Business BTEC Assessment 1

In this evaluation, I investigated characteristics that contribute to the success

of several firms. Apple and RSPCA were the companies I picked to evaluate. I
will discuss the goals and objectives of these firms, as well as their
characteristics, organizational structures, and so on.

Introduction:
Apple:
Apple Inc. is a multinational technology firm headquartered in Cupertino,
California, that specializes in consumer devices, software, and online services.
Apple is the world's largest firm by market capitalization, the fourth-largest
personal computer vendor by unit sales, and the second-largest mobile phone
manufacturer as of June 2022. It is one of the Big Five American information
technology corporations, along with Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, and Microsoft.

RSPCA:
RSPCA stands for Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. It is
a non-profit organization that operates in England and Wales. It is the world's
largest and oldest animal welfare organization. Richard Martin, William
Wilberforce, and Reverend Arthur Broome created it in 1824. They are
concerned about animal safety and wellbeing, and they have already saved
114584 animals.
P1: Explain the features of two contrasting
business organizations.
Apple:
Apple is a corporation that meets the needs of both the secondary and tertiary
sectors. Apple owns a facility where their products are manufactured, as well
as stores where they only sell their products and services.
Apple's primary goal is to continue producing money by becoming the best in
the market. According to Steve Jobs, when Apple first began, its major goal
was to remove the barrier of having to learn how to operate a computer. As of
2017, Apple's current goal statement is "Apple creates Macs, the world's best
personal computers, as well as OS X, iLife, iWork, and professional software.
With its iPods and iTunes online store, Apple is at the forefront of the digital
music revolution. With the groundbreaking iPhone and App Store, Apple
transformed the mobile phone, and the iPad is defining the future of mobile
media and computer devices." This demonstrates that they based their current
mission statement on the original purpose.
Apple is a publicly traded firm, and its stock is freely available on the market.
As a publicly traded corporation, companies are also required by law to
disclose certain information to their shareholders.
Apple is a limited liability company, which means that if the firm goes bankrupt,
the shareholders will only be accountable for the shares they own in the
company and nothing more.

RSPCA:
It is classified as tertiary since it provides services to animals. They provide
treatments, shelter, and other necessities.
Because the RSPCA is a charity, it must adhere to certain purpose
requirements as well as the 13 categories of the "Charity Act 2011." The
RSPCA is dedicated to the improvement of animal welfare, and its major goal
is to provide services by promoting kindness, easing animal suffering, and
preventing cruelty. It also exists for the benefit of the public and is entirely
volunteer.
The RSPCA is a non-profit organization, which means that their goal is to raise
finances to support and promote their cause. This charity is private and self-
governing, which implies it is not owned and funded in part. The RSPCA is a
registered charity because its income exceeds £5000. Because of its
significant quantity of revenue, it is run like a business and even spends
money on advertising, something not all charity can afford. Because they are
charity, they must pay very low business rates and can take advantage of
numerous tax breaks."
Because it exclusively works in England and Wales, the RSPCA's scope is
nationwide. They have a total of 1000 stores and 162 branches.
The RSPCA is a vast organization with 1794 employees, 340 inspectors, 50
animal welfare offices, and 88 collection offices. In 2017, their sales was 140.9
million pounds. As I mentioned below, it is the largest charity in the United
Kingdom.
P2: Explain how two contrasting business
organizations are influenced by stakeholders.
A stakeholder is a person, entity, or group with an interest in a company or
organization. Stakeholders can influence or be influenced by how an
organization runs, its activities, goals, and policies. Apple's business has both
internal and external stakeholders. Owners (shareholders), employees, and
managers are examples of internal stakeholders. Customers, suppliers, the
government, the local community, and so on are examples of external entities.
Each stakeholder has a different impact on the business, and a healthy
relationship between these stakeholders will help the business succeed.

