An Evaluation of the Relevance of Communication as a Tool for Effective Management
ABSTRACT
The theme of the study is an
evaluation of the relevance of communication as a tool for effective management
(A Case Study of NNPC Abuja, Abuja Territorial Office). From the study there
are five chapters, chapter one deals with the introduction, background of the
study, problems, purpose of the study, significance of the study and scope and
limitation of the study. Chapter two tries to review the relevant literature,
while chapter three is about the methodology. Description research, method was
used and both questionnaire and library books and journals were used in data
collection. In chapter four, the data collected in chapter three were analyzed,
the researcher found it necessary to have an efficient and effective community
in a given organization. Finally,
chapter five, gives a general discussion of the findings, makes recommendations
for further studies and recommendations for further studies and concluded the
project. Having carried out the surveys the researcher came to a conclusion
that it is vital to have a free flow of communication in the organization where
the employees are feedback with what they need and at the time they need it
which breads motivation and high morale that leads to increase in productivity.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Communication,
an important interdisciplinary science, is a dynamic process which in corporate
both the situational factors and the changing processes in the environment. In
case participants choose to ignore the important of this process and proceed
according to their whims and wishes, they would realize much to their dismay,
their inability to transmit their ideas effectively and consequent failure to
achieve their objectives.
Today
communication has become an integral part of our life. Inability to communicate
effectively and efficiently can jeopardize our interests in business and other
managerial functions, especially controlling and organizing. Be it
inter-personal or interpersonal relationships, the role of communication can be
ganged by the fact that whenever there are impediments in the communications
process, the flow of activities loses its momentum and misunderstandings may
crop up resulting in failure of relationships and situational breakdown. The
phenomenon of interaction is a function of some internal and external factors
which need to be studied in order to have a comprehensive understanding of the
interactant, that is, his manner of presentation, intention, etc.
1.2 THE HISTORY AND ACTIVITIES OF NNPC
PETROLEUM DEVELOPMENT COMPANY.
Petroleum is as of now, the bedrock of the Nigeria
economy. It provides 80% of the nations revenue and 90% of its foreign exchange
with a production rate of two million barrels a day, the country is Africa
largest exporter of crude oil and among the
top ten oil producing countries in the world of today in the world. Ever since the oil
boom era of 1970s, the Federal Government has depended on the income generated
has depended on the income generated from petroleum to develop and sustain the
nation and its people. As such the petroleum industry is a entree of attraction
for all Nigerians.
Oil prospecting in Nigeria began as far back as
1908 by the German company, Nigeria Bitumen corporation in the Araromi areas of
the present Ondo state in western
Nigeria, but is was not until 1956 that the shell followed by the first
oil exports two years later, ever since then, news on petroleum exploration
drilling and marketing have become indications as to how buoyant and stable the
Nigeria economy is every interest of
this nation for these activities to continue smoothly. So far this has not been
the case as these oil related activities have been constantly disrupted in the
past four to six years. This is the major reason why the interest has manifested
into the research world developed.
There are
oil-producing companies in Nigeria who have licenses to explore, drill and
market petroleum jointly with the Nigeria national petroleum corporation
(NNPC). The NNPC is the federal government representative which implement
governments polices and directives and at the same time controls and supervises
the activates of the oil- producing companies.
Petroleum
which sustain Nigeria is derived from the lands and territorial waters of Nigeria. The people from these oil
prosodic areas claim ownership of this
mineral since it derived from their soil. In this light these communities
demand royalties for petroleum drilled for their land, compensation for any
environmental damage such as oil spillage and pollution as well as kind rents
and other levels.
In the past
the oil companies paid royalties, compensation and land rent to the communities
where petroleum was explored and
drilled. But with the coming of the 1979 constitution the situation changed
section 40, such section 3 f eh constitution states that “ the entire property
in and control of all minerals, mineral oils and natural gas in under or upon
any land in Nigeria or in under or upon the territorial waters
Signs & Symbols:
Man
possesses the ability to communicate which is much more than a mere composition
of certain physical attributes such as vocal folds, articulators etc. he has
the ability to symbolize or to understand concepts in terms of images or
symbols. It is this which helps him in effective communication. Communication then
is not merely an understanding of the words which are spoken, but also the
symbols and the gestures that accompany the spoken words.
In
case there is a dichotomy between the presenter’s and receiver’s mode of
thinking and mental image formation, we have instances of ineffective
communication difference, an attempts should be made by the interantants to understand
each other viewpoints from the same perspective in order to minimize the
element of misunderstanding.
Symbols
which were used by the pre- historic man to communication message continue to
be used by the modern man as a tool of communication even today of course,
complexity has crept in and different issues. Communication is related to
meanings or signs that are used to make the concepts explicit.
