Nokia Corporation as a Leading Manufacturer of Mobile Telephones in the World - Case Study Example

Nokia Information Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 Introduction 3 Historical background 3 Management approach, the company, its people 5 Hierarchy, relationship between each member 6 Introduction Nokia Corporation, a leading manufacturer of mobile telephones in the world, is headquartered in Finland. The company is committed towards connecting people. By integrating the advanced technology “with personalized services” the company ensures better connectivity. Keeping in line with the current market Nokia has integrated its mobile devices with services like maps, music, email, apps and many more (Nokia-a, 2010). Historical background Nokia started in the year 1865. It was initially established as a paper company. The company made its foray in mobile business in the 1980s (Spencer, 2010). Between the year 1965 and 1967 the company established itself as a “major industrial force”. In the later years the company merged with a rubber and cable company to form Nokia Corporation thus paving the way for electronics. In the year 1967 there was a formal merger of Nokia Ab, Finnish Rubber Works and Finnish Cable to establish Nokia Corporation (Nokia-b, 2011). In 1979 Mobira Oy, a radio telephone company was created as a joint venture between Salora and Nokia. Nokia made its “first digital telephone” in 1982. In 1984 the company launched, Mobira Cityman, “first handhelt NMT phone” (Nokia-c, 2011). In 1992 the company focused on telecommunications business. In the same year the company launched its Nokia 1011, its “first GSM handset”. In 1994 the company launched its first phone featuring Nokia Tune. In this year the company used Nokia GSM handset to make the first satellite call in the world. Nokia launched the first internet mobile service in 1999 (Nokia-d, 2011). The company launched its first 3G phone in the year 2002. In the next year Nokia launched N-Gage. In 2005 the company introduced Nokia Nseries, its next multimedia devices range. Ion 2006 Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo was elected as the company’s President and CEO. In this year the company disclosed its plans for Nokia Siemens Networks. In 2007 the Nokia Siemens Network commenced its operations. In the same year the company launched its latest internet related services brand, Ovi (Nokia-e, 2011). Key Points & Key Information The vision of the company is to ‘connect the people’ i.e. connecting ‘we’ and not merely individuals. The company aims to become the leader in mobile solutions. The strategy of the company is to “create irresistible solutions” through the use of vibrant ecosystems in alliance with the partners (Nokia-f, 2009). Presently Nokia is the top mobile devices manufacturer in the world. In 2009 the volume of mobile devices of the company was 432 million units. In this year the net sales and operating profit of the company was reported at EUR 41 billion and EUR 1.2 billion respectively. Nokia has a strong R&D unit in nearly 16 countries. Its R&D investment amounted to EUR 5.9 billion and employs 37020 people for its research oriented work (Nokia-a, 2010). Management approach, the company, its people The success of the company is based on the commitment and talent of its employees. Nokia works continually towards creating a workplace that gives opportunity to the men and women of different ethnic or cultural backgrounds. The company is known for providing excellent career development opportunities and is strongly committed towards high ethical standards towards its employees. By the close of 2009 the company had 55000 employees of 115 different nationalities. In the company’s workplace the women account for 41 percent of the employees. At least half of the company’s senior managers are non-Finnish. The company’s operations are spread across a number of markets. This has also had an impact on the ways of working and cultural fabric of its employees. The management of the company views cultural diversity to bring in a sense of competitive advantage. It is of the view that team diversity leads to better creativity as the workers belonging to different cultural backgrounds add value to its business. The company management is committed towards offering equal opportunities (Nokia-g, 2011). The company has a reward program in place