Apple:
Apple respects the interests and concerns of many key stakeholders in its
corporate social responsibility policies and programs. Stakeholders can vary
from company to company, and for Apple, the most important stakeholders are
customers, shareholders, employees, investors, suppliers, and the community.
All stakeholders can influence changes in the company's goals and objectives.
Some people are more influential than others, and it is up to the company to
put their interests first. Apple prioritizes its customers as its most important
stakeholder. An Apple customer is an individual or other organization that
purchases Apple products. The main interests of this interest group at Apple
are good value for money, good service, and quality products. Apple is one of
those companies with a huge customer base. Apple says its retail stores alone
serve more than 1 million customers daily in nearly 496 locations. We believe
that makes our customers the strongest stakeholder in the company. Apple
products are very expensive compared to their competitors, but customers pay
this premium price for quality workmanship, aesthetics, and brand image.
Apple regularly develops new products to delight its customer base. Owning
an Apple product is often viewed as anti-social status among people, which
helps justify the pricing of Apple products. The company is also aware of its
social responsibility. We implement environmental recycling and responsible
sourcing programs to meet customer demands for sustainable business
operations. An example of how Apple struggled to meet that demand was
when Apple released its first iPhone. They had so many complaints about the
technical aspects of the product that they were quickly resolved by Apple. This
shows how much influence customers have over Apple. This not only helps
Apple retain customers, it also helps attract new ones. Therefore, Apple's
commitment is to satisfy the interests of its customers as the company's most
important stakeholders.
Apple investors/shareholders are people who invest in or buy shares in Apple.
They are also he one of Apple's major stakeholders. All stakeholders have a
say in the company's direction. They buy shares, so it used to be a source of
income as well. Apple also must keep shareholders happy and satisfied so
that more shareholders invest in the company. They are primarily concerned
with maximizing their return on investment. Apple is he one of the world's most
profitable companies. We've also maintained strong margins every quarter and
avoided debt. In addition, Apple is also financially strong, which means it is
highly liquid with a large amount of cash on hand. His one event that shows
the influence and importance of Apple's shareholders is Tim Cook's statement
that shareholders will have a greater say in choosing Apple's board members.
This came shortly after shareholders threatened not to renew their
investments. It shows how Apple serves the interests of shareholders and how
shareholders influence his Apple decisions.

Apple employees are also one of Apple's most important stakeholders, but
they have less influence than customers and shareholders. This group
includes people who work at all Apple facilities. Employees' primary concern is
the company's success, which has a positive impact on compensation and
career development. In some ways, employees have a direct impact on your
business. Because the employee determines his Apple's human capacity to
innovate and develop profitable products. It also participates in the
manufacturing and distribution of all products Apple makes. Your efficient work
and innovation impact Apple's bottom line. Employees can influence goals and
objectives, but if Apple isn't happy with them, they're replaced. Apple
recognizes these concerns of our employees, so we reward them with
competitive salary packages and a good work environment.

Government can be seen as an influential stakeholder because it has the

power to change things that affect how Apple operates. There is a possibility.
For example, if the government cuts the minimum wage, many people will
have disposable income that they can spend on iPhones, his iMac, etc. But
ultimately the government wants big companies like Apple, Google and
Microsoft to be more successful and pay more taxes to the government.

When it comes to stakeholders, the people who work in Apple's supply chain
are also important. These individuals are Apple's external and indirect
stakeholders. The main interests of this interest group are very similar to those
of Apple employees. Job security and high salaries. Additionally, we are
concerned with ethical employment practices. Apple addresses these interests
through our Supplier Code of Conduct. This means that Apple must comply
with and implement all requirements related to supply chain employment
practices. Apple's 2014 Supplier Assessment shows that 92% of suppliers are
now compliant with the 60 hour week rule. To some extent, Apple's corporate
social responsibility efforts are therefore aligned with the interests of supplier
worker advocacy groups.

