Culture Vs Leadership In Apple: A Discussion

Background of the Organization

Discusss about the fact that whether culture determines leadership in Apple and leadership determines culture. 

Organizational culture can be defined as the underlying values, assumptions, beliefs and the manner of interaction adopted which contributes towards the unique psychological and social environment of an organization. The culture is often said to be created by the employees of the organization, by the manner they take up things, conduct business and interact with each other, clients and superiors (Abdullah, Shamsuddin & Wahab, 2015). In other words, it is the employees who are responsible for the creation of culture in the organization and it is the culture that determines leadership. However, some believe that the leaders of an organization act as the guardians and initiators of culture and it is their job to ensure whether the culture is fit for the purpose or not, which means leadership determines culture. Leaders are instrumental in the creation and changing of the culture of an organization. These two are the common perspectives regarding the manner in which culture is developed in the workplace (Alvesson & Sveningsson, 2015).

As an external consultant of Apple Inc., following report has been presented which assesses whether leadership determines culture or whether culture determines leadership in Apple Inc. along with the evaluation of the implication of HRM strategy in workforce management. An action plan has also been produced on the basis of the report which shows how Apple should respond to the identified issues.   

Apple Inc. is a multinational company engaged in the development, designing and sale of online services, computer electronics and computer software. Apple is one of the most successful companies of the world and its popular products include iPhone smartphone, iPad, Mac personal computer, Apple TV, Apple smartwatch, etc. Apple employs best of the available talent and provides them effective guidance in the form of leadership for the overall success of the organization (Antonakis & Day, 2017).

Leadership determines culture but at the same time the actions of the leaders are limited by values, shared assumptions and beliefs of the organization. Ideas and knowledge are included in the organizational culture which determines the manner of decision making, conducting meetings, dressing and setting individuals and collective goals. Boundaries and guidance for organizational behavior is provided by the organizational culture. In other words, management of behavior is done by management of culture. The culture of an organization is effectively shaped by the leadership team as the effectiveness of a strategy is determined to a great extent by the cultural alignment. Therefore, the strategies can be successfully implemented only with the help of cultural management (Barbera, 2014).

Leadership Determines Culture or Culture Determines Leadership in Apple

The success of Apple is the result of the outstanding leadership skills of its leaders. Since its inception, Apple acted under the leadership of Steve Jobs and after his resignation in the year 2011, under the leadership of Tim Cook.  The leaders lead and shape by themselves doing and making the correct decisions. Employees in Apple Inc. assess the priority list of the leaders and accordingly make the required adjustments in their behaviors to the extent they can for the purpose of matching the perceived expectations. Steve Jobs exercised structural power by way of defining what is important and what is not and hence he was able to amplify the culture (Belias & Koustelios, 2014).

Over the years, the employees have worked under the effective leadership of Steve Jobs which made the employees willing to devote their time for the success of the organization. The employees never used to question when they were asked to spend more time at work and agreed every time without any conditions. The culture was framed by the leadership of Steve Jobs in such a way that the employees did not even mind when they were left with a little time with their families and they loved to be a part of the group and worked for the fulfillment of the mission and purpose of the company. Therefore, the culture of Apple dictates what its leaders can and cannot do. In other words, it can be said that culture of an organization is created by leadership and then such culture further creates leadership. Both of these factors continue to reinforce each other (Ashikali & Groeneveld, 2015).    

Now the new CEO, Tim Cook, adopts the situational leadership theory which allows him to understand the situation first and then acting according to the requirement of the situation.   The situational leadership theory provides the manner in which the leaders lead the followers in diverse situations. Tim Cook made every possible effort for providing the skills to the employees which is needed in order to be successful and allows them to work in a team for the purpose of achieving the goal that Tim Cook has.  By way of creating this culture of teamwork through his leadership skills, he was able to come up with a number of ideas and effectively implement it in the organization. Therefore, it can be concluded that this made him an effective leader and allowed him to change the culture of the organization and such culture creates leadership (Apple, 2018).

Evaluation of the implications for applying HRM strategy to the way the workforce is managed

Since both the aspects are present in the organization, Apple Inc., it also has certain implications for the application of HRM strategy to the manner in which the workforce is managed. The culture is created by the leadership in Apple which is responsible for resulting in job satisfaction for the employees of the organization. Since everyone in the organization obeys the instructions of their leader, they are motivated and provided job satisfaction through an HRM strategy of retaining the employees by providing economic rewards. Periodic stock grants are offered to the employees when they make big contributions to the company. It is often called a wealth creation opportunity so that the employees can have an easy retired life (Paliszkiewicz, Go?uchowski & Koohang, 2015).

