Introduction
Foxconn is a Chinese manufacturing company leading in producing electronic products worldwide. It makes these items for leading brands in the manufacturing industry, such as Apple. However, there was a lot of heat in the partnership between Apple and Foxconn due to the working conditions existing in Foxconn. Apple Inc. has become an iconic and admirable company, even for famous Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. The company, founded in 1996, has been undergoing fast growth in revenue with an increase in its valuation through the years.
Characteristics of Apple Culture that Led to the Foxconn Scandal in 2012
Based on the case study, the Foxconn scandal in 2012 contributed majorly to the poor working condition that employees of Foxconn were going through in the company. The manager of the firm promised a better working environment for the staff members, but it failed to deliver (“Case study,” 2014). The facilities consisted of a large group of employees who, despite their effort and long hours of work, faced significant mistreatment, including standing during work hours (Pun et al., 2019). Similarly, the employees in the Foxconn Company experienced a number of suicide cases from their colleagues who suffered mental problems due to the working condition and pressure from the management. Even though the firm had better facilities, such as cinemas and a swimming pool, workers found it challenging to bear the mistreatment they received from their supervisors (Yang, 2021). Based on the case study, the report by universities in China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan revealed that over 13 people died of suicide. The aspect was enhanced by the negligence of the firm to increase wages and implement mental health services.
In addition, the public radio broadcast and the podcast exposed the conditions which the workers were facing in the Foxconn Company. The viral downloads attained over 800,000 views which gave the public, including suppliers of the firm, insight into how the business organization was treating its employees (He et al., 2019). The exposure by Mike Daisey made the organization lose a significant number of consumers which made it lose the market.
Apple’s Stakeholders and how they are impacted by Supply Chain Issues
In the industry, Apple has significant stakeholders who are vulnerable to any form of misconduct linked to the company. They include consumers, employees, suppliers, and the government (Buckley, 2020). The mentioned stakeholders face poor reputations following the disclosure of the working relationship between Apple and Foxconn. Using Porter’s Five Forces framework, Apple is facing significant rivalry from its competitors, such as Microsoft and Samsung (“Case study,” 2014). Similarly, its consumers have strong buyer power since they can purchase the products from other providers. The Suppliers have the ability to offer their items to competitors in the market.
Recommendation and Conclusion
Analyzing Apple Inc. in terms of Porter’s Five Forces gives a clear insight into its external strengths leading to its success. Based on these five forces, the firm addresses the trade’s competitiveness and the customers’ bargaining power, which are among the most crucial external forces that affect the business (Chan et al., 2022). Moreover, this analysis indicates that the organization needs to focus on its strategic powers in these two factors to enhance its leadership capabilities in the industry. Porter’s model also provides insights into the intensity of competition and the ability of customers to bargain as the significant factor to consider in strengthening the firm’s strategic formulation. Other forces such as suppliers’ bargaining power, substitution, and new market entry are considerable weak forces affecting its operation.
References
Buckley, J. (2020). Dying for an iPhone: Apple, Foxconn and the lives of China’s workers. International Journal of Employment Relations, 60(3).
Case study. (2014). Taking a bite out of Apple: Labor rights and the role of companies and consumers in a global supply chain.
Chan, J., Distelhorst, G., Kessler, D., Lee, J., Martin-Ortega, O., Pawlicki, P. & Selwyn, B. (2022). After the Foxconn suicides in China: A roundtable on labor, the state and civil society in global electronics.Critical Sociology, 48(2), 211-233.
He, Q., Wang, N., Yang, Z., He, Z., & Jiang, B. (2019). Competitive collection under channel inconvenience in closed-loop supply chain. European Journal of Operational Research, 275(1), 155-166.
Pun, N., Tse, T., & Ng, K. (2019). Challenging digital capitalism: SACOM’s campaigns against Apple and Foxconn as monopoly capital. Information, Communication & Society, 22(9), 1253-1268.
Yang, Z. (2021). Book review: Dying for an iPhone: Apple, Foxconn, and the Lives of China’s Workers.Global Media and Communication, 17(3), 385-387.