RSPCA:
Owners - The board of trustees is a group responsible for the general
management of a firm. The RSPCA's board of trustees has a large influence
on how the organization operates. They monitor how well the charity is
operated because it is their obligation to ensure that all of the charity's
objectives are met. The board of trustees must guarantee that factors like
financial sustainability are in order, and they must ignore the charity's
operational strategies. However, the most power they wield is the ability to
manage everything that happens in the firm.
Employees - In the RSPCA, there are two types of people who work for them:
staff who are paid and volunteers who labor for free. Supervisors assign such
employees responsibilities, giving them less authority and leverage over the
RSPCA. The RSPCA employs a total of 1749 individuals. Employees are one
of the primary reasons for the RSPCA's performance. They make all of the
activities feasible. In 2018, frontline staff alone gathered and saved almost
102,900 animals, assisting the organization in meeting its aims and objectives.
Managers - They will make critical decisions on a daily basis that will effect
how the RSPCA works and how tasks are carried out because they are
accountable to team members. Managers at the RSPCA are mostly those in
positions of influence in animal welfare offices, where the majority of the
important events take place.
Donors - Donors have a significant impact on the RSPCA. The fundamental
reason for this is that donors are the primary source of income for charities;
they essentially give money to them without expecting anything in return.
Donors also influence the RSPCA by raising awareness through social media.
Emails and websites are used to communicate with their donors.
Customers - Individuals who participate in the RSPCA's many programs are its
clients. They attempt to be consistent and respectful when working with
clients. They frequently keep a range of open days for their clients. This allows
clients to first see where their money is going and then easily interact with
animals. The RSPCA will have nothing to do without its customers and will
hence lose all of its success. Clients assist them in achieving their aims of
increasing animal health.
Suppliers - Suppliers will give the RSPCA with raw supplies that will allow
them to undertake tasks such as supporting and saving animals with their well-
being. The RSPCA collaborates with an association of pet food companies to
offer pet food for all of the animals they rescue and care for.
P3: Explore the organization structures, aims and
objectives of two contrasting business
organizations.
Apple:
A hierarchical organization has a long line of command running from top to
bottom. This provides greater control because everyone knows exactly what to
do and who to report to. Communication between employees/departments can
be horizontal (to personnel within or between functional areas) or vertical
(between functional areas) (to people above or below in the chain of
command).

The number of subordinates for whom a manager is directly responsible is

referred to as the span of control. This number changes depending on the
nature of the work: complex, variable work decreases it to six, whereas
routine, fixed work boosts it to twenty or more.

The chain of command is the order in which authority and power are exercised
and delegated in an organization, from top management to every employee at
every level. Instructions go down the line of command, but accountability flows
up.

Delegation is the transfer of authority from one party (the delegator) to another
(the delegate) for mutually agreed-upon purposes.

An organizational structure is what helps a company manage its business and

create opportunities for growth. But it can also limit business development.
Apple's organizational structure is essentially a hierarchy that includes some
key elements from other types of organizational structures. While Steve Jobs'
leadership and his innovations were the main reason for his Apple's success,
the organizational structure is also partially responsible for ensuring that Jobs'
leadership is supported. The organizational structure is currently being fine-
tuned to reflect the needs of the industry and the market, led by Tim Cook.
This organizational structure allows Apple to continue to innovate rapidly.
Apple's organizational structure looks like a hierarchy of spokes and wheels.
That means we have different product and feature-based VPs who oversee
different areas of the company and report to Tim Cook. For example, VP of
iPhone, VP of iPad, VP of Marketing, and so on. This gives VPs greater insight
and greater control over their business. The organizational structure is
effective and ensures leadership, but is easily changed to improve innovation
and design.
Apple is quite modern in many ways, which has led to them already following
several prevalent trends, such as shorter chains of command, less unity of
leadership, wider spans of control, and greater delegation and empowerment.

Aim is where the company intends to go in the future, its long-term aims. It's a
mission statement. In this situation, Apple's mission statement is dedicated to
provide the best personal computing experience to their consumers all over
the world with revolutionary software and hardware. Apple's mission statement
demonstrates superiority. By outperforming their competitors and being the
greatest in the business. Apple's commitment to developing innovative goods
has remained consistent for nearly 40 years. Apple's primary goal is to provide
a superior computing experience to its targeted clients. This goal is consistent
with their mission statement of providing world-class computing devices to
everyday users.

