Apple Inc. Case Analysis ACrumrine
Apple Inc. Case Analysis
Ashley Crumrine
February 27, 2016
MGMT 1451
University of Pittsburgh, Bradford
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Apple Inc. Case Analysis
Abstract
Apple Inc. was founded thirty nine years ago. While it has been a successful company where the
industry has grown allowing the expansion of the market to be bigger than just throughout the
United States. Like any company, Apple experiences trials and struggles along with successes.
Apple began with just a computer and has built an empire off of the software that is used and the
telecommunication advancements that are needed throughout today’s society. Apple’s desire to
hit multiple markets and the multiple needs of all different ages is what has allowed Apple to
persevere. While Apple is so successful the company has their share of faults too. Analyzing the
negatives and making changes have allowed Apple to be the successful company it is. The
demand for Apple products have definitely skyrocketed. This paper will show where Apple as a
company began, what steps the company took to enter the market, and where Apple stands
within the market today. A financial analysis over the years will also be given and
recommendations on where the company should go or what changes should be made will also be
included.
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Apple Inc. Case Analysis
Apple Inc. Case Analysis
Apple Computer was founded in April 1, 1976, by the late Steve Jobs, Steve Wazniak, and
Ronald Wayne who were all prior Atari workers (Apple). Jobs envisioned where the company
would go and how to market the product. Steve Wozniak was a partner within the company who
became the C.E.O. Wozniak was technologically advanced and used his expertise to build the
model. Partner, Ronald Wayne, was the author of the manual, wrote the partnership agreement
between the three partners, and illustrated the first logo for the company (50). Just twelve days
later, Wayne resigned, selling his share for eight hundred dollars and calling it quits due to the
pressure of “being in the shadows of intellectual giants”, as Wayne stated (50).
The first logo of the company, as previously stated, was illustrated by Ronald Wayne. The
illustration was a drawing of Sir Isaac Newton sitting underneath an apple tree with a portion of
William Wordsworth’s poem “Newton… a mind forever voyaging the strange seas of thought…
alone”(50). That logo stayed within the company for about a year. In 1976, Jobs hired Rob
Janoff to create a more modern design to become the new logo. Janoff created the rainbow apple
with a bite taken out of it to let people know it was in fact an apple and not a cherry. This idea fit
well for the company because it was very much similar to the ‘byte’ that is a unit of information
in the computer and telecommunication industry (Apple Logo). Another change Apple made
was with the Apple Computer name the company started with. For thirty years, Apple was called
Apple Computer until January 9, 2007 where they dropped the Computer from the name because
Apple was reaching toward the electronic market (50). These changes in the company are
critical because this shows that Apple is willing to do what it takes to meet the needs, broaden
the horizons or the company past just a computer. The changes show that Apple is about to so
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Apple Inc. Case Analysis
something very brave. Apple has come such a long way since the changes that have been made
(50). These changes motivated the company to be much bigger and allocate to different markets.
Identification
“My model for business is the Beatles. They were four guys who kept each other’s kind
of negative tendencies in check. They balanced each other, and the total was greater than the
sum of the parts. That’s how I see business: Great things in business are never done by one
person. They‘re done by a team of people” (My Model). As Steve Jobs stated in the previous
quote, the achievements and successes that Apple has received has not been a job of just one
man. The role of creating a successful part in today’s market is not an easy task. Jobs was very
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