Apple supply chain management is based on its ability to quickly adapt to change. Apple strong supply chain leads the company to have a competitive advantage over its competitors. Apple is very fast to deliver products with high demand. Apple is considered one of the highest and best performing supply chain around the world. This report was written to learn best practices of Apple Supply Chain and apply them to Walmart 32nd St. I discovered that Apple’s supply chain is very simple and efficient. Apple does not spend a lot of money on storage since they produce as demand comes and distribute products the fast as possible, this helps the company to reduce inventory costs. Apple is a sustainable company that recycles its products and …show more content…
Recycling is a big part of the supply chain management process and it also help to reduce costs. Apple threats are the competitors, constant innovation and technology. Apple continues to innovate and to ensure that all resources are updated to have and produce the best quality products. There are over 1 billion of Apple products that are use around the world, with the iPhone being the most popular product.
Apple Current Supply Chain Overview
Sourcing Manufacturing Warehousing Distribution Return
Sourcing: Apple source materials from different providers. Apple manufactures its products in China, then the products are shipped through UPS and FEDEX that handle online sales, and supply warehouses around the globe. Apple has multiple distribution centers from retail stores to network carries.
Manufacturing: Apple manufactures its products in other countries where labor is cheaper. Apple uses innovate technology that makes labor easier, quicker and at lower costs.
Warehousing: Apple orders are based on need, and online orders are separate and usually shipped as they are ready, online order do not require a warehousing.
Distributions: Apple products are sold by other distributors, more than 30 % of sales revenue is generated through network carrier distribution centers. Apple has retail stores distributed around the U.S and the world.
Return: Apple succeed is due to its flexibility to let
Apple has several key advantages in how it manages its supply chain operations. First by buying key components from suppliers in advance they ensure the steady supply of key parts. This risk is also countered by signing exclusivity agreements with some suppliers. In addition, these exclusivity agreements give them an advantage over their competitors who sometimes had to wait for key components due to the large demand from Apple. Another key advantage is that Apple maintains a close relationship with suppliers by working with them to update manufacturing processes and technology.
Apple Inc. designs, manufactures, and markets personal computers, mobile communication devices, and portable digital music and video players and sells a variety of related software, services, peripherals, and networking solutions. The Company sells its products worldwide through its online stores, its retail stores, its direct sales force, and third-party wholesalers, resellers, and value-added resellers. (Source: Company Form 10-K)
Apple products are designed in California USA and manufactured in different foreign countries such as China, Taiwan, Korea, Mongolia, and Europe which produce part of the devices, most of the raw material ‘Earth Minerals’ to produce these items can be found in China. Since technology has a lot of benefits in human’s life, the demand has been increase year by year which make business to expand and hiring more people in the company. From 2005 to 2015 the number of full-time employee’s has been increase more than 80 thousands.
Sales - Apple has a specific functional area based on sales. The sales department of a business handles how the products will be sold and helping customers find a suitable product for their needs. They organise sales promotions (or advertising), respond to customer enquiries about their products, and negotiate discounts for customers; which enhances customer satisfaction and keeping customer records up to date. E.g. Apple found that distributing their phones to sell at other shops would broaden their market and create a lot of word of mouth which would be essential to the growth of the business. The shops they distribute the phones to always try to find ways to discount their customers which always creates customer satisfaction.