Objectives are the specific, measurable targets of how to achieve business

aims. In order to achieve its aim, Apple has devised different smart objectives.
There are so many objectives that Apple has which will take them closer to
achieve their aim. An example of this would be that Apple want to increase its
revenue with their new line of Apple Watch Series 2 and take a 15% market
share by the end of the 2nd quarter of 2017. This goal is specific as it defines
what Apple is going to do, which is increasing revenue with the Apple watch
series 2.This is a measurable goal because as it clearly states that they have
to achieve 15% market share. All of Apple's advanced sales metrics analytics
make it easy to measure. This goal can be achieved with the help of a well-
developed distribution system with retail and online stores. Apple also equips
this product line with accessories to make personal computing capabilities
even more convenient for customers. This goal is realistic, as recent reports
show that other product lines are gaining market share and profits, and that
the success of the Apple Watch will help them reach their goals. The target is
time bound as we have a limited deadline to achieve market share by the
second quarter of 2017. Otherwise their lack of success becomes apparent.
RSPCA:
The RSPCA has a hierarchical structure with strong lines of authority and
responsibility. Strength. The structure is tall and has several layers; it has the
widest range of controlling directors. The organization is organized by
geographical area; the benefits of geographic alignment, direct contact with
local customers, the ability to respond locally to customer expectations and the
ability to see where the gaps are. companies want to expand into new areas,
and it's quite costly to keep duplicating resources for each department. The
overall structure of the RSPCA is very similar to that of Apple; They have
different departments and managers for each of them who are responsible for
their department. Because they are geographically coordinated and really
focused on that, they have a regional manager in the Marketing and
Operations departments who leads 4 different BPA units: South, Central, North
and London which helps them focus more on different parts of the country to
focus on.

According to the RSPCA, "our primary targets for 2017 and beyond are part of
anew long-term strategy plan, to modernize and optimize our approach to
ensuring animal welfare." These objectives include "fighting for the welfare of
companion animals, campaigning for farm animals, enhancing the welfare of
wild animals, and working for the welfare of animals used in research and
testing." I've only found one clever goal for the RSPCA, but I believe it will
suffice: "We will print 500 copies of "Caring for your Dog" booklets and
distribute them from our stall outside the supermarket between 01/01/21 and
31/03/21."
M1: Assess the relationship and communication
with stakeholders of two contrasting business
organizations using independent research.
Apple:
All businesses have several stakeholders with varying interests and
requirements that can be conflicting and cannot be met at the same time. As a
result, it is critical for any organization to prioritize their stakeholders'
requirements and desires. For example, a company's suppliers may demand
higher pricing for their products, whereas buyers prefer lower prices, resulting
in a conflict between suppliers and customers. Apple once had a conflict of
interest between shareholders and employees about income. Shareholders at
Apple have been pushing for bigger dividends, while Greenlight Capital Group
has attempted to sue Apple for a high-yielding stock for shareholders.
However, staff, like Tim Cook, want to invest the revenue in inventing new
goods in order to remain inventive.