The evaluation of the team and group dynamics in the organization provides that the leaders of Apple focus on agility and instead of making the employees focus on a single thing, it reinforces the employees so that they can prepare themselves for the next big thing.  A unique approach is used in Apple by not engaging into the creation of teams for performing particular tasks, rather several teams are assigned to work on a single project. This HR strategy allows the team to compete with one another for the purpose of creating something that is full of innovation. Then the work performed by each of the team is reviewed and the best team is selected for appraisal. All design teams of Apple have meetings every week for forcing freethinking so that innovative results are created at the end of the design. Meetings at the initial stages are for the purpose of making discussions of small refinements and other meetings are let anyone to speak about whatever crosses their mind and to brainstorm. Sometimes, this approach adopted by Apple towards the employees is considered to be arrogant and it makes Apple the worst place to work. This approach make people of the opinion that Apple is a job solution only for a short period of time and a candidate should look for other options in order to have a better career. But after properly analyzing the approach, it is evident that Apple only makes efforts for pushing its employees beyond their limits by way of effective leadership but does not help them in reaching the limit. The strategy is in the best interest of the company and its employees (Scott, 2015).

The leadership of Steve Jobs and Tim Cook has created awareness among the employees that they can survive in the organization only when they are able to make special efforts for the benefit of the organization.  This is the effect of the culture created through leadership that the employees are aware of their duties and responsibilities. Even when a training and development program is not organized for them, they automatically learn, develop and train themselves. The employees do not even regret the non- receipt of training as they are aware about the HR strategies of providing amazing returns if they are capable of proving themselves at the workplace (Wang, Chen & Wang, 2017). The leaders motivate them from time to time which make them an exceptional performer thereby resulting in the success of the organization across the globe. The development of the employees is facilitated as the employees keep on facing new challenges after every project. They are prepared for learning new things and specify their requirements to the leaders. When they are able to openly communicate with the leaders and ask them to fulfill their requirements in the organization, they are able to create leadership in the organization.  With the adoption of such a strategy, Apple does not need to offer training and learning program as the employees are willing to seek it themselves. Also, the development programs are not required to be created as the employees are ready to develop themselves. This is effective leadership have made the employees of Apple to be innovative and creative (Sweeney, Clarke & Higgs, 2018).  

The employee relation programs are structured in Apple on the issues that affect the employees such as supporting work- life balance, pay and benefits and safe working conditions. The HRM strategy for appraisal system also includes on- going feedbacks, personal counseling, etc. Tools used by Apple for appraisal includes peer appraisal and 360 Degree feedback (O’Neill, Beauvais & Scholl, 2016).

Furthermore, this also contributes towards the attitudes of the employees towards their work. Effective leadership has created an open culture in the organization leading to proactive taking up of things. Employees are motivated to perform with the best of their abilities at the workplace which in turn help them in deriving job satisfaction (Miner, 2015). Employees working at Apple are creative and innovative in their own way and they are aware that the work done by them is going to impact others and they are a part of something bigger. The organization is flexible and allows the employees to work with freedom and independence and there is no micromanagement. The job performance is automatically improved when they receive such a great amount in the form of salaries and benefits. Such salaries and benefits further motivate them for working hard to attain new heights so that they can earn more incentives and hikes in salaries. Health benefits are also provided to the employees working for longer than the usual hours. The employees applaud the late Steve Jobs for the excellent leadership along with Tim Cook, his predecessor, and have around 94% approval rating among the employees. Since the employees of the organization are happy, it is reflected in the work performed by them and ultimately in the success of the organization (Hogan & Coote, 2014).

Some issues are faced the employees while working in the organization. The terms of organization are rigid in various aspects and the leaders are engaged in encouraging such rigidity. Employees are not left with time for their families which make it difficult for them in maintain the work- life balance (Bolman & Deal, 2017).  Moreover, employees are required to work for longer hours as compared to other organizations. The leaders sometimes force some projects and tasks on the employees which lower their motivation and make them feel frustrated with the job.  

Conclusion and Recommendation

Therefore, it can be concluded that in the organization, Apple Inc. both the aspects are present i.e. leadership determines culture and the culture determines leadership. However, among them, the dominant factor is the determination of culture by leadership. Steve Jobs and Tim Cook have been able to lead the organization in the best possible manner. The HRM strategies are also applied by the organization in a way such that the employees are motivated and satisfied from the jobs. Effective training and development programs are offered along with conducting effective employee relation programs so that the overall performance of the employees in the workplace can be improved.

However, some issues are faced by the employees in the organization such as lack of flexibility and difficulty in maintaining the work- life balance. An action plan is recommended to be followed for the purpose of resolving these issues. Such practice will prove to be the most appropriate practice as it will reduce the job turnover in the organization as most of the employees feel that there is no flexibility in the organization. When priority will be given to such practices, the employees will be able to maintain a work- life balance which will lead to perform more effectively in the workplace.

References

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