CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.0. Background to the Study
“Communication refers to the process by which information is
transmitted and understood between two or more people” (McShane &
Von Glinow, 2005). The word communication has a rich and complex
history. It first appeared in English language in the fourteen century,
taken from the Latin word communication which means to impact, share or
make common. Bateman (2002), defined communication as the transmission
of information and meaning from one party to another through the use of
shared symbol.It is a well known fact that communication plays a
coordinal and integrating role in the management of the affairs of any
organization whether in the function of planning, organizing, staffing,
leading or controlling. Communication is one of the primary areas for
understanding human behavior, Rami (2000). Communication is an essential
tool for management, which is used to carry the whole organization as a
single being.
Communication is an integral part of the organizational process as
the flow of communication up and down the organizational hierarchy has
its effects on efficiency, decision- making and morale of organizations.
Thus, effective communication is regarded as the foundation of
organizations today (Witherspoon, 1997; Von Krogh e al., 2000).
Communication strategies are common in the business world, where they
are used as part of a business plan, detailing how to communicate with
various groups of people.
A single business may have multiple strategies for different
categories of people, such as clients, investors, competitors or
employees. Some companies even have an internal communication strategy
for communicating within the business itself. These strategies are used
to determine things like what information to share with the clients or
investors, as well as how that information should be presented.
Communication is applied to all phase of managing. It is particularly
important in the function of leading. Communication is critical for all
level of human behavior man’s ability to think and transmit the thought
through the communication process, provides the binding element for
social interaction. The relation success or failure of human endeavor
depend to a great extent upon the effectiveness of communication
According to Drucker (1985), the management effectiveness
depends on his ability to listen and to read on his ability to speak and
to write. Unfortunately, the importance of communication has not been
well recognized in business. It is generally believed that anyone with
common sense can write. Most managers write to impress not to express.
Effective communication is a fundamental aspect of job performance and
managerial effectiveness. Communication is a vital management component
to any organization whether the purpose is to mainly update employees on
new polices to prepare for a weather disaster to ensure safety
throughout the organization or to listen to the attitude of employees;
effective communication is an integral issue in effective management.
The purpose of the paper is to recognize and discuss the
significance of effective communication during the process of managing
changes in organizations. The paper reviews the literature investigation
the relationship between communication and organizational change. The
advantages of successful communication related to improved efforts of
employees to plan and execute strategies are also discussed. The paper
also identifies the objectives and communication needs for each stage of
the change process. Also, the various motives and benefits of
organizational communication are discussed. The paper offers a change
communication model which identifies different variables facilitating
effective communication and finally ensuring successful organizational
change. Also, it highlights the aspect of communication which has proven
to be useful for successful changes in business organization. In the
uncertain and always changing times or any situation, communication is
critical between leadership and its member. To assure a steady and
meaningful flow of information, human resource leader can play and
should play a strategic role in assuring effective communication is
delivered in a meaningful two-way process i.e. sending a message and
receiving a proper feedback. It has been observed over the years that
effective communication has been a strategy for organization that has
been performing well. It has ensured a cordial relationship between
management of an organization and its employees.
1.1.Profile of Nigeria Brewery Plc (NBL).
Mission
"To be the leading beverage company in Nigeria, marketing high
quality brands to deliver superior customer satisfaction in an
environmentally friendly way”.
Vision
To be a world class Company”.
Core Values
· Respect for individuals, the society and the environment.
· Performance: A culture of high performance to deliver outstanding value to our stakeholders.
· Passion for Quality: Not just for our products but also in everything we do.
· Enjoyment: We bring enjoyment to people through our high quality products, communications and sponsorship activities
Company’s Overview:
Nigeria Brewery Plc is Nigeria’s pioneer and largest Brewing firm.
The company was incorporated in 1946 and in June 1949, we recorded a
landmark when the first bottle of STAR lager beer rolled off our Lagos
Brewery bottling lines. This first brewery in Lagos has undergone
several optimization processes and as at today boasts of one of the most
modern brew house in the country.
In 1957, NBL commissioned its second brewery in Aba. The Aba Brewery
has also recently undergone several optimization processes and has been
fitted with best in brewery technology. In 1963 commissioned the Kaduna
Brewery while Ibadan Brewery came on stream in 1982. In 1993, acquired
her fifth brewery in Enugu. A sixth brewery, sited at Ama-eke in 9th
Mile, Enugu was commissioned and christened Ama Brewery in October 2003.
Ama Brewery is today the biggest and most modern brewery in Nigeria.
In October 2011, the company bought majority equity interests in
Sona Systems Associates Business Management Limited, (Sona Systems) and
Life Breweries company Limited from Heineken N.V. This followed
Heineken’s acquisition of controlling interests in five breweries in
Nigeria from Sona Group in January 2011. Sona Systems’ two breweries in
Ota and Kaduna, and Life Breweries in Onitsha have now become part of
Nigerian Breweries Plc, together with the three brands: Goldberg lager,
Malta Gold and Life Continental lager.
In 2014,NB Plc got approval from the Securities and Exchange
Commission and the respective shareholders of both Nigerian Breweries
Plc and Consolidated Breweries Plc to merge the operations of both
companies. The merger became final on December 31, 2014 . Following the
successful merger, NB Plc has now three additional breweries in
Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State, Awo-Omamma in Imo State and Makurdi in Benue
State. The merger also brought an additional seven brands into our
portfolio.
