Assignment 1: Corporate Responsibility and Marketing Strategies

Use the Internet to research the Apple Corporation, its current position and reputation regarding ethical and social responsibility, and the strategies that it currently employs to market its products.

Write a six to eight (6-8) page paper in which you:

1. Examine Apple's current position on the company's ethical and social responsibilities, and determine whether or not the company has met these responsibilities. Provide two (2) examples that support your position.
2. Determine the impact that the publication of ethics and social responsibilities violations made by Apple's suppliers has had on Apple's reputation. Support your response with examples of the impact in question.
3. Suggest two (2) methods that Apple can utilize to ensure that its suppliers adhere to wage and benefits standards going forward. Justify your response.
4. Determine whether or not you believe that Apple's customers would be willing to pay more for its products if Apple had to increase selling prices in order to provide better wages and benefits for suppliers' workers. Provide a rationale for your position.
5. Analyze Apple's current overall marketing strategy. Recommend two (2) actions that Apple can take in order to improve its competitive advantage in the global marketplace. Support your response with examples of instances where your recommendations yielded the desired results.
6. Use at least five (5) quality academic resources in this assignment. Note: Wikipedia does not qualify as an academic resource.

Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements:

• Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow APA or school-specific format.
• Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required assignment page length.

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:

• Examine the private enterprise systems, drivers of change on the system, ethical and social responsibilities of business, and the requirements for success in today's business environment.
• Analyze the factors that drive supply and demand, different types of market structures in a free enterprise system, and factors of stability in a nation's economy.
• Use technology and information resources to research issues in contemporary business.
• Write clearly and concisely about contemporary business using proper writing mechanics.