Apple's communications policy is based on four principles: respect,

confidentiality, compliance and integrity. These four principles make Apple
successful. We believe these principles will help us resolve all conflicts and
keep our customers happy. Her website for Apple provides a clear vision of
communication technology that helps understand and meet customer needs.
For example, if a customer has a problem or question about her Apple product
or service, an Apple colleague can help. Apple regularly updates its social
media and blogs with the latest news and internal reports on all products and
systems to keep stakeholders up-to-date. He also hosts events like the one
held at his WWDC on June 5, 2017, showcasing his latest products and more.
Internally, all staff receive direct instruction and briefings from those above the
chain of command. The staff then reports to them, collects and sends to Tim
Cook. Although this method is considered very effective, it is still time
consuming. Apple also sends quarterly reports to shareholders so they know
what's going on at the company.
RSPCA:
Conversely, interacting and maintaining a relationship are also essential to the
RSPCA. With stakeholders within them. Donors, trustees and some of these
stakeholders include staff. The RSPCA connects with its donors through social
media, blogs, support magazines and newspapers. They are not great
communication strategies, but they are all good communication techniques.
There is no face-to-face contact, so there will not be good cooperation
between donor and company. There are still several donors with RSPCA, so
communication would be limited as the organization doesn't communicate
consistently with all of them. For once, their donors. For the RSPCA it is
necessary to maintain a good relationship with its donors, because without
donors the organization would not be able to survive. The primary
stakeholders for the RSPCA are the trustees because the RSPCA is
connected to its trustees and they are responsible for the well-being of the
charity's leadership and guidance. Administrators therefore have a lot of
control, just like theirs, opinions are important to the company. The
organization communicates with its administrators through annual general
meetings; this is a constructive contact approach as it involves face-to-face
communication. However, annual general meetings are not held often. (usually
every few months), so the issues that might arise cannot be directly discussed.
As important issues are discussed, the interaction is rather formal. It is
essential for them to have a successful relationship with their directors, so they
have a lot of RSPCA responsibility and control over the company. "
M2: Analyze how the structures of two contrasting
businesses allow each to achieve its aims and
objectives.
Apple:
Apple has lately announced major efforts to bring together teams from several
divisions in order to allow for more open communication and collaboration on
projects. And it appears that Apple's design teams have already accomplished
that step.

Normally, when Apple's iOS software design team creates software, they have
no knowledge what happens on the industrial side of the design. However,
now that the two have begun working together, software designers will have a
better sense of what devices their iOS projects will run on, and industrial
designers will have a role in how the software will look on their hardware.
Apple believes that approach will result in superior products in the end.

As a result, Apple's mobile software team, led by Greg Christie, is obtaining

device prototype information considerably sooner. And Jonathan I’ve, the
leader of the industrial design team, has been attending the human-interface
team's review sessions. He has also provided feedback on the upcoming iOS
design, stating that it should have a "flat" and simpler design.

A functional area department that performs a certain business function.

Administration, Customer Service, Finance, and Human Resources are just a
few examples. The primary goal of functional areas is to guarantee that all
critical operations are completed effectively and accurately. This is necessary
for a firm to fulfill its goals and objectives.

