Iman Usman 20U00033

Section D
Principles of Management

1. Generations in Management

Baby boomers refers to the generation born after the second world war from 1940 to 1960. This
generation preferred to keep one job and had set timings from nine o’clock in the morning to five
o’clock in the evening. They were best known for being experimental, hardworking and sable in their
careers. Their daily routines were stable and repetitive. Baby boomers preferred organized and
mechanical jobs with rigid and fixed job outlines as well as schedules. This stability motivated them
in their work, and they enjoyed their 60’s when they received their payoffs. This generation is usually
found in the upper management of an organization, as that level is required to set goals and ensure
their completion, a job most disciplined baby boomers are equipped for.

Next came Generation X. they include individuals born from 1960 to 1980 . This generation started to
prefer specialized academic degrees and started looking for specialized jobs. They were competitive
in their careers and their success was motivated by their ideology of “young and rich”. They were
confident, position oriented and started to work overtime compared to the preceding generation. They
had a fluid work environment and preferred to work in informal settings, however, they always
maintained their image by dressing in what they considered were presentable clothing. They aimed for
titles in their careers and social lives. Generation X usually got their payoff in their forties. Due to
their thoroughly kempt selves, this generation would excel as top managers or middle managers,
responsible for dealing with external sources and representing the company as liaisons, figureheads
and leaders.

The following generation, Generation Y or more commonly known as the millennials, were born from
1980 to 2000. These individuals were raised while the world was going through its technological
boom and are thus more technologically equipped. They prioritize and work well within teams and
need constant recognition of their work progress. These individuals are more creative in their work
and give great importance to leisure and pleasure to inspire this creativity. Generation Y believes in a
diversified career set along with specialization in their careers. They believe that although a
specialized academic degree and thereby career are important, and individual must be able to perform
other basic tasks as well which can be polished through volunteer work and casual studying. This
generation prefers participative decision-making and look for constant feedback. Their career
structures are most fluid out of all three generations. They have flexible and an organic work
structures, with more decentralization and less rigid job descriptions. They prefer to work from home
offices. This generation gets their payoff yearly in the form of annual vacations and relaxation
periods. Since they are creative and innovative, millennials work best in entrepreneurial jobs,
innovating unique market offerings, but it is important to note that this generation is not as invested in
their futures and prefers to enjoy the present.

Following this in Generation Z, born from 2000 to 2020. This generation is mostly still in their
academic careers and only a few, almost none have started their professional careers. They too are
focused on specialized degrees. Generation Z was born and raised in a technologically advanced
world, thus are more advanced in the field than preceding generations. Since they are still too young,
their attitudes in their professional lives cannot be judged. Lastly generation Alpha refers to the babies
born from 2020 and will be till 2040.
2. Is Apple a monopoly?

Apple is a global competitor for smartphones, tablets, computers and other electronic devices. It is in
direct competition with prominent brands such as Samsung electronics, Google Inc., Amazon Inc.
However, despite the high competition in the industry, Apple has maintained its image by investing in
research and development, and emphasizing values such as education, diversity, privacy and
environmentally conscious production. It is a brand well known for its functionality and aesthetics,
partnering with popular and luxury brands such as Nike and Hermés, enabled it to capture and satisfy
the growing population of athletes, content creators and luxury clients. This strategy helped Apple
identify itself as a social monopoly.

The company holds natural monopoly in countries such as the United States of America and England,
with 46% of the market shares in the former, however, it is losing to Samsung in countries like South
Korea, Samsung’s origin country. Apple holds monopoly over its supplies. Since there are easy
substitutes, suppliers do not have bargaining power. Apple can change suppliers with little loss as
there are multiple other suppliers available in the market. The company can always opt for a supplier
willing to provide them with standard quality materials at a lower cost.

Apple offers unique, innovative and easy to operate products. It has a monopoly in its “super tablet”
(iPad), and luxury computers (Mac). While it cannot be considered a monopoly in products such as
smartphones, Apple has the complete monopoly to decide what to do with its iPhone.

Research has found that “Apple uses its control to exclude rivals and give its own apps and services a
boost” (Leswing k., 2020). Apps and software are downloaded directly from the App store, which is
controlled by the company itself. It decides what apps to feature and is known to favour apps
developed by the company itself or its direct partners. Other developers can publish the iOS versions
of their products but, Apple holds monopoly over the App Store. It offers attractive bundles, such as
Apple One, providing access to company products including Apple Music, Arcade, News+, TV+ and
Fitness+ at discounted rates. Leaving Apple means leaving these services known to provide ease,
convenience and satisfaction to consumers. Furthermore, switching to another company can result in
users needing third-party substitutes like Skype and Zoom for services such as Facetime, which
connects all Apple users. This inconveniences consumers; thus they prefer to remain an Apple-user,
increasing customer loyalty. Statistics show that once a consumer starts using apple products, they
rarely switch to another brand. So, it can be said that Apple holds monopoly over customer loyalty.

Apple adopts a disruptive strategy for its products. It invests in research and development,
understanding its market and consumers, to launch innovative products. It studies its users to detect
any unsatisfaction and counters them by releasing improved products, services and software regularly,
increasing consumer satisfaction and strengthening customer loyalty.

The company symbolizes status. Consumers wish to purchase Apple’s products to showcase their
financial and social status. Their logo represents knowledge, taking inspiration from the discovery of
gravity by Isaac Newton when an apple fell over his head. Today, the logo is a clean image of a bitten
apple thereby associating the brand and it’s users with a prim image. The company maintains this by
carefully selecting its marketing strategy. It uses strategic product placement in television shows and
movies like “Knives Out” and “Legally Blond”, where apple products are used to show individuality.
The main character uses a colourful MacBook amidst her classmates’ black laptops in the latter while
the company avoids giving antagonists Apple products in the former. This promotes the clean image
of Apple Inc. in the minds of consumers, resulting in the company gaining social monopoly.