Managing Change and Creativity in Organizations - Lab Report Example

? Managing Change and Creativity in Organizations Table of Contents Introduction 3 Apple Inc: A Brief Overview 3 Change Management 4 Changes at Apple4 Creativity and Innovation in Organizations 5 Impact of Creativity and Innovation at Apple 5 Challenges companies are facing 6 Creativity and Innovation in Contemporary Business World 7 Motivation of Business to Foster Creativity 7 Influence of Organizational Culture on Creativity and Innovation 8 Analysis 9 Conclusion 10 References 11 Introduction The aim of this report is to exemplify the significance of change and innovation within the organizations. The report will stress on the biggest challenges that companies are facing to incorporate innovation and creativity. Apart from that the report will emphasize the concepts of creativity and innovation relevant to the contemporary business world. In addition, the factors that motivate businesses to foster creativity and innovation will also be illustrated. In this context of the study, the organization chosen to illustrate the importance of ingenuity in an organization is Apple Inc. Prior getting into deep, a brief overview of the company will be presented. Apple Inc: A Brief Overview Apple Inc. is an American company which manufactures and sells consumer electronic goods. The company is presently headquartered at California, USA (Yahoo Finance, n.d.). The company was founded by Steve Jobs, Ronald Wayne and Steve Wozniak in the year 1970. The company has wide range of products such as desktop computers, laptops, mobiles and different application software. Together with the subsidiaries the company also manufactures and sells various portable applications. Some of the bestsellers of the company are mobile communication devices portable music players, and several other gadgets. In addition, iPod, iPad and iPhone are also creations of Apple. The company also has a sturdy presence in the software field. The software segment includes operating systems such as Mac OS and other utility and productivity applications like Quick time player, I-work and logic studio among others (Apple Store, n.d.). The company has a global presence and operates with more than 370 stores. It has a workforce of 20,000 people. Apple mainly distributes its product through whole sellers, retailers and Apple owned exclusive stores. Some of the major competitors of the company are Hewlett Packard, Dell, Google and Research in Motion Limited (NASDAQ, 2012). On the other hand, companies such as Lenovo, Compaq, Toshiba and Hitachi are also considered as the circumlocutory competitors of the company. Change Management Change management can be attributed as one of the key responsibilities for each employee, executives and managers of an organization. The leadership, execution and managing organizational change is therefore considered as one of the central factors for an organization’s success. Change is an obvious factor in every aspect of personal life, society and organization. However changes are constant in an organization, but most of the changes are gradual and unplanned (Burke, 2010, p.1). Moreover, society always looks for some changes and therefore queries such as when, how and by what ways changes will occur are prevalent (Lewis, 2011, Introduction). Now in the organizational perspective change serves as the method by which important amendments are addressed. Changes at Apple Apple also goes through organizational changes. The changes comes in the form of strategy change or changes in the management. Sometime rules and regulation of the organization also changes. For example in the recent past Apple has gone through a series of changes in the form of policy modification, philosophical changes, organization’s rule of law, and also changes in the governance. The major change in Apple has taken place recently when John Browett, the senior vice president of the retail division and Scott Forstall, the senior vice president of iOS software left the organization. On the other hand Jony Ive will take the charge of leading the human interface across the organization (Viticci, 2012). The company has also witnessed changes in the way of distributing information to the stakeholders. The business strategies of the company were also changed. This change took place with the change in the top leadership of the company. Under the guidance of Steve jobs the strategy of the company was to distinguish itself from the competitors in the form of simple and elegant design of the products. While, under Tim Cook there were some form of strategic changes within the organization. In the past, there were less number of Apple stores and the retailing was also limited. However the present CEO wants to make Apple more accessible to the common people. The prime intention is to increase the market share of the products. The other changes in the organization include scaling the operations of Apple which includes distribution, and manufacturing so as to meet the demands, rapid expansion in countries such as China and India, and new product development such as Apple iTV (Meyer, 2012). Creativity and Innovation in Organizations A number of researches have highlighted that innovation and creativity are crucial to achieve superior performance and growth of organization. From the perspective of an organization, creativity is not only about new idea production, but to think and performs creatively (Mumford, 2011, p.4). Thinking and functioning creatively will allow the company to come up with innovative products which may result in higher sales volume. The term innovation and creativity are considered synonymous, however a distinction exist. Creativity is the generation of new idea while innovation is the process of implementation. The present business environment is dubbed as the era of competition and globalization and to get success, achieve excellence and sustain in this environment creativity and innovation are obligatory factors. In general creativity can be categorized into three type namely individual creativity, group creativity and organizational creativity. However in this study stress will be given to the organizational creativity. Impact of Creativity and Innovation at Apple Apple is the company that firmly believes in innovation. The company almost