Introduction
Nokia, a Finnish multinational corporation headquartered in Espoo, Finland, was founded in 1865 as a paper mill (Lindén, 2021). Throughout the 19th century, it expanded into several different products before being incorporated in 1967 (Lindén, 2021). In the latter half of the 20th century, the company benefited from the popularity of computers and cell phones, but growing competition compelled adjustments to its business strategies. As iOS and Android became more popular, Apple released its first camera phone in 2003 (Lamberg et al., 2019). In order to address this, Nokia and Microsoft partnered strategically in 2011, and Nokia sold Microsoft its mobile and device division in 2014 (Lamberg et al., 2019). After the 2013 acquisition of Siemens, Nokia Networks was created, refocusing on providing network hardware and software (Lindén, 2021). The 2015 purchase of Alcatel-Lucent by Nokia increased Nokia’s customer base and portfolio (Lindén, 2021). Through further acquisitions, Nokia has positioned itself as a leading global technology provider in the communications industry.
Planning
The company’s mission statement is “to create the technology to connect the world.” The mission statement reflects the company’s commitment to developing innovative products and services that connect people and communities globally (About Us: Nokia Corporation, 2023). Goals: the firm’s long-term goal is to build a sustainable and profitable business. The company aims to achieve this by investing in research and development and expanding its product and service offerings. Nokia’s primary goals are to maintain its position as a leader in the telecommunications industry, increase revenue, and improve profitability.
Strategies: it has implemented several strategies to achieve its long-term goals, including (Nokia Corporation, 2023). Nokia in the past, focused on the production of handsets, ignoring the transition to smartphones and not realizing the importance of mobile applications. This strategy resulted in Nokia’s declining market share, loss of leadership, and lower profits for the company (Lamberg et al., 2019). Thus, Nokia failed to manage the changes in the industry effectively and did not take advantage of opportunities to strengthen its position in the mobile market. Nokia had the chance to avoid a disastrous decline by emulating successful businesses that stayed one step ahead of their rivals (Sofiah & Aslami, 2022). For instance, Apple maintained its market position by continuously improving its products and releasing new iterations that satiated changing customer demands.
Concentrating on core businesses: Nokia has prioritized its fixed networks, mobile networks, and Nokia Technologies. The corporation wants to boost operational effectiveness and profitability by concentrating on its core activities.
- Driving operational excellence.
- Investing in research and development.
- Improving product and service offerings. For instance, the corporation purchased Withings, a digital health startup, in 2016 to increase the scope of its healthcare solutions. It has collaborated on innovative goods and services with businesses like Microsoft and Intel. (Press and Stock Exchange releases. Nokia, 2023)
Organizing
They point out that the firm is divided into some operational areas: sales, manufacturing, research and development, and marketing. According to Elnafati and Lairej (2021), Nokia’s organizational structure consists of different departments responsible for a specific function. The system follows a clear hierarchy regarding the line of authority. The CEO position is at the top of the organizational chart, followed by the executive team overseeing the company’s operations. A manager, reporting to a higher-level manager, oversees each functional department. The range of control for each level of the organization varies, with senior managers having a more comprehensive range of authority than lower-level managers who usually manage smaller teams. Nokia maintains a narrow range of control at the lowest levels of the organization, allowing for more supervision and management of personnel. (Elnafati & Lairej, 2021).
Employees at Nokia who are directly involved in the creation of goods or the provision of services have line responsibilities. Those with staff responsibilities assist those in line positions like human resources or finance. The functional organization enables distinct demarcation between line and staff responsibilities (Elnafati & Lairej, 2021). This departmentalization style makes more specialization and skill within each functional area possible.
Leading
Luomalahti (2019) describes Nokia’s corporate culture as focused on innovation, collaboration, and a customer-oriented approach. The organization values trust, respect, and open communication among employees. Finnish leadership is characterized as egalitarian and emphasizes maintaining harmony within the team. The author also notes that Finnish leaders tend to have a more hands-off approach, allowing employees to take ownership of their work and providing guidance and support as needed.
The corporate culture of the company is driven by innovation, teamwork, and a customer-focused approach (Luomalahti, 2019). Nokia also encourages open communication, respect, and trust between coworkers. Egalitarian and stressing the value of upholding team cohesion, Finnish leadership is known for these traits. Luomalahti (2019) also observes that Finnish managers frequently take a more hands-off approach, letting workers take responsibility for their tasks and offering assistance when required.
Over time, Nokia as a company has used various leadership techniques. Nokia has previously used the democratic leadership style as one of its leadership philosophies (Luomalahti, 2019). Nokia Corporation’s leadership values transparency and fairness and maintains a non-hierarchical approach. The company offers several opportunities for workers to interact with the leadership, such as online discussion boards and town hall meetings. Nokia promotes professional development through personalized learning goals, access to coaching, mentoring, and online training. Every 90 days, the company helps managers and employees discuss career development to support employee advancement.
Control. Nokia employs various control techniques to ensure that its operations go as planned and get the required results. Pre-action control, steering control, screening control, and post-action control are some of these techniques.
Setting norms and guidelines before any action is known as pre-action control. To make sure a new product complies with quality and safety requirements, for instance, establishes performance standards and recommendations.
Steering control entails keeping an eye on and altering ongoing processes to ensure they continue toward the established goals. Nokia employs this strategy by keeping an eye on ongoing initiatives and making necessary adjustments to ensure they stay in line with the objectives.
Monitoring production process inputs as part of screening control helps to ensure that only high-quality inputs are used. The corporation has developed a supplier screening procedure to guarantee that only high-quality raw materials are utilized in manufacturing.
In post-action control, the results of completed actions are assessed to see if the goals were achieved. For example, Nokia assesses sales data and customer comments to determine whether a new product succeeded once launched.
Correction action illustrates controlling actions in the company’s manufacturing division. The production manager performs a root cause analysis to determine the causes of the shortage and then takes corrective action.
Conclusion
As a multinational corporation, Nokia has a lengthy and diverse history, including everything from mobile devices to network hardware and software. The company’s success as a leader in global technology is directly attributable to effective management practices in planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. It will be crucial for the management team to remain flexible and creative learn from past errors while adhering to the company’s mission and values as Nokia develops further.
References
About Us: Nokia Corporation. Nokia. (n.d.). Web.
Elnafati, Y. F. M., & Lairej, H. B. (2021). The relationship between organizational culture, leadership, and group structure in an organization (Case Study: Nokia Organization). Algerian Sientific Lournal Plarform, 9(2), 118–132. Web.
Lamberg, J.-A., Lubinaitė, S., Ojala, J., & Tikkanen, H. (2019). The curse of agility: The Nokia Corporation and the loss of market dominance in mobile phones, 2003–2013. Business History, 63(4), 574–605. Web.
Lindén, C.-G. (2021). Kingdom of Nokia: How a nation served the needs of one company. Helsinki University Press.
Luomalahti, L. (2019). Leading multicultural team in a Finnish company – Nokia (Publication No. 01) [Bachelor’s thesis, Oulu University]. Oulu University Repository.
Press and Stock Exchange releases. Nokia. (n.d.). Web.
Sofiah, M., & Aslami, N. (2022). Analysis of the importance of change management and company leadership in the era of change (case study of Nokia company). International Journal of Economics, Business, and Entrepreneurship, 5(1). Web.
Sulphey, M. M. (2019). Could the adoption of organizational ambidexterity have changed the history of Nokia? South Asian Journal of Business and Management Cases, 8(2), 167–181. Web.