Essay on Steve Jobs Entrepreneurship

Many people recognize Steve Jobs as one of the greatest leaders who spearheaded the Apple Company to what it is today. Jobs was an influential person with extraordinary skills, and many people sought to be like him. Despite having a humble beginning and undergoing some difficulties in his entrepreneurship journey, he succeeded. His story is an inspiration to many people as well as an intimidation to his critics. The entrepreneurial life of Steve Jobs is an inspiration to many young marketers stuck in the early stages of making beginning their businesses.

Early Life

Jobs was born in 1955 by Abdul Fattah Jandali and Joanne Carole Schieble (Doeden, 2012). His parents had a humble background since they were young and immigrants. They could not upbring Jobs, and they offered him for adoption immediately after his birth. Due to the hardships that the immigrants experienced during the 1950s, his parents gave him to Paul and Clara Jobs who were by that time a working class (Doeden, 2012). From such a little age, Jobs demonstrated the talent of dealing with power intricacy computers. Abdul Fattah Jandali was a mechanic and could take with Jobs in the family garage where he took cars apart and assembled them.

Jobs continued life in the mechanic's field triggered his interest in learning about machines. He credited his father for teaching him on how to detail on machines, the mantra that distinct Apple from the rest of its competitors. Jobs was a prodigy in school to a point where the teachers could suggest that he skips some grades a suggestion that his parents couldnt allow (Gregory, 2013). People who were close to Jobs could detect his unmatched skills in computers at a little age. For example, he called the HP founder Bill Hewlett at the age of 12 seeking some electronic parts for a school project. This act moved the founder to the point of offering him an internship in summer.

Entrepreneurial Life

As Jobs was growing, he lost the taste of education; he could just attend classes that interested him before eventually dropping out of school. He could just attend classes that interested him. He secured a job in Atari, a video game manufacturing company, saved and went to India with a friend for spiritual enlightenment (Gregory, 2013). The milestone of Jobs entrepreneurship began when he met Steve Wozniak. The duo redefined computers bringing the larger picture of technology. They were to rise one day to become the co-founders of the greatest information technology company in the world. They began with a blue box which its success became a motivation to many companies to focus on the invention.

Jobs and Wozniak continued inventions led to the birth of the very first Apple machine. They began the ambitious project by disposing of off their gadgets to pay for it (Gregory, 2013). They worked relentlessly in the garage to finish their jobs and spent maximum time in talking to their clients. Jobs was a hippie man when he began entrepreneurial practices. He was after investors to fund his business and after a long chase, he secured Intel who agreed to fund his business. Soon, the company (Apple) began making news and Jobs became a figure in the computing industry.

While he was just 23, Jobs was worth $1 million, $10 million while at 24 and $100 when he was 25 (Doeden, 2012). Jobs was one of the youngest entrepreneurs to features in the Forbes list of the richest people without any inheritance from his family. One of the challenging trials in his life is a legal controversy that involved him with his on-and-off lover Chrsiann who conceived his child (Doeden, 2012). However, Jobs held that he was sterile even after a DNA evidence.

The biggest setback of Jobs is his firing from the Macintosh group. He felt betrayal since he had recently hired John Sculley, the Pepsi Executive who greatly contributed to his firing. However, he didnt give up and went ahead to begin a new company known as NeXt though he experienced a lot of difficulties to increase his sales because of the high prices of machines (Machajewski, 2017). NeXt Company later merged with Apple to produce the current iOS. However, Jobs still wasnt satisfied since he aspired to become a bigger empire.

Jobs diversified his investments and made a big investment in a startup referred to as Graphics Group currently called Pixar. Jobs put millions of dollars, and the instant success of the company largely paid back big profits. He remained the biggest shareholder of the company. He was doing excellently until his health became a problem. He shattered completely to get later diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

Apple Inc under Jobs

By the time Jobs left the Apple Inc, he had facilitated the invention of high technological gadgets such as MacBook Air, iPhone, and iPod (Machajewski, 2017). The gadgets demonstrated the evolution of technology. Apple Company caught the sight of many consumers since its products were unmatched and sophisticated. No other company was close to the products and services produced by Apple. In 2008, iPad and iTunes sales made Apple Inc appear the first in the fortune magazine after it recorded the highest returns in America. By 2015, Jobs was the largest shareholder, CEO, and co-founder of Apple. Jobs gave a big contribution to the todays technology before passing away at the age of 56 (Machajewski, 2017).

Steve Jobs was a perfectionist who valued his customers as he gave them a priority. A large group of people particularly scholars and the management admired as well as criticized his skills of salesmanship and persuasion. Jobs aspired to place his business and products at an absolute front on the information technology industry by setting and foreseeing innovation trends.

Jobs was a hardworking person who employed diverse management skills and styles of management to get the best out of his staff. The companys products were outstanding. For instance, there was a period when everyone wished to have an iPod. Apples launch of phones with a new OS was an instant hit since many people especially businessperson were willing to purchase the new models of phone that possessed a new operating system. Jobs significantly contributed to the smartphones concept that everyone has to possess. He will always receive credit for that.

Apple Inc SWOT analysis

Apply Inc follows the footsteps of its founders Steve Jobs and Wozniak. The greatest strength of the company is that it uses its strengths to overcome its threats and weaknesses as well as exploiting its opportunities. A SWOT analysis of the company identifies its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. The following subsections are detailed to examine the company critically.

Strengths

The strengths aspect of the analysis highlights the companys strengths that enable it to overcome the threats posed by its business environment. Potential threats to the company can be influential in reducing the organizational performance (Helms & Nixon, 2010). The strengths of the company include an effective innovation process, high-profit margins, and strong brand image. These strengths enable Apple Inc to compete with other businesses in the markets favorably.

Weaknesses

In most cases, factors that contribute to lower organizational performance, productivity and low sales are the weaknesses of a company. In SWOT analysis, weaknesses of a company present the inadequacies of a company (Helms & Nixon, 2010). They are obstacles that inhibit growth. One of the greatest weaknesses of Apple is high production cost that translates to high selling prices. The company has its sales limited to high-market end. It also has a limited distribution network.

Opportunities

Being a corporate organization provides the company with the capacity of dominating the technological markets. Opportunities provide a strategic direction in which an organization can use to become more successful as well as expand its operations and higher profit margins (Helms & Nixon, 2010). Apply has the opportunity of expanding its distribution network, create new product lines and increase the quality and quantity of its products such as smartphones and tablets.

Threats

The critical threat that faces Apple Inc is competition from both the large-scale and small-scale businesses. It experiences aggressive competition, imitation from its competitors and rise of labor costs in most of its countries.

Steve Jobs is an example of an entrepreneur fastened his skills and knowledge to bring out one of the biggest technology companies. Despite being a dropout, he had a great interest in the computer world. He identified great talents, nurtured them to achieve a big business entity. Despite the high competition, Apple Inc still upholds a strong brand image, makes high profits and embraces latest technologies.

References

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Doeden, M. (2012). Steve Jobs: Technology innovator and Apple genius. Minneapolis: Lerner Publications.

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Gregory, J. (2013). Steve Jobs. New York, N.Y: Children's Press.

Helms, M. M., & Nixon, J. (2010). Exploring SWOT analysis-where are we now? A review of academic research from the last decade. Journal of Strategy and Management.

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Machajewski, S. (2017). Steve Jobs: Founder of Apple Inc.

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