every year comes up with new and innovative products. They also come up with such products that the world has never seen before. Innovation also acts as one of the core competencies of the company. Further this also gives them competitive advantage over the competitors. Several scholars have portrayed that innovation and creativity in an organization act as the main driving force behind the organization. It offers large number of benefits to both organization as well as the customers. From the time of its foundation, in 1976, innovation has been a part of the company. Starting as a mere computer manufacturer, the company went on to manufacture some of the most noteworthy products. For example iPhone, iPad and iPod are some of the milestone products and reflect the level of innovation involved in manufacturing those products (Muller, 2010, p.1). Challenges companies are facing Nowadays organizations around the world are facing a number of challenges to create a competitive edge for themselves. An organization constantly faces challenges from the date of its inception, be it the challenge of gaining more market share or the challenge to sustain in this competitive business environment. In order to identify the challenges of the present business environment, a number of authentic sources have been consulted. The study highlighted that the prime concerns are improving the profitability by controlling the total cost, motivating the staffs of the organization and finally managing growth. In the context of Apple, the challenges faced by the company are highlighted below:- Technology Challenge: - Depending upon the consumer feedbacks about the latest iPhone 4S, it seems that Apple is losing its legacy of being the technical giant. There has been hardly any new technology revealed in the iPhone 4s. Hence, it has become a challenge for the company to revive its technical expertise. Leadership Challenge: - The Company is also in the middle of a leadership change, and thus a cause of concern lies over its future. The absence of Steve Jobs may impact the company in the form of inappropriate guidance. Economic Challenge: - Although Apple is considered to be one of the strongest brands of the world, however the demands of the products are inelastic. This is mainly because of the high cost associated with the products. In addition, less demand of the product impacts directly in the economy of the company. Competition Challenge: - There was a time when companies such as Nokia, Hewlett-Packard and Research in Motion tried to challenge Apple, they were simply trashed. However, recently the company is facing strong challenges from the companies such as Samsung and Amazon (Mourdoukoutas, 2011). Creativity and Innovation in Contemporary Business World Now regarding the concepts of creativity and innovation relevant to the contemporary business world, Shapiro (2002) illustrates that successful contemporary business put emphasis on interdependence through integration, innovation, and collaboration unlike any authoritative methods. The importance of innovation in the contemporary business world cannot be denied. Organizations around the world are concentrating more and more upon the adoption of innovative products and services to satisfy the customers as well as make the operation process more efficient. For example, once again Apple, the technology giant considers innovation as their USP. The customers also like the standing of the company in terms of innovation. Apart from Apple several other companies develops innovative products and services. For example the smarter planet program of IBM can be regarded as one of the innovative practices. Hence in the modern business scenario, innovation has become necessary. People nowadays do not like the product that does not have anything remarkable in it. To cite an instance, while buying a mobile phone people considers the add-on features apart from the general calling features. They look for the availability of camera, Bluetooth, WIFI or the touch screen facility etc. The more the innovation in the product, selling chances of that product gets augmented. Recent studies have confirmed that business ventures are trying their level best to become more innovative through their products as well as trying to implement creativity in their system of operation. The same study also revealed that around 90 % of the chosen sample gives top priority to innovation. Thus it can be concluded that the importance of creativity is increasing dramatically Motivation of Business to Foster Creativity Some of the eminent scholars highlighted that the organizational creativity is impacted by five things. The five things are organizational culture, organizational climate, resources and skills, leadership style and system and structure. Now, there are different reasons for which an organization promotes innovation and creativity within the organization. One of the factors is to meet the needs of the customers and the demanding competitive market place. Also the ever-increasing value to customers can be cited as one of the reasons to incorporate creativity and innovation in the system of operations. Customers now demands for low cost, highest quality, value for money and fastest cycle time for a product. Hence in order to achieve total customer satisfaction, the organizations are forced to come up with innovative products and methods of selling them to the customers. According to Smith and Munn (2006) the future success of a company will be highly dependent upon the total cost and operating efficiencies. Hence to achieve growth and long term sustainability the total cost needs to be reduced and also operating efficiencies must be improved. The authors also highlights that creativity within the organization is the only thing by which these factors can be achieved. Similarly in this context, Shapiro (2002) states that current business world is characterised by continuous change, volatility and uncertainty and to prospers in it innovation and creativity are essential. In addition, (Meisinger, 2007) also states that innovation and creativity have become the most significant factors towards the establishment and maintaining of competitive advantage by a concern. Companies around the world are now paying greater attention towards innovation and creativity. The primary