STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP

Strategic Leadership

Abstract

Apple has established its name as the most innovative company across the globe. The secret behind Apple's success is its visionary and smart leader who not only brought innovative and user-friendly products for Apple's customers but also led the firm with immense dedication. He did so by shifting the technology of every product after regular intervals so that customers do not get bored of using the outdated technology. Through this approach, the company not only beat its competitors across the globe, but also created brand equity, which led to a massive scale increase in customer loyalty. People who possess Apple's products love them; whereas other want to buy the highly sophisticated yet user friendly gadgets of the company. Apple won the trust of customers not only in computers, but also brought a break through revolution in the consumer electronic industry. This paper aims to study the strategic leadership of Steve Jobs, which lead the company to the skies of success.

1.) Using relevant information from the case study, the literature and company websites, critically evaluate the core competences and dynamic capabilities' as they relate to the product and service portfolios of Apple Inc., IBM and Dell from 2006 to 2012.

Core Competencies

The fundamental concepts of Apple that makes it the world's leading computer manufacturer in the world are completely understood and adapted by its employees. Great amount of time has been devoted by the top management to understand the needs and desires of the customers that are required to be accomplished. Furthermore, the decision regarding the creation of value for customers is not solely taken by the top management rather; suggestions from the entire workforce are taken before implementing the decision. Employees are regularly informed with profit and achievement stories through circulation of electronic emails. Through weekly newsletter, the employees also get an opportunity to scrutinize the global environment and examine the achievement from customers. In terms of production planning, the designers and engineers are encouraged to meet with the sales and marketing team to develop a full proof plan at an early stage. To assess the performance gap between actual and desired outcomes, a team of monitors is set up to review and response on daily activities. This team is responsible for providing a set of information that is vital for future development. For the customer's feedback, Apple uses two types of methodologies: face-to-face meetings with customers and online service for customers. These types of feedbacks hold a great importance for Apple in terms of articulating strategies for the long run and also to evolve in harmony with the changing market trends.

One of the biggest core competencies which differentiate Apple from its competitors is the high level of innovation which is embedded within the culture of the organization. The main examples of technological innovations brought into the market by Apple includes the graphical user interface, the mouse, the wireless LAN and a lot of other contemporary technological products. In simpler words, Apple redefined the concept of consumer electronics across the ...