Human Resources, Sales, Marketing and Public Relations, IT, Research and
Development, Purchasing, Finance, Customer Service, and Administration are
just a few of the departments inside Apple's headquarters. The majority of
these functional areas are tied to the finance and administration department,
which is the most essential of them all. According to Apple, Apple salespeople
constantly update the finance department with all facts and data so that
finance personnel may calculate expenditures and profits to create a report
that will be used to analyze the company's status. They also assist the
accountants by maintaining financial records, chasing down late payments,
and paying for purchases. Apple's R&D and Marketing departments frequently
collaborate to create a marketing campaign that is appropriate for their
product.
RSPCA:
The RSPCA also has a high structure and is organized geographically. The
advantage of the geographically organized market is that the organization has
strong contact. For local customers, helping them achieve their goals as they
will have a greater awareness of animal cruelty in the area needs to be
corrected and eventually remedied. “Prevent cruelty, facilitate compassion for
all animals and alleviate their suffering, as their mission states in the
statement. Another benefit of this is that the organization can quickly recognize
which departments are failing, but can do its best to improve before it misses
the opportunity. This allows them to achieve their goal, so if the organization
were to shut down, the department would have no business with animal care
in a particular place, welfare, so the incidence of animal cruelty will increase;
hence the ability to recognize fault departments and to rapidly amplify them.
Since 2003, Capita Customer Service has served as RSPCA's contact center,
directing RSPCA employees to places where their assistance or involvement
is needed. Capital’s team of 150 employees in Deurne Valley, active 24/7,
received more than 10 million calls over 10 years, answered 68,000 inquiries
online, and sent RSPCA officials to over 4.6 million of accidents in the UK.
Neville Doughty, Capita Customer Management's main client, who oversees
the operation, said: "One of the first and most significant developments that
Capita undertook in 2003 was to centralize the service, moving from its ten
regional bases to one center. This resulted in significant cost savings,
increased efficiency and allowed for much more professional operation;
£417,000 was saved in 2009, while the budget was maintained in 2010 despite
a 14% increase in call volume . Another important initiative has been the field
of caller resolution. This includes troubleshooting callers to determine if a
member of the RSPCA team should actually be deployed in the situation. In
many cases, through specially developed training, agents of the contact center
are able to help the caller solve the problem on their own, the which in turn
ensures that RSPCA employees can focus where they are really needed."
D1: Evaluate the reasons for success for two
contrasting business, reflecting on evidence
gathered.
Apple:
Apple's recent performance against competitors like Samsung and Google is
outstanding. This concerns both financial performance and their ability to
achieve their goals. There are so many reasons behind the success of this
massive business, but it can be simplified to 6 reasons. First of all, all Apple
products are made in a way that designers personally couldn't live without. It's
because Steve Jobs believed that things are better when they're done for you.
When he was alive, he was the tester of all products, representing real
customers, which helped Apple bring great devices to market. Second, their
products are easier to use. Steve Jobs and Tim Cook still stick to the original
goal of removing the barrier to learning to use computers. All Apple products
released to date follow this rule. Apple also makes it simple, so it's easier to
use overall. Next up is the great customer service and shopping experience
provided to their customers. Apple was one of the first companies to introduce
a technology store. It was introduced so that it can be used as a way to
provide great customer service. When entering the store, customers are
greeted and their problems solved in the best possible way. The following is
Apple's simple principle: Apple only makes a product if Apple can do it better.
As Apple designer Jonathan I’ve recently said, “Our goals are very simple: to
design and build better products. If we can't improve something, we won't.
Apple generally does not invent anything and all products are recreations of
existing products. For example, they didn't invent smartphones, but they
reinvented them and made them better and revolutionary. And a much more
recent incident would be the launch of HomePod, a reimagining of smart
speakers. These reinventions have enhanced Apple's reputation and brand
image. The fifth reason is that Apple is at least two years ahead of its
competitors. This is one of the main reasons for success as they plan a
product launch at least 2 years in advance. For example, from 2015, Apple is
said to have been working on the HomePod released this week.
The same goes for all other Apple products, which makes it harder to compete
with Apple. The ultimate reason for its success is Apple's marketing strategy.
Apple spends almost over 50% of its revenue on marketing to get its products
to its customers. Their marketing campaigns are mostly simple, which sets
them apart. They also do it to expand their brand image, so it becomes a
social status. Moreover, Apple has won so many loyal customers with good
customer service and its innovative products. I think these are the main
reasons for Apple's success and I think Apple will continue to be successful in
the future.
RSPCA:
The RSPCA is successful because of its well-organized structure, the
business is geographically localized, what makes the business successful is
the faster and more efficient response to local needs." This also means that
employees focus only on their respective region, which gives the opportunity to
achieve better results in their work. Problems are solved faster because each
area has its own business skills which it uses depending on the area; They
believe that this type of structure will attract many more donors who are really
important to them to advertise their success in animal care because the
RSPCA actually makes a profit due to the amount of profits they contribute
attracting many more donors than they can seeing it and what to do that
impacts success. Another reason for the success of the RSPCA is that they
value every part of their taken antes because they play an important role for
them and find individual approaches that help them gain prestige and success.
By enabling various service policies to minimize waiting time before answering
a phone call and round-the-clock monitoring of all customer needs by call
centers, allowing them to focus their full attention on calls the most important
ones related to emergencies, they wanted better assistance. to offer. All of
these factors truly make the RSPCA a unique charity and demonstrate that
they have extensive experience working in this area.