Apple business environment is competitive and fast-paced. Apple suppliers must understand this dynamic and be agile and flexible in responding to changing business conditions. All over the world, people are building Apple products and Apple has a responsibility to make sure that each person is treated with dignity and respect. It’s a massive challenge where Apple work is never done, but each year they implement meaningful, lasting changes across their supply chain. Because of this around the globe, Apple employees are united in bringing equality, human rights, and respect for the environment to the deepest layers of their supply chain. Apple goes deep into their supply chain to enforce their social and environmental standards by empowering workers through education, demanding that suppliers treat workers fairly and ethically at all times, having safe and healthy facilities, and hold their products and processes to the highest
Resource management is another interesting and important topic in the business of various organizations engaged in the manufacturing and sale of goods and service. Several organizations in the technology industry have managed to make investments in this industry, and thus it is important to monitor the use of various resources to avoid wastage. Resource management is currently considered as a strategy that is focused on reducing the cost of production and thus reducing the cost of products in the market; important in influencing customers to buy the product. The resources that are managed in an organization include human skills, financial resources, information technology, inventory and production resources. Through resource management, Apple Inc. is able to utilize its resources well and avoid wastage in order to achieve increased product development and ultimately increased market share.
Supply-Chain Management is the activities that procure materials and services, and transform them into intermediate goods and final products and deliver them, through a distribution system (Heizer & Render, 2011, p. 452). DELL is a computer technology corporation that develops sells, repairs and supports, computers and computer related products. DELL has realized that supply chain is becoming more and more important for the success of today’s business world and they work accordingly to keep a competitive advantage in the market. This study will examine to what extent Dell has used supply chain management to gain and retain a competitive advantage in the computer market.
Globalization has also had a significant impact on Apple's supply chain. The company earns high profits because it is able to produce its products at a low price and then sell them at a high price (Chakrabotty, 2012). In addition, the company has noted that it assembles its products in China because all of the components are made there this in addition to the low cost of assembly labor. Apple facilitates this by working with logistics suppliers like FedEx who can quickly move finished goods around the world via a number of hubs. All of Apple's products, for example, arrived in the United States in Oakland, California and from there make their way to the customer.
Apple Inc. is one of the largest technology companies in the world. The company develops consumer electronic gadgets such as smartphones, computers, desktops, laptops, iPods and tablets. The company was formed in 1976 by Steve Jobs with an intention of making computers but later it changed its focus to include the manufacturing of consumer electronics. However, the company was dealt a big blow when its chief executive officer and founder Steve Jobs died. The company will therefore have to search for ways in which it will maintain its market dominance as well as capture new and emerging markets. This research therefore seeks to establish how Apple forecasts demand and manages its inventory (Apple Computer Inc., 2006).
Apple's entire supply chain has been rated as the top supply chain in the world by Gartner's (Wailgum, 2011). Apple was one of the top companies rated in the resilience category by overcoming such hurdles as the Japanese earthquake without any major disruptions. Other categories that the supply chains were critiqued under included speed, agility, efficiency, responsiveness, and innovation. Apple's entire production operation is outsourced to the Asian Pacific and the company manufactures their goods through strategic partners who are some of the best electronics manufactures in the world.
Apple Inc. designs, manufactures, and markets personal computers, mobile communication devices, and portable digital music and video players and sells a variety of related software, services, peripherals, and networking solutions. The Company sells its products worldwide through its online stores, its retail stores, its direct sales force, and third-party wholesalers, resellers, and value-added resellers. (Source: Company Form 10-K)
Apple Inc., together with subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and markets mobile communication and media devices, personal computing products, and portable digital music players worldwide. The also sell a variety of related software, services, peripherals, and networking solutions.
In addition to selling itÕs products directly to consumers thru their website, Apple utilizes third-party wholesalers, resellers, and value-added resellers. Apple also runs a retail division, with 165 retails stores in operation at the end of FY2006.
As mentioned earlier, Apple’s supply chain relies on third party suppliers and outsourcing to produce their devices. This strategy can become extremely risky in satisfying demand when resources are limited to one supplier, as seen in the company’s recent failing in meeting demand for the
Apple profits is not generated from physical goods but from royalties of intellectual property like patent. It is similar to other giant technology companies such as Google, Yahoo, Microsoft, Amazon, and Hewlett-Packard. It allows them to move their profits very easy to their subsidiaries in the lower tax jurisdiction, since their products are downloadable and can be sold from anywhere around the world. They don’t need a physical store or