Reference no: EM132614040

Read the following case study and answer the questions that follow

Foxconn is perhaps one of the largest single employers on the planet, with around 1.5 million workers. It has some 200 subsidiaries around the world, although the bulk of its operations and staff are employed in approximately 30 factories across China: in Chengdu, Shenzhen, Beijing and Shanghai among others. Foxconn was founded in 1974 in Taiwan and has grown as a world-leading supply chain transnational corporation. Foxconn is ranked about 30th on the Fortune Global 500 list of top corporations, with annual revenues in excess of US$130 billion.

However, considerable criticism has been levelled at Foxconn (and Apple) given reports about harsh working conditions and the way staff members are managed. There is a military style work regime because of supplier-dominated relationships. For example, when the likes of Apple or Dell issue model updates or launch a new product, production and work pressures intensify for Foxconn employees. Many employees end up working long 12-hour shifts, often with overtime going unpaid. Supervision has been reported as intensive and intimidating with workers having to take time off during low peak periods as a way to circumvent over time regulations and protective labour laws. Evidence points to unsafe working conditions, including fatal explosions in some factories, and other risks causing significant distress and health hazards to thousands of employees; for example, workers who polish the new, shinier and streamlined iPad inhale toxic aluminium dust. in the first five months of 2010 twelve suicides - attempted and achieved - by distraught employees who jumped from factory dormitories at Foxconn's Shenzhen sites caught the attention of the world's media. The company's response was to install safety netting between buildings. Company management and the trade union offered counselling to employees, without fully acknowledging its management responsibilities or addressing the profound anxiety faced by a young cohort in a highly unequal chinese society marked by a deep rural-urban divide.

QUESTION ONE

a) By use of illustrations, evaluate five practices in this organization which would be regarded as contemporary management issues.

b) The kind of leadership at Foxconn may prove a challenge in the current business environment. Analyze FIVE strategic leadership practices which the leaders can use illustrating how they will help this organization to remain competitive.