The three elements related to a study
of sign are: -
1. What is sign
2. What it refers to
3. The users of this sign
A sign is something physical which can be perceived by our
senses. It connotation is based on our perception. If we were to pieces up word
and try to understand it in terms of its reference, probably, the connotations
would be different let us take the word “Heat” for example, if two people
belonging to different regions were to react to the word, probably, their
reactions too would be different. One would associate it with warmth and
comfort while the other would associate it with discomfort. In this case, both
are speaking the same language, both are viewing reality at the same time, but
their concepts are different and hence their perception too are different. It
is not the language has been learnt differently by them through the signs in a
given set of conditions and the quantum and manner of absorption of the signs
are what make their perceptions different. In other words, the different lies
in the understanding of the concept of heat which links the word to reality.
Just as language gives a man his unique status in nature, communication
provides him his unique place in the society. Communication then, by means of
language is man’s destructive ability.
Criteria for Effective Communication
For
any communication between two persons to be effective it must be:
1. Clear: The
meaning of the message must be clearly stated. That is to say the encoder must
be able to understand the message clearly.
2. Compute: The
purpose of the message should be stated. The message becomes useless without a
particular purpose in mind.
3. Correct: The
content of the message should be true, it should be a reality.
4. Saves Time: The
message should be concrete, and not beating about the bush.
5. Build Good Will: Every communication should be able to achieve a purpose to enhance both
the sender and the received welfare.
Growth of Communication
Communication
is a science as old as mentioned. Right from the time of inception, man felt
the need to communicate initially; he made use of signs and symbols to transmit
his message. With the passage of time signs and symbols were replaced by words,
and languages. Gradually the effect of communication was felt in a big way and
extension research was carried out by experts in this field. Finally in the
early 40’s and 50’s communication as an interdisciplinary subject began to gain
ground, in the initial phase’s communication revolved round public.
Speaking,
in which non-verbal as well as the verbal cues were studied and effectiveness
of communication was evaluated with persuasion as the main goal. At this time
various scholars began a study of communication in a manner which extended
beyond their own particular discipline. For example, in anthropology the study
of body gesture in different culture came under this scrutiny of
anthropologists. In psychology, the emphasis was laid on persuasion altitude,
social changes, behaviour and its impact on communication, sociologists and
political scientists, studies the voting behaviour and other facets of life.
Studies in rhetoric and speech at this time focused interest on oral
presentation, interpretation, voice, diction, debate, the physiology of speech
and speech pathology. In general, the study of communications received a great
impetus and with the incorporation of data from other discipline a number of
models were proposed, each an improvement on the existing one.
Although
some concepts of communication have undergone a radical transformation, there
are certain other concepts which have stood the test of time. Primary among
them is the role of a sender which demands the some degree of transformation be
brought about in the receiver by virtue of a message. The second concept is the
idea initially posited that the message sent is never equal to the message
received that is, there is a variance between the data imparted and the
information received. While the basic ideas of a sender and a message remained
unchanged, certain other components were added to the model of communication in
order to present a cleaner and more comprehensive picture of communication.
Effective management is defined as the process of combining and utilizing or of
allocation an organizations input by planning, organizing, directing and
controlling for the purpose of producing inputs desired by the customers so
that the organizational objectives are accomplished.
It
is the combination and co-ordination of both huma and material resources for
the production of a desire objective decision making is impossible without
communication. Effectiveness of
communication in any organization breads motivation and high morale on
employees with its attendant increase in productivity and profitability which
is always the objective of many businesses.
From
all indications, communication is of paramount importance in decline with human
factor throughout his stay in the organization from recruitment to retirement.
Communication
integrates the managerial function and relates it to both internal and external
environment. Every system must have interaction and cohesiveness between its
sub-system if the complex is to accomplish its’ objectives. Communication is
then binding factor between these sub-systems and provide information that
simultaneously guide the systems towards organizational goal accomplishment.
NNPC
– Nigeria National Petroleum Company is an arm of the Federal Ministry of
petroleum and was established in Nigeria. As an arm of the Federal petroleum,
their aim was to serve the general public in the area of receiving and delivery
of petroleum products and other crude oil products. NNPC Abuja Territorial
District which is situated at Herbart Macurly way, Central Business District,
Garki Abuja is the headquarter of Nigeria chapter. It also has other services
centre within Niger Delta states metropolis from where they carry out their
services respectively.
NNPC,
like other courier services like SHELL., SHELVRON, MOBILE, TEXACO, etc is an
old long means of delivery services. There services are unique in the sense
that they have established their subsidiary offices in every nocks and crannies
of Nigeria Metropolis even in the most remote areas of the country.
Every organization has its loope
holes; Individual background, ethic, social and cultural backgrounds which have
the ability of acting as a barrier to effective communication is one of the
problems being faced by NNPC Abuja. Mechanical inefficiency could also be the
cause of the problem in the organization. This is advanced in the sense that
they stem from lack of proper facilities or means of communication like
telephones, telex, telegraphs etc. these tools are used for receiving or
sending urgent, business information. When any of these equipments does not
function properly, information flow is distorted and these not often to the
interest of the organization.
Targeted
goods for the post in general includes inter-alia:
i.
To
anticipate and respond to the need of the numerous customers world –wide
integrity that is based on sound fiscal and operational policies.
ii.
