Analyses of business sectors can help students determine the positions of employment, gain knowledge of employment opportunities and skills required in the industry or specific job roles within the industry. In this regard, the essay aims to examine the technology industry through an investigation of a particular brand, specifically Apple Inc. The reason for the choice is that the student would like to join this sector after completing school. The technology sector remains one of the best-performing industries globally. As a result, the industry has drawn interest from the student who hopes to work in the field.
For this reason, the following report will cover various aspects regarding the industry and the skills needed to succeed in it. The report begins with an introduction that outlines the task and steps to address it. Second, the report will cover the historical and recent trends shaping the sector. In the art, the student will address the history of the industry, common job roles and employment trends. Third, it will discuss the proficiencies and experience needed in the sector where the essential, desirable, transferable competences will be covered. Fourth, the report will discuss the findings addressing the skills the student already possesses and those that should be built. Finally, the report will present a conclusion and action plan covering the outcomes that motivate the student to continue pursuing work in the sector and develop SMART goals to put into action. The intention is to show the process of expertise development for a chosen career.
Historical & Recent Trends Shaping the Sector
According to globalEDGE (n.d), the technology is a relatively young sector whose origins can be traced to 1904 when the two-element electron tube was invented. The industry continued to grow in the 1950s and 1960s with the creation of the transistor and integrated circuits. Although computers were developed in the 1980s, their popularity did not rise until the 1990s. The availability of the Internet during the 1990s led to an explosion of the usage of personal computers. The increasing use made well-known names, for example, Bill Gates and Steve Jobs. Steve Jobs founded Microsoft's key competitor Apple Inc.
Rawlinson (2017) asserts that the inspiration for the company after Steve jobs went to the Homebrew Computer Club in California’s Menlo Park in 1975. At the convention, he saw the MITS Altair that inspired him to build something simpler. Together with Steve Wozniak, Jobs produced the first computer that had a keyboard resembling a typewriter and the capability to connect to a regular television that acted as a screen. Later, the two named their invention Apple 1.
The organisation has undergone considerable changes since the period providing a variety of products to the market, for example, iPhone, iPad, Apple laptops, and Apple watch. The changes signify the development of better technologies that involve faster performance and larger memory sizes (Giachetti 2013). Historically, Apple has maintained several job roles as being critical to its success. Some of the job positions considered essential to the success of the business are engineers, software developers and marketers.
Each of the job positions has specific skills required to enable people to succeed in them. Marketers must be good at communication, analytical thinking, creativity and negotiation (Bean and Hussey 2012). Engineers must possess technical abilities, problem-solving capabilities and knowledge of their industry. Similarly, software developers must have technical proficiencies, industry knowledge and problem-solving competences to thrive in the roles.
The employment trends in the technology sector, especially at Apple, have been growing. According to Apple Inc. (n.d), the business has created over 2 million jobs across the 50 states in the U.S. The jobs span a variety of roles, for instance, designers, scientists, construction, retail, customer support, marketing and hardware and software engineers. The jobs in the industry and company are innovative and give workers a greater sense of purpose and flexibility. As a result, a higher number of graduates are interested in getting jobs in this sector.
The job opportunities are increasing as the company continues to gain a larger market size. Estimates show that artificial intelligence and related technologies may create 90 million jobs in the next two decades (PwC 2018). People are increasing the need tostore information opening new opportunities. Moreover, due to increased Internet access in different countries, companies in the sector are experiencing a growing demand for their products (Burrow, Kleindl and Everard 2007). As a result, technology companies are hiring more people to boost their innovativeness and productivity to satisfy the requirements of the markets and satisfy the needs of the markets.
Skills and Experience Required in the Sector
As a business student, a suitable type of job in the sector is marketing. The essential skills for a person considering the role are analytical thinking, creativity and communication (Bean and Hussey 2012). As stated, communication competences are critical for marketers because they have to interact with customers and find ways to increase the appeal of their products. Marketing involves presenting products or services to target customers and convincing people to buy them. Skilled marketers need communication proficiencies to achieve these goals. They must pass information in a way that generates confidence and trust, and interpersonal skills are critical to the realisation of the aim.
Apart from communication skills, other vital abilities are analytical thinking and innovation. Analytical thinking involves a systematic approach to issues concerning solving problems, identifying causes and anticipating unplanned outcomes. Marketers must be able to address issues concerning the marketing of products and services, identify the reasons for success or failure and determine when they may get results that differ from their expectations (Keyes 2009). Finally, creativity is essential in marketing because marketers must identify ways to sell products and keep the interest of customers. They must develop new approaches to selling items and determine the most effective methods to reach consumers. As a result, innovation is critical in marketing.
The desirable competences in marketing are research, interpersonal, public speaking and organisation skills. Marketers must be able to examine issues and make conclusions. For example, they should be able to analyse markets, determine its size and develop effective ways to reach a substantial number of individuals in the market (Corsi and Dulieu 2013). Interpersonal proficiencies are useful for creating friendships or building a rapport that will enable marketers to give information to another party. Additionally, they must be able to speak in public. Marketers act as representatives of companies, and it is vital that they give a positive image of their enterprises. As a result, public speaking abilities are desirable among individuals who have the responsibility of marketing firms. Lastly, organisation competences are needed to allow marketers to plan actions and execute them to achieve particular aims. For example, marketers will plan marketing campaigns and develop goals that they will realise to benefit enterprises through higher sales of products.