that gives recognition on the basis of performance of team and individuals. The Investing in People (IIP) policy of Nokia enables it to match the employees’ aspirations with the company needs. The company holds Structured IIP discussion every year where the objectives for a period are framed (Nokia-h, 2011). Hierarchy, relationship between each member The management and control of Nokia is shared among the company’s shareholders, Board of Directors, Executive Board and President. The Board members are accountable to the company shareholders. It responsibilities are more active in nature. These include managing the composition and structure of its top management, monitoring of legal matters and risk management of operations. The duties of the Board include appointment and discharge of CEO, CFO and other members of the company’s Group Executive Board. The remuneration of the company’s President and CEO are confirmed by the Board. The Articles of Association of the company has the provision of a Group Executive Board that is in charge of managing its operations. Board of Directors appoints the members of the Group Executive Board and the Chairman. Only the Group Executive Board’s Chairman can be a member of the Board of Directors of the company (Nokia-i, 2011). The Group Executive Board of the company comprises of- Stephen Elop is the Chairman of this board. He is also the President and CEO of the company. Esko Aho is the Executive Vice President (Corporate Relations & Responsibilities). Jem De Vard is the company’s Executive Vice President (Chief Marketing Officer). Timo Ihamuotila is Nokia’s Executive Vice President (CFO) Mary T. McDowell is the Executive Vice-President (Mobile Phones). Tero Ojanpera is the company’s Executive Vice-President (Mobile Solutions). Niklas Savander is Nokia’s Executive Vice-President (Markets). Alberto Torres is the company’s Executive Vice-President (Mobile Solutions, MeeGo Computers). Juha Akras is the company’s Executive Vice-President (Human Resources). Dr. Kai Oistamo is Nokia’s Executive Vice President (Chief Development Officer) (Nokia-j, 2011). The Board of Directors of the company includes Lalita D. Gupte, Henning Kagermann, Bengt Holmstrom, Isabel Marey-Semper, Per Karlsson, Keijo Suila and Risto Siilasmaa (Nokia-k, 2011). Reference Nokia-a. 2010. Nokia in brief. Available at: http://www.nokia.com/NOKIA_COM_1/About_Nokia/Sidebars_new_concept/Nokia_in_brief/In_briefJul10.pdf [Accessed on February 7, 2010]. Nokia-b. 2011. Nokia’s first century:1865-1967. Story of Nokia. Available at: http://www.nokia.com/about-nokia/company/story-of-nokia/nokias-first-century [Accessed on February 7, 2010]. Nokia-c. 2011. The move to mobile. Story of Nokia. Available at: http://www.nokia.com/about-nokia/company/story-of-nokia/the-move-to-mobile [Accessed on February 7, 2010]. Nokia-d. 2011. Mobile revolution. Story of Nokia. Available at: http://www.nokia.com/about-nokia/company/story-of-nokia/mobile-revolution [Accessed on February 7, 2010]. Nokia-e. 2011. Nokia now. Story of Nokia. Available at: http://www.nokia.com/about-nokia/company/story-of-nokia/nokia-now [Accessed on February 7, 2010]. Nokia-f. 2009. Our Strategy. Nokia’s vision of the future. Available at: http://www.nokia.com/NOKIA_COM_1/About_Nokia/Company/Vision_and_Strategy/pdf/NokiaStrategy10.pdf [Accessed on February 7, 2010]. Nokia-g. 2011. Who we are. Employees. Available at: http://www.nokia.com/corporate-responsibility/employees/who-we-are [Accessed on February 7, 2010]. Nokia-h. 2011. Rewarding performance. Employees. Available at: http://www.nokia.com/corporate-responsibility/employees/labor-practices/rewarding-performance [Accessed on February 7, 2010]. Nokia-i. 2011. Overview. Corporate Governance. Available at: http://www.nokia.com/about-nokia/corporate-governance/overview [Accessed on February 7, 2010]. Nokia-j. 2011. Group Executive Board. Corporate Governance. Available at: http://www.nokia.com/about-nokia/corporate-governance/group-executive-board [Accessed on February 7, 2010]. Nokia-k. 2011. Board of Directors. Corporate Governance. Available at: http://www.nokia.com/about-nokia/corporate-governance/board-of-directors [Accessed on February 7, 2010]. Spencer, A. 2010. The History of Nokia. Available at: http://articleresource.org/communications/mobile-cell-phone/the-history-of-nokia-149277 [Accessed on February 7, 2010]. Read More