If there is something that is very serious and conflict occurs, then they should handle and react on them calmly (Weiss, 2014).
- With this, Apple expects all the employees and partners to keep the information of Apple confidential not only the organization, but also all the external and internal stakeholders. It conducts the business with all over the world by maintaining highest standards of business code of conduct.
- The organization conducts the business so that the societies or communities in which it operates are assisted by their presence. In addition, apple expects and privileges to manage all the partnerships and deal in the similar manner, irrespective to social differences in different nations.
- Furthermore, this organization is engaged in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities. It is implementing the following pyramid of corporate social responsibility. This mode recommends that CSR is created with the economic, ethical, legal and philanthropic responsibilities and it supports economic performance of the organization.
Corporate Social Responsibility of the business of Apple is increasing all over the world. Some of the recent surveys show that Apple is following all the components of corporate social responsibility (Mullins, 2013). In this year, the apple has done a very good job with its ethical and social practices and responsibilities. In order to fulfill its ethical responsibility, apple has removed dangerous working conditions in premises and facilities and bribery in one of its facility.
There are various points, where Apple has come in the controversy because of ethical violations. Apple is also engaged in some negative ethical practices, which affected its brand image and reputation among customers and suppliers (Carnegie Council, 2017).
- Apple treated its employees and customers by two different criterions (The New York Times, 2012). When it is about the Apple’s customers, Apple is a strong innovator, which directs the IT sector into new directions and drives other competitors to follow. Same as, when it comes to treatment of employees and management of supply chain in the factories, where it manufacturers its products. It hides after the limitations of principal industry practices. In this process, the major distressing fact is that these organizational practices are in the violation of national and local laws and regulations. In addition, it is against its own code of conduct.
- In the year 2011, Apple was accused of treating its workers and employees like machines and inhumanly (Chamberlain, 2011). To reduce the costs and increase its profits, the organization hired approximately 500,000 workers and began to produce the products at two factories. It makes the employees to work for around 98 hours. They have only one day off in two weeks.
- One of the major ethical practices, in which Apple was engaged in, is that the organization has 11 factories, which had pursued child labour. In the year 2012, it was found that more than 106 children were working with Apple. With this, organization has faced the issues related to unsafe and unfair working environment for employees.
- So many times, there are so many lawsuits against Apple for violations of patent (LeBaron, 2014). Once, Kodak has filed a case against Apple, claiming that the company infringed on its patent on digital imaging technology.
Thus, these are the issues, which the company has faced and it impacted the image of Apple among its customers. Now, the practices of Apple will be analyzed by applying four ethical theories.
There are some ethical theories, which can be used in analyze above practices of Apple Inc. Some of these theories are stated below;
Virtue is the first theory, which is violated by Apple Inc. This theory states that an organization should do something in character like and virtuous manner as well as enduring by four virtues of justice, temperance and courage (DesJardins and McCall, 2014). Apple had no courage to end what the company was doing as it was unethical and wrong. The people at Apple were not very honest to the shareholders and customers about what was running at the organization. There was not justice for the workers because Apple did not compensate or apologize them for their poor treatment. Apple requires understanding that employees in manufacturing are human not machines. They also have feelings and emotions. They feel tired. Apple went with its way and performed various unethical things to generate profit. A well-established organization like; Apple, should consider the efforts of people, who truly contribute the organization in creating its brand image.
Positive Ethical Aspects
In this theory, the only valuable thing is happiness. It is considered as the freedom and pleasure from stress and pain. This theory considers the practices of Apple unethical. This organization was the reason behind many people’s unhappiness, which start with child labor (Walton, 2013). The parents and families of those children were not happy when their children were taken from them for work. With this, the children were unhappy by going through this situation and many working hours. The workers, who are being paid lower wages and pressurized to live in the unsafe rooms, are also unhappy with Apple. Thus, the ethical practices of Apple violated this theory of ethics.
Individualism theory of ethics states that the people in an organization need to perform everything in the power to fulfill the requirements of profitability for their shareholders and owners (Ferrell and Fraedrich, 2015). This is the only theory, which this company does not violate. However, the organization is doing unsuitable and insensitive, but they are generating profits for shareholders and owners by reducing the costs and increasing profits.
This theory of business ethics emphasizes on considering all the people equally. This theory follows the concept of humanity. The analysis of this theory states that Apple is unethical because it has the people only for creating profits. The company used children also, who were very young to work in manufacturing facilities and it has not resolved the complaints of employees (Bowie, 2017). The employees and children at Apple are working for many hours and treated as they are just meant to perform hardly for a very low wages from organization.
Conclusion
Thus, the above discussion about Apple’s ethical practices shows that this organization is ethical towards its operations and products, but it does not behave ethically with its employees and other stakeholders. The discussion includes the positive and negative ethical practices about Apple Inc. The company is actively involved in the corporate social responsibility. From the positive aspects, it can be concluded that Apple is not only a profitable organization but socially also. The above report shows that Apple can be considered unethical in many practices. Now, the company has resolved the issues of child labor and performed in an ethical manner. Apple Inc. should make some more efforts for being ethical in this competitive business environment.
References
Apple Inc. (2017). About Apple Inc. Retrieved from https://www.apple.com/in/.
Armstrong, G., Kotler, P., Harker, M., & Brennan, R. (2015). Marketing: an introduction. Pearson Education.
Baker, M. (2017). How Tim Cook Brought Corporate Social Responsibility to Apple. Retrieved from https://mallenbaker.net/article/clear-reflection/how-tim-cook-brought-corporate-social-responsibility-to-apple.
Bowie, N. E. (2017). Business ethics: A Kantian perspective. Cambridge University Press.
Chamberlain, G. (2011). Apple’s Chinese workers treated ‘inhumanely, like machines. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2011/apr/30/apple-chinese-workers-treated-inhumanely.
Carnegie Council. (2017). Two Faces of Apple. Retrieved from https://www.carnegiecouncil.org/publications/ethics_online/0068
Crane, A. and Matten, D. (2016). Business ethics: Managing corporate citizenship and sustainability in the age of globalization. Oxford University Press.
DesJardins, J.R. and McCall, J.J. (2014). Contemporary issues in business ethics. Cengage Learning.
Ferrell, O.C. and Fraedrich, J. (2015). Business ethics: Ethical decision making & cases. Nelson Education.
LeBaron, G. (2014). Subcontracting Is Not Illegal, But Is It Unethical? Business Ethics, Forced Labor, and Economic Success. The Brown Journal of World Affairs, 20(2), 237.
Mullins, L.J. (2013), Corporate social responsibility (CSRs)’ in Management & Organisational Behaviour, tenth ed. London: Person, p.670.
Shaw, W.H. (2016). Business ethics. Nelson Education.
The New York Times. (2012). In China, Human Costs Are Built into an iPad, Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/26/business/ieconomy-apples-ipad-and-the-human-costs-for-workers-in-china.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0>
Walton, C. C. (Ed.). (2013). Enriching business ethics. Springer Science & Business Media.
Weiss, J.W. (2014). Business ethics: A stakeholder and issues management approach. Berrett-Koehler Publishers.
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