The corporate culture at Intel is one of organization and professionalism. Intel's formal culture ensures that the company will conduct business with uncompromising professionalism and integrity. Intel promotes a safe, clean, and injury-free workplace, and Intel always makes and meets their commitments. Intel also properly plans, funds, and staffs each project it undertakes.
It's the attention to such detail, structure, and integrity that has defined Intel's corporate culture and has given Intel its reputation as the number one semiconductor business in the industry.Another aspect of Intel's formal, organized culture is standardization. Intel has over 12 fabrication plants all over the world. Each plant has the same process for manufacturing chips, regardless of the location.
Intel has carried over this standardization into its IT department as well. Simply put, every desktop PC and server within Intel has the same standards to ease technical support administration. A technical support representative in Santa Clara, Calif., can handle a call whether it's from Des Moines or Dusseldorf. Standardization has helped Intel to run smoothly, and is an essential part of its culture.Aspects of Intel's formal culture can sometimes be viewed in a negative light.
The corporation's corporate culture is not only professional and standardized, but determinedly secretive and authoritarian. The company retains its own force of private investigators to prevent its employees from going astray. Intel routinely uses the threat of lawsuits against workers and rivals. At the center of this practice is Andy Grove, Intel's high-profile CEO and chairman, once a penniless immigrant who waited tables to put himself through college.
While these aspects of Intel's culture have helped to keep the company at the top, it has also created mistrust among its employees and competitors.AMD's Corporate CultureAMD's corporate culture is very different from the culture at Intel. The culture of AMD is characterized by an indomitable will to persevere and prosper in one of the world's most competitive industries. The central tenet of AMD's culture is a belief that people are the ultimate source of the competitive advantage. AMD ensures that employees work hard, have fun, and celebrate any successes.
Therefore, AMD's culture is much more laid back and more people oriented compared to that of Intel's culture.To AMD, it's not only the result that counts, but how the result is found. At AMD, joint thinking and working together are promoted. All decisions are made in teams, and AMD believes there are no boundaries to co-operation.
AMD also believes that to improve continuously is to learn permanently. Therefore while AMD promotes team work, it also promotes the continuing education of all its employees. AMD also ensures that employees will stay motivated and positive while working for the company.AMD has a health and fitness center on site of the corporate headquarters, holds Halloween costume contests, photography contests, and offers community service projects for employees. The atmosphere at AMD is centered around people, whether it's the customer or the employee.
This casual atmosphere may not be as firm and professional as Intel, but AMD's corporate culture produces highly motivated workers who strive for the success of the company.Corporate StrategyCorporate strategy is defined as a strategy that determines how resources are to be used to meet the organization's goals. A company uses its corporate culture and beliefs to adequately develop a corporate strategy. A strategy is a plan for the company's future, a way to build and strengthen the firm's long-term competitive position. A strategy involves responding to changes in the industry, the economy, and even politics. It is important for a business to have a strategy because it provides direction for the employees to strive towards, and it installs confidence in the customer.
Intel's Corporate StrategyIntel is already on top of the semiconductor market, and holds almost half of the market share. Therefore, Intel has the resources and ability to concentrate its business on more than just satisfying the customer. Instead, Intel's strategy is to pump billions and billions of dollars into research and development. Doing so allows Intel to continue discovering new innovations and making smaller technologies that run faster than previous innovations. Intel uses this ability to stay a step ahead of competitors, and to continue to drive Moore's Law.
Moore's Law was named after a former Intel innovator. The law states that every four years a smaller, faster processor will be realized, and because of Intel's strategy, they continue to meet Moore's Law.Intel's research initiatives are carried out by a highly specialized group of researchers from around the world, others in leading universities. Intel funds a substantial number of university research projects to ensure a steady flow of innovation.
Translating research into products is one of Intel's greatest strengths. However, the ultimate goal of research efforts is to influence product development and to develop new products and usage models for entirely new markets over time. Intel's strategy brings Intel new innovations and keeps the company on top of its ever growing, high tech industry.AMD's Corporate StrategyAt AMD, the corporate strategy goes beyond integrated circuits and transistors. AMD is committed to helping the customer and the customer's customer. AMD's strategy is to take advantage of the phenomenal capacity of silicon and add value to the product and help differentiate their offerings.
With a people oriented culture, it is no surprise that AMD's strategy is oriented around people as well. Stated more simply, AMD exists to provide real solutions for real customer problems that exist in the real world today.AMD develops products through an intense focus on customer needs, and not for the sake of innovation alone. Each and every decision at AMD is based on this "customer-centric innovation" principle, driving everything from product development to relationships with partners, customers, and end users. For AMD, what the company stands for is as important as the products the company makes. AMD's strategy is to concentrate less on innovation, but on the quality and details of a product.
AMD also pumps more money into marketing to get the AMD name known in order to compete with conglomerate Intel. With AMD's quality products offered at low prices, AMD hopes their strategy will give them the unique edge needed to compete in a very competitive industry.Employee RelationsA motivated workforce produces positive results for any company. Therefore, it is important for a corporation to treat their employees with fairness and equality, and it is important to offer perks and opportunities to hard workers. Competitive companies need to concentrate on attracting, motivating, and retaining employees. Companies also need to make sure they are in compliance with all government regulations and laws.
Concentrating on employee relations can keep the smartest and brightest workers from leaving the company and possibly working for the competitor. Spending extra funds to satisfy the employee will most always benefit the company in the long run.Intel's Employee RelationsIntel goes to great lengths to keep a talented and motivated workforce. First and foremost, Intel concentrates on diversity. Intel believes that the wide-ranging cultures, perspectives and experiences of their workforce are key to the success of the company and their people. Intel is committed to diversity in the workplace by actively adopting Equal Employment Opportunities and achieving Affirmative Action objectives.
Since Intel is a government contractor, they are committed to ensuring that women, minorities, people with disabilities, Vietnam Era veterans and disabled veterans are appropriately represented in the workplace. Intel prepares an Affirmative Action Plan each year at each site. The plans assess the utilization of minorities and women in the workforce and set forth a commitment to make good faith efforts to overcome any under-representation that they identify.An employee group that Intel spends a great amount of resources on is women. Intel believes firmly in recruiting and retaining female employees. That is why Intel created a program called the Women at Intel Network (WIN).
The program offers female employees many incentives to enrich their careers at Intel. A mentoring network is set up to develop relationships with leaders and fellow employees, and for women employees to gain new skills and perspectives on issues facing women in the workforce. The program also offers speaker and development series, social activities, and sponsorship opportunities in the local community. Intel also offers flexible maternity leave and child care options for employees with children. Such attention to female employees helps Intel maintain its talented female workforce.Finally, Intel believes that employees should continue to learn and grow within their careers at Intel.
Intel employee programs like Intel University, multicultural training, mentoring, and a wide range of employee groups provide employees with exciting ways to gain knowledge, sharpen skills, meet new people and have fun. Intel also continues to try and create a challenging work environment so employees are constantly improving and working for the success of the company. Individual awards and extra benefits are also given to those who perform well.