rationale behind the increasing interest in this area is due to the stress associated with competition, globalization, technological changes and economic factors. Most of the companies perceive innovation as an opportunity to embrace a competitive advantage over their competitors. In addition some organizations also employ creativity in order to get inventive and original outcomes. Thus from an overall perspective, it can be stated that innovation does play a major role towards the success of the company. Influence of Organizational Culture on Creativity and Innovation Although the literature regarding the influence of organizational culture on creativity and innovation is not extensive, some pieces of research are still found. Organizational culture is defined as framework that comprises of shared behavioural norms, values, attitudes, and the expectations of the employees (Geertz, 1973). Studies reveal that organizational culture greatly influences the creativity and innovation within an organization. Some of the important aspects such as supervisory encouragement, organizational encouragement, freedom, work group encouragement, and also resources are directly related with organizational culture and creativity. On the other hand the control measures within the organization decreases the creativity level. According to Tushmann and O’Reilly (1997) an organizing which is successful has the capacity to take up innovation within the management process and organizational culture. Furthermore, Kenny and Reedy (2007) have pointed out that organizational culture impacts the level of creativity and innovation within the organization. The study also revealed that the organization culture, which sustains creativity, fosters innovative methods to identify and solve the problems. Analysis This segment of the project will analyze how exactly creativity and innovation is helpful to the organization. It will also consider some of the important findings of the earlier scholars in the same field of study. Considering the global economic scenario, innovation and creativity have also become strong factors in influencing the strategic planning process. It has been also recognized that innovation helps to create wealth for the company (Shukla, 2009). Similarly it can be portrayed that an established organization, in this present age fails to innovate and forester creativity within the organization may face decline or even extinction. There are various reasons why the creation of new ideas is critical for a business to achieve strong market share and ensure sustainability. Even though, all the organizations have their own precedence and sector-wise problems to balance, ventures that fail to innovate and improve the operating efficiency have the possibility to lose to competition or may lose the key staff members for operating omnisciently. According to the findings it can be illustrated that innovations also help organizations to discover the existing opportunities of the market and also to explore the opportunities that may arise in the future. Thus a renowned business not only addresses their present organization or customer needs, but also assumes the future to develop an internal idea of goods and services that may ultimately meet the needs of the customers in the future (Business, n.d.). Conclusion The report was about the investigation on the influence of creativity and innovation on the economic and competitive advantage of the company. In addition, the report was also about assessing change in an organization. The study revealed that change at times is necessary for organizations to adjust themselves in this dynamic business environment. Apart from change, one more aspect that has also become a core requirement for business houses is the implementation of creativity and innovation. The study revealed that for a business to embrace profitability and sustain for a longer period of time, creativity and innovation must be integrated in the whole system of operation. Only coming up with innovative products will not fully serve the purpose but it should be implemented in every aspect of the business, be it manufacturing or distribution. Thus it can be concluded that creativity plays an important role in economic competitiveness of advanced economies. References Apple Store, No Date. Mac Software. [online] Available at: [Accessed 20 November 2012]. Burke, W. W., 2010. Organization Change: Theory and Practice. 3rd ed. California: SAGE. Business, No Date. Why business innovation is important. [online] Available at: < [Accessed 20 November 2012]. Geertz, C., 1973. The Interpretation of Cultures. New York: Basic Books. Kenny, B., and Reedy, E., 2007. The Impact of Organisational Culture Factors on Innovation Levels in SMEs: An Empirical Investigation. The Irish Journal of Management, 5 (17), pp. 119-42. Lewis, L. K., 2011. Organizational Change: Creating Change through Strategic Communication. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons. Meisinger, S., 2007. Creativity and innovation: Key drivers for success. HR Magazine: on Human Resource Management, 52(5), pp.10-15. Meyer, C., 2012. Apple Business Strategy 2012. [online] Available at: [Accessed November 2012]. Mourdoukoutas, P., 2011. Apple's four challenges. [online] Available at: [Accessed November 2012]. Muller, C., 2010. Apple’s Approach Towards Innovation and Creativity. Munich: GRIN Verlag. Mumford, M., 2011. Handbook of Organizational Creativity. Waltham: Academic Press. NASDAQ, 2012. AAPL Competitors. [online] Available at: [Accessed 20 November 2012]. Shapiro, S. M., 2002. 24/7 innovation: A blueprint for surviving and thriving in an age of change. New York: McGraw Hill. Shukla, A., 2009. What is Innovation? Why Innovation is important? [online] Available at: [Accessed 20 November 2012]. Smith, C., and Munn, G., 2006. How to maintain a competitive edge. PPI, 42(12), pp.19-28. Tushmann, M.L., and O’Reilly, C.A., 1997. Winning through Innovation: A Practical Guide to Leading Organizational Change and Renewal, Boston: Harvard Business School Press. Viticci, F., 2012. Major Changes at Apple: Scott Forstall Leaving, Jony Ive To Lead Human Interface Across Company. [online] Available at: [Accessed 20 November 2012]. Yahoo Finance, No Date. Apple Inc. [online] Available at: [Accessed 20 November 2012]. Read More