Systems Thinking

Apple is a company that has the reputation of only thinking about its headquarters and its multiple stores around the world and not including the supply chain management in their views or operations. Hence, the companies’ suppliers and manufacturers situated in some Asian countries, mainly China, are out of their scope. Hence, the company’s supply chain is its boundary. Apple has demonstrated again and again that the company has a silo mentality, a reductionist approach when having into consideration its operations. Seems as if Apple only cares about the profit the company will generate and the reputability Apple can obtain with its developed countries' stakeholders. Nevertheless, in 2010 Foxconn, one of Apple’s Chinese manufacturers, became popular. The media demonstrated that the company had horrible working conditions for its employees; consequently, Foxconn’s employees were committing mass suicides. At that time, Steve Jobs, Apple’s co-founder, stated that Apple has over it and showed no concern for its employees in the supply chain. Nevertheless, after the Foxconn incident, Apple created programs to assist its suppliers in creating more safe and healthy environments for its employees. Some of those programs are Supplier Standards relating to minimum wage and benefits program, Supplier program to promote education and professional development, and Supplier diversity program. Hence, Apple changes its silo mentality to adapt to a more holistic approach to its operations by including its suppliers and manufacturers in its business operations. Consequently, Apple used the Foxconn incident as a feedback loop that stabilized its business operations. Nevertheless, Apple’s suppliers and manufacturers are still emerging properties for the company as Apple has not been able to totally integrate those companies into its business model. For example, in 2020 a study demonstrated that some of Apple’s suppliers used child labor. Furthermore, the study indicated that Apple knew its suppliers were using child labor but still, the company did not cut its tie with these suppliers until the media discover that they were using child labor and Apple’s stakeholders complain about it. Moreover, in 2021, an investigation stated that some of Apple’s suppliers were using forced labor in China of minority groups like the Muslim Uyghur group. Nowadays, Apple still has not cut ties with the suppliers and manufacturers that use Uyghur people, and the company has stated that it can not be proved that those companies are using forced labor; consequently, Apple should not be held accountable. In conclusion, since 2010 Apple has demonstrated a reductionist mentality that shows how the company feels detached from its supply chain and although Apple has tried to implement programs to benefit its supply chain employees, the truth is that the company is not always true to its own standards.

Photo 1. Cover of a book by Chan, Selden, and Ngai that describes the Foxconn debacle