To
effectively be responsible to all employees in term of career opportunities
working conditions, compensation so as to enhance option performance.
iii.
To
give maximum service to the general public.
The
accomplishment of objectiveness personal and organizational is impossible
without communication and could only be partially achieved by chance if
communication is ineffective. This among others necessitated on carrying a
research on this topic. “An evaluation of the relevance of communication as
tool for effective management: A case study of NIPOST, Enugu Territorial
Office. Therefore there is the need to evaluate the relevance of communication
as a tool for effective management in an organization.
1.3 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Information is a life wire behind the
survival of a business. Distortion may be noise in transmission or it may
result from inadequacy of the words in carrying the precise ideas tot eh
sender. If an accountant submits a report on costs to an economist, distortion
may result because of differences in the meaning of the word cost.
In
the same vein, filtering as a problem to communication when the sender
intentionally shifts the information so tat the receiver will look favourably
on the message.
Experience
has shown that delays in communication procedures endanger management
effectiveness. As a result of this, conflicts usually arise between management
and different department in the organization. NNPC, since its inception has
been tormented by some problems among which are: -
i.
Poor
communication facilities due to inability to procure modern communication
equipments like computer, telephones, telegraph, fax machines etc.
ii.
Lack
of skilled personnel to handle modern communication equipment where the
employees lack training on the use of these modern facilities.
iii.
Poor
conditions of service also affect the communication in an organization since
the works are not provided with the working needs.
1.4 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
The main purpose of this study is to
evaluation the relevance of communication as a tool for effective management.
Specifically the study seeks to:
1. Assess the important of communication
as a tool for effectiveness management.
2. Find out whether delays in
communication procedure endanger managerial effectiveness.
3. Determine the various problems
militating against effective communication at different levels in an
organization.
4. Outlay some difficulties encountered
in implementing an effective communication in NNPC.
1.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY.
The consequence or important of this
research is to access the important of communication to NNPC Abuja Territorial
Office and recommend area of improvement. That is to say to evaluate the
relevance of communication as a tool for effective management.
This
study will also help prospective businessmen to know the causes and reasons for
communication problems in business organization.
It
will help the educators who train and educate students in business studies;
this will also expose them to other areas of communication.
Also
it helps policy makers in bid to restructure the communication system in their
various organizations.
Finally,
the students of management studies will also benefit from this study, this is
because it will expand their knowledge and scope of understanding of
communication.
1.6 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
For the purpose of this, study, the
following questions are put forward to guide the study:
1. Does delay in communication procedure
endanger management effectiveness?
2. How does communication act as a tool
for effectiveness management?
3. What are the problems militating
against effective communication at different levels in an organization.
4. What are the difficulties encountered
in implementing an effective communication NNPC?
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
2.1 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
In this chapter, the researcher
defines communication and also made reference to other people’s definitions.
The researcher also discusses the role of communication, principles of
communication, the concept of communication, communication process, types of
communication, basic requirements for effective communication, paths of communication,
and barriers to effective communication, rules for overcoming barriers,
techniques and conclusion on the literature review.
2.2 CONCEPTS OF COMMUNICATION
The word communication originate from
the Latin word “communist” which means common communication parse and is the
very essence of running any system since it involves people working as a group.
The existence of the need for a
leader to plot the affairs of any goal oriented group, to ensure the optimum
achievement of the set goals leads to the necessity for information flow of
command, ideas, directions and instructions within a group. This information
flow is what is called communication.
According to Flipo (1987) he defined
communication as the “art of impacting a common idea or understanding to
another person”. While Cheppeil and Read defined communication as any means by
which a thought is transferred from one person to another. From the above
definitions, it implies that communication is the transfer of information from
the sender to the receiver with the information being understood by the
receiver.
In the view of the Eyre (1973)
communication is not just giving of understandable information and the
understanding of the message. This implies that communication partly so that it
can be understood and acted upon.
REQUEST FOR PROJECT MATERIAL
Good Day Sir/Ma,
WARNINGS!
PLEASE make
sure your project topic or related topic is found on this website and
that you have preview the abstract or chapter one before making payment.
Thanks for your interest in the research
topic. The complete research work will cost you N2000 and we will send
the material to you within 24hours after confirming your payment.
Make the payment of N2000 into any of the account
number below and we will send the complete material to you within
24hours after confirming your payment.
Account Name: Agada Leonard E
Account No: 2070537235
Bank: UBA
Or
Account Name: Agada Leonard E
Account No: 3049262877
Bank: First Bank
Or
Account Name: Agada Leonard
Account No: 0081241151
Bank: Diamond Bank
After payment, send the following information to us through this email
address: enemsly@gmail.com
Topic paid for:
Amount Paid:
Date of Payment:
Teller No or Transaction ID:
Name of Depositor:
Depositor Phone Number:
Email address:
NOTE: The material will be forwarded to the email address you provided
within 24hrs after confirmation of the payment.
Thanks.
Agada Leonard E.
For: Enems Project.
For more information visit our contact page @ CONTACT US
No comments:
Post a Comment