Finally, the competences that people can transfer from this career to others are research, communication, public speaking, organisation and analytical thinking. Researching is vital in several fields, for example, academics and finance since a person must find information to solve various problems. Communication skills are required in multiple industries where people must interact with clients to establish a good relationship (McKay, Davis and Fanning 2009). On the other hand, public speaking can be used in marketing, teaching, health and engineering where people may have to speak in seminars and other public events. Organisational abilities and analytical proficiencies are required in different spheres where people must plan, examine problems and assess alternatives to implement the most effective. Therefore, these skills are transferable to other professions apart from marketing.
Discussion & Evaluation of Findings
The competences required in marketing that the student already possesses are research, analytical thinking and organisational abilities. The process of preparing this report required the use of research proficiencies especially finding information related to the sector and company. Furthermore, it was essential to organise the information to develop a cohesive report. The facility to prepare the report according to the instructions shows the presence of research and organisational skills. On the other hand, analytical thinking was useful for the problems that the student encountered during the preparation of the report. For instance, the student was unable to decide whether the variety of sources available on the Internet were reliable. Examining the authors and reputation of the websites helped to access useful information that signifies analytical thinking.
The process of further strengthening the skills is based on an individual SWOT analysis in the appendix section. In this regard, the strength of the student is the willingness to learn and improve. Thus, the student intends to continue finding information from online and book sources concerning the enhancement of research, organisational and analytical thinking proficiencies. Practising the competences through course assignments and classroom participation will also build these competences. The weakness of the student is the tendency to procrastinate. The student intends to work on this behaviour that could affect the attainment of goals by creating timetables that must be followed. As a result, an opportunity for self-improvement is available that will help the student to strengthen the skills. The threats facing the student are the ability of peers gaining abilities and experience that will place them at an advantage when venturing into the job market. Overcoming the problem will require the student to develop the essential expertise particularly creativity that will be displayed by developing general marketing strategies for various products and applying for internships to acquire practical experience.
Innovation and communication rank highly among the skills that the student must acquire. The student must seek opportunities through internships, extra-curricular activities and studies to grow the abilities. Internships will provide a way to understand the problems that companies in the technology sector experience and help in the critical thinking process that leads to creative ideas. They will be valuable for practising communication with different people such as coworkers, managers and customers that will sharpen the ability to pass information to others. Finally, extra-curricular activities and studies will be practical in foster creativity and communication as the student works to develop solutions to problems and works with other people to achieve goals. As a result, the student will participate in extra-curricular activities and find opportunities for internships during the period of study. The student will also be open to learning from others especially people who have the experience of marketing to enhance the competences needed to become a marketer. Listening and practising the things they teach will allow the student to grow the abilities. In this regard, the learning experience offers a vital opportunity to become a better individual and develop skills to enable the student to become a marketer in the future.
Conclusion and Action Plan
The findings of the research motivate the student to continue pursuing the intention of joining the marketing field especially in the technology sector. The choice is based on the realisation that marketers have critical roles in organisations, particularly technology businesses. They help to sell products and drive the strategic intentions of companies. Furthermore, marketers act as the representatives of companies in the public that carries with it an element of prestige. In this regard, it is vital to creating SMART goals that will be put into action over the course and ongoing university studies based on the research of the essential, desirable, and transferable skills of the sector. The table below shows the action plan or growing the abilities.
Goals
Plan
Measurement
Develop innovation skills during university studies
Seek internships and participate in extracurricular activities
Assess ability to develop innovative marketing strategies
Grow the public speaking abilities during the university studies
Participate in extracurricular activities and volunteer for class presentations
Confidence and articulation in public speaking
The ability to improve the skills will offer a way to become a better marketer to meet the needs of technology companies that must find creative ways to sell their products. As a result, the student intends to make proper use of the time dedicated to the acquisition of a degree to grow the expertise needed in a marketing profession. The student should make effective use of the time dedicated to studying, internships and extra-curricular activities to enhance the abilities that will lead to a successful marketing career.
References
Apple Inc. n.d. Two million U.S. jobs and counting. [online]. [20 December 2018]. Available from https://www.apple.com/job-creation/
Bean, J. and Hussey, L. 2012. Marketing public sector services: Essential skills for the public sector. London: HB Publications.
Burrow, J. L., Kleindl, B. and Everard, E. K. 2007. Business principles and management. Ohio: Cengage South Western.
Corsi, P. and Dulieu, M. 2013. The marketing of technology intensive products and services: Driving innovations for non-marketers. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.
Giachetti, C. 2013. Competitive dynamics in the mobile phone industry. Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan.
globalEdge. n.d. Technology: Background. [online]. [Accessed 20 December 2018]. Available from https://globaledge.msu.edu/industries/technology/background
Keyes, J. 2009. Marketing IT products and services. London: CRC Press.
McKay, M., Davis and Fanning, P. 2009. Messages: The communication skills book. California: New Harbinger Publications.
PricewaterhouseCoopers. 2018. AI and related technologies could create around 90 million more jobs in China than they displace over next two decades. [online]. [Accessed 20 December 2018] Available from https://press.pwc.com/News-releases/ai-and-related-technologies-could-create-around-90-million-more-jobs-in-china-than-they-displace-ove/s/2c0b8add-4967-4799-9b4f-a752f8156f9e
Rawlinson, N. 2017. History of Apple: The story of Steve Jobs and the company he founded. [online]. [Accessed 20 December 2018]. Available from https://www.macworld.co.uk/feature/apple/history-of-apple-steve-jobs-mac-3606104/
Appendix: SWOT Analysis
Item
Personal Traits
Strengths
Willingness to learn and improve
Weaknesses
Tendency to procrastinate
Opportunities
Self-improvement through skills enhancement
Threats
Peers gaining skills and experience that will place them at an advantage when venturing into the job market
