CONFLICT MANAGEMENT FOR
EFFECTIVE PERFORMANCE IN AN ORGANIZATION
(A Case Study Of Union Bank of
Nigeria)
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND
OF THE STUDY
The general view of managing
conflict in an organization such as Union Bank of Nigeria Plc, the principles
and sub-structures of the organisation are designed to provide the necessary
vertical and horizontal links and inter-relationship that ensure the maximum
potential for communication and understanding. Therefore, two parties must be
involved in every existing organisation and for the survival and effectiveness
of the organisation. The employer and the employee must cooperate to work
together for the attainment of that organisational goal. Though in spite of the
strong desire that exist among the parties, there are some problems that mar
arise and these can result to conflict among them. The employer may be having
interest detrimental to the employee or/and the desire of the employer and his
employee are more or less unlimited.
1.2 HISTORICAL
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Union Bank of Nigeria plc
was established in 1917 as a colonial Bank with its branch in Lagos in 1925.
Barclay’s dominion colonial and overseas was formed to take over the activities
of the bank. Between 1959 and 1970, fifty new branches were established. In
1969 the bank was legally incorporated in Nigeria as a wholly owned subsidiary
of Barclays Bank International limited. The ownership structure remained
unchanged until 1971 when 8.33% of the banks shares were offered to Nigerians.
In the same year, the bank was listed on the Nigerian stock exchange. As a
result of the Nigerian enterprises promotion decree of 1972, the Federal
Government of Nigerian acquired 51.67% of the banks shares which left Barclays
bank plc London with only 46%.
A landmark in the bank
history occurred in 1979 when Barclays Bank sold 50% of its shareholding in the
bank to Nigerians. This resulted in the change of the banks name to reflect its
new image holding of Barclays Bank was disposed off in 1989. Today, Union bank
is the oldest independent non – government banking institutes that are 100%
owned and wholly managed by Nigerians. In 1986, it becomes the first bank in
Nigerian to hit billion marks in savings deposits and in 1997, its saving deposits
of N21.5 billion was also on industrial record. It has won the Nigerian stock
exchange president’s merit award in the financial sector for a record of ten
times. In 1994, it won the farmers of the year award in 17 Seventeen) out of
the 36 states including Abuja, and it has won four out of the five editors of
the award. Only recently, it was named by the bankers’ almanac the number one
bank in Nigeria. Since its establishment in 1917, the bank has stood out
strongly as a resilient institution which has served as a veritable hub of the
financial system.
The bank remains a giant,
not only in Nigeria, but also in Africa it if referred to as “Big, strong and
Reliable”. The banks new head office building, a 32 storey edifice is arguably
the tallest and the most beautiful concrete structure along the west coast of
Africa. Union Bank of Nigeria plc is a leading Nigerian commercial Bank with
about 379 branches operating throughout the federation. The bank provides
employment for over 7,000 men and women, thus, making it the largest employer
of labour in the banking sector in Nigeria. The bank has a full-fledged branch
in London and the only South Africa. These in addition to the banks network of
international correspondents have put the world within its easy reach. The
bank, Union Bank of Nigeria plc was one of the first four banks in Nigeria to
hit the N25 billion recapitalization recently introduced by the federal
government.
1.3 STATEMENT
OF THE PROBLEM
In any organisation, be it
public, private or government establishment, there is bound to be disagreement,
misunderstanding and contradiction from time to time. it is realized that the
level of economic productivity of any organisation id measured in terms of the
relationship and the capacity to keep conflict at a reduced or minimized rate.
Below are some of the problems inherent in organization:
a.
One
of the problems facing organisation is the maintenance of collusion of the
organisation.
b.
Lack
of good management policy, when there is no effective and efficient management
policy, there is bound to be grumbling among the workers, which eventually lead
to conflicts.
c.
Low
salary earning in an organisation.
d.
Lack
of effective communication in the organisation.
e.
Lack
of fulfillment of benefit equally brings about conflict in an organization.
1.4 STATEMENT
OF HYPOTHESIS
Ho: Effective
conflict management has no direct impact on
Organizational
performance.
Hi. Effective
conflict management has direct impact on
organizational
performance.
1.5 AIMS
AND OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The main objectives of this
study are as follows: –
a.
To
determine the extent to which conflict affects job performance.
b.
To
identify the conflict factors.
c.
The
identification of major sources of conflicts.
d.
Determination
of which factors of conflict are related to job performance (physical or
mental).
e.
Recommending
measure(s) for managing conflict for effective performance in an organisation.
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
The importance of this study
is to find out various possible ways of minimizing and effectively manage
conflict in order to increase organisational efficiency. Since the country is
of a total system made up of sub – system such as compound and organisation,
most times, conflicts do arise as a result of conflicting views between the
workers and management. In actual sense, this may be due to parties looking at
the same issues from different perspectives which may all be correct. There is
to also study how communication can be effectively used in organisation
setting, because effective communication will bring about non-distortion of
goals and peaceful co-existence in the organization. Effective management in
organisation will definitely increase the national benefits.
1.6 SCOPE
AND LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY
This project is concerned
about how to manage conflict for effective performance in an organisation. The
researcher wants to know the effect conflict has in an organisation in general
and Union bank of Nigeria Plc Kaduna in particular. In the course of carrying
out this research work, we had faced some limitations some of which is to
strike a balance between our lecture(s) time, exam period and the time needed
to visit the places required by this research work – the place of our case
study included. We had also faced the constraints of getting information from
our questionnaires as not everybody was willing to give us the needed
attention. Finally, as students, finance was one of the major constraints
considering our financial stand and the present state of the economy.
1.7 DEFINITION
OF TERMS
Various management scholars
have come out with their understanding about conflict and what its management
is all about. Organisational conflict and its management came about in an
effort to study the cordiality among people in work environment.
·
Organisation: An organisation can be defined as a system of
consciously coordinated activities or forces of two or more permanent social or
human system that is structural and goal oriented.
·
Conflict: Conflict refers to a competition and fighting for
control, predominantly when resources are scarce. Traditionally, conflicts mean
disagreements, contradictions or incompatibility between groups and
individuals.
·
Management: This is the art of getting things done through people.
The Management process includes planning, organizing, staffing, control and
directing activities that takes place in an organisation to achieve goal.
·
egotiation: This is communication of information sharing process in
which parties try to work out their real, perceived or potential difference
through agreement that defines future behaviour.