Thus, from that humble beginning in 1946, the company has now grown
into a Brewing Company with 11 breweries, 2 malting plants and 26 Sales
depots from which our high quality products are distributed to all parts
of Nigeria.
Nigerian Breweries Plc has a growing export business which covers
global sales and marketing of our brands and dates back to 1986. NB Plc
offers sales, logistics and marketing support to make our brands
shelf-ready in international markets, including world-class outlets such
as TESCO and ASDA Stores in the United Kingdom. Her brands are
available in over thirteen countries, across the United Kingdom, South
Africa, Middle-East, West Africa and the United States of America.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
Without doubt a high percentage of inefficiency and
misunderstanding in organization can be traceable to inadequate and
insufficient understanding of information.
Since communication is said to be the nervous system of any organized
group. Davis (2002). No doubt there are some problems associated with
effective communication on organizational performance these include.
i. Poor listening and premature evaluation when people do not
listen carefully to what is being said to them, this will in turn result
to premature evaluation
ii. Information overload: When information is too much it will lead to misinterpretation
iii. Difference in status and power between the sender and the
receiver of information is another barrier to effective communication.
iv. Selective perception: people tend to perceive what they expect to
perceive in communication, it means that they hear what they want to
hear and ignore other relevant information.
v. Attitude: This is the predisposition of an act or not to act in
certain way. It is a mental position regarding a fact or state. Clearly,
if people have made up their minds, they cannot objectively listen to
what is said. According to Katz (2000) he stipulated that the
fundamental problems in communication arise from two assumptions.
(a) On the part of the speaker or writer
(b) On the part of the listener or reader.
1.3 Research Questions
Undoubtedly an effective communication in an organization
is the strategy for enhancing and directing the performance of any
organization in this present day complex and competitive environment
that not withstanding the following questions will be asked.
(a) Does effective communication affect the performance of an organization?
(b) How can organizational performance be enhanced by effective communication?
(c) What is the impact of the environment on both inflow and outflow of communication in the organization?
(d) What are the major factors responsible for the difficulties
encountered in the interpersonal communication between top level
managers and lower level managers?
This research question will be answered in the objective of the study.
1.4 Objectives of the Study
The specific objective of the study is to determine and
evaluate on the strategies of enhancing organizational performance
through effective communication. The specific objectives of the study
include.
i. To examine if effective communication has effect on organizational performance.
ii. To ascertain if organization environment affect communication process
iii. To verify if communication difficulties affect various management cadre in the organization.
1.5 Research Hypotheses
In this research work some hypothesis are formulated by the use of
the null and the alternative hypothesis. For the purpose of testing. The
null hypothesis is denoted by Ho, while the alternative hypothesis is
denoted by Hi:
1. Hypothesis One
Ho: Effective communication does not contribute to organizational performance.
Hi: Effective communication contributes to Organizational performance.
2. Hypothesis Two
Ho: Organizational environment does not affect organization communication process
Hi: Organizational environment does affect organization communication process
3. Hypothesis Three
Ho: A Communication difficulty does not affect various management levels in organization.
Hi: communication difficulties affect various management levels in organization.
1.6 Significance of the Study
i. The research work will be of immense benefit to various
forms of organization in Nigeria at the conclusion of this research
work, both top and low level managers in Nigeria organization would be
able to view communication as a means by which people are linked in an
organization to achieve their common objective.
ii. This research work will be of importance to Nigerians because
it would describe the various methods techniques and means by which
effective communication as a strategy for enhancing organizational
performance.
iii. More so, this study would produce an insight for top middle and
low level managers in organizations in Nigeria to understand the
importance of effective communication and ensure observance of this for
optimal performance.
iv. The research work would be a useful source of materials for information, teaching and for future research purposes.
v. Finally this study will assist in knowing the benefit to be
enjoyed and derived that really emphasizes on the concept of
organizational communication as a strategy for its organizational growth
and performance.
1.7 Scope of the Study
The research work is to study the effectiveness of communication as a
strategy for enhancing organizational performance with regard to
Nigerian Breweries Plc.
The scope of this study is not intended to embrace in detail all that
may have been required to develop the topic of the study because of its
broad and its inherent difficulties associated with obtaining data
because of time constraints – which will hamper a useful detailed
development of the research topic.
More so, the studies carried out so far are
(a) The reaction of top management staff to effective communication
(b) The process that can enhance effective communication in organization.
(c) How can effective communication enhance organizational performance?
(d) Factors that account for the achievement and failure of organization
1.8 Limitations of the Study
NB Plc is a very large company with well over five thousand
employees . Therefore to carry out an aggregate study of the flow of
effective communication as a strategy for enhancing organizational
performance will be a tedious task and requires much time, but this
constraint was mitigated against by carrying out the survey across the
various locations and departments in the organization.
1.9 Operational Definition of Terms
1. Communication: is the transfer of information from one person to another
2. Organization: An enterprise/business entity.
3. Performance: The rate at which something works
4. Management: People or persons in charge of organization.
5. Top level Management: Refers to the heads of any organization
6. Middle level/management: This group
consists of the personnel accountants and marketing officers this group
is answerable to the top level management.
7. Lower level management: This group carries
most of the information both to the top level and middle level
management and they are referred to as the supervisory level.
8. Subordinates: are directly involved in coordinating the activities of management employees