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IMPACTS OF CONFLICTS MANAGEMENT ON THE EFFICIENCY AND EFFECTIVENESS OF BUSINESS

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY                             

Conflict is an inevitable element of any labour - management relationship. In work situation people are bound to have different interests and aspirations which may tend to conflict with each other. Also in every organization where people to different background have to interact in the collective efforts towards achieving a common goal, conflict is bound to ensure. This is because in addition to the common workplace his own personal ambition which he earnestly desires to achieve alongside the organizational goal. This individual goal or interest may not necessarily be compatible with that of other members. Thus, there is clash of interest.

For example, management is often committed to pursuing a goal of profit maximization through rationalization of economic decision and other cost maximization policies. The workers, through their union want higher wages are lucrative welfare package which tend to result in higher costs of doing business to the management. Union wants effective participation in most factory shop decision even at tl1e expense of encroaching on areas that fall exclusively within the confinement of management prerogatives. Management cannot, but resist these unwholesome moves. In the process conflict  will ensure, therefore, it is obvious that conflict is inherent in every organization irrespective of size, mission or age. To this end organization (be it private or public) are perceived to always assumethat conflicts necessarily damage the relationship that exist within the work places.  It is based on the fore goings that a research study on measurement of conflicts effectiveness and efficiency became a subject of interest.    

1.2 HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF LAGOS STATE UNIVERSITY (LASU) 

The Lagos state university was established on April 22nd 1983 via the statute of 1983. with the major objective of being the apex of the educational system of the state, providing access to higher education for citizens,  providing innovative educational programmes of high standard, conducting research and disseminating their findings,. It was also established to become intellectual pursuit and serves the factory of ideas by the then government a Alhaji Lateef Kayode Jakande. The university took off in 1984 with 342 students, with three Faculties; Education, Law and Humanities, and Science. In 1989, it had 2,974 students, while the number increased in 1994 to 4,459 with 968 members staff made up of 300 76 administrative technical and 492 junior staff.. The population has grown to about 80,000 including Regular, Part-Time  and Postgraduate students spread over eight (8) Faculties listed as follows; .

·        Faculty of Art

·        Faculty of Education

·        Faculty of Law

·        Faculty of Management Sciences

·        Faculty of Science

·        Faculty of Social Science

·        Faculty of Engineering

·        Faculty of Medical Sciences

In addition, there is a School of Postgraduate Studies.

The university was conceived as a non-residential university. It took over 139 hectares of hind which were previously the sites of Government College Ojo, Methodist Boy's High School (proposed) Ojo site, and BUILDSPEC, an Engineering company, head it’s moved on Monday 19th December, 1983 from the old Lagos State Government Secretariat, Ikeja. Extra 800 hectares of land were later added at Ojo. Currently, it operates as a multi-campus university. The existing campus at Epe for Engineering Faculty and with the Teaching Hospital and College of Medicine at Ikeja. The main campus and the administrative headquarters remain at Ojo.

1.2   STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

It may seem that whenever two or more people are gathered, there will be conflict. The efficacies of organizational conflict are myriad. The problem of incessant industrial conflicts, disputes, strikes, lockouts, and boycotts have generated much concern not only among employers of labour but also employees themselves and other stakeholders-as well. The magnitude of the adverse effects can well be understood when one considers the huge looses in productivity, reduced profits, damages to organization's assets. The negative impacts of such event is like "ill wind that how nobody good". All parties are usually affected, employees in the areas of poor inter-personal relationship between them and the management, and among themselves, loss of pay, termination and dismissal form employment etc for the society potency for social disorder, instability, of jobs and mass unemployment, which could a:Tect the fulfillment of its obligation.

Given the reality as described above, it behooves but labour and management to seek ways of coping and minimizing undesirable tensions and conflicts, and its unpleasant consequences for this reason, it is pertinent to look into the various effects of industria1 conflict on the organizations, and approaches toward managing these problems positively, so that their favourable impact measurement could be felt on the effectiveness and efficiency of organizations.

1.3  PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

The objectives of this research study are as follows;

1. To gain insight into the various causes of organizational conflicts.

2. To assess the problem (if there is any) encountered by the organization in the process of managing conflicts.

3. To evaluate the factors that influence industrial conflicts' in business organization

4. To generally offer useful suggestions to wards improving the management of industrial conflicts with within any business organization.

5. To establish that conflict can be so managed, to the extent that it Can also bring about organizational effectiveness and efficiently in the work place, particularly, with references to LASU.

6. To examine the impacts (be it positive or negative) of conflict on our selected organization. The positive impacts will be applauded. While the negative impacts condemned.

7. To make workable and meaningful recommendations on how organizations can improve on their conflicts prevention, and management to their benefits and effectiveness, and that of the Nigerian economy at large.

1.4  RESEARCH QUESTIONS.

The research questions that will guide this study will include;

1. To what extent has effective conflicts management contributed to the realization of the goals, objective vision and existence of organizations'?

2. What are the factors responsible for industrial conflict in most business organizations?

3. Does any relationship exist between the rate of conflict In an Organization and its image?                 

4. Of what importance is the role of conflicts to the success and performance of business organizations?

5. What could be the resultant effect of regular industrial C0I1flicts to the

6. What are the various approaches / methods available, for effective conflict management in your organizations?

7. What is the effect of organizational conflict on attitude behaviour and performance of employees?

8. Can conflicts be totally prevented or era9icated within the workplace

1.6    RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS

Two Hypotheses shall be formulated tested, and interpreted for the purposes of the research work. They are below stated;

Ho: There is no significant relationship between industrial conflicts -and organization's effectiveness.

Hi:   There is a significant relationship between industrial coni1icts and organization's effectiveness.

Ho: There is no positive relationship between effective conflict management and approaches of conflict resolution adopted.

Hi:   There is a positive relationship between effective conflict management and approaches of conflict resolution adopted.

1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The significance of this study can be viewed from two (2) major standpoints. Practical and Academic:

a. Practical Significance

This kind of study will assist In broadening the understanding of the followings;

1. To employees in general, it will further expose the relationship existing between conflicts management and organizational effectiveness which will be of interest to them, in their respective organization.

2. Specifically, to staffs of the organization under study, it will expose to a large extent the goings on in their establishment with regards to our relevant variables, and comparative analysis of their actions over some years accordingly.

3. To policy makers and management, it will present a scheme through its analysis that could assist them in enunciating policies that will assist educational institution / business establishments in not only to pursue their over riding objective of profit making but also to remain relevant in the business for which they were known, by performing such a function as good welfare pac1dige for workers, among others.

4. To economic watches and the interested public, it will provide some insight into the conflict management strategies and approaches of business organizations in Nigeria.

b.Academic Significance

In the academic arena, this study will prove to be significant.

1.  It will help in contributing to the enrichment of the literature on conflict and conl1ict management.

2. It will throw more light on the relationship, (Causative and ordinary) between conflict and such other variable apart from organization's performance as effectiveness and efficiently in Nigeria

3. It will suggest ways (of interest to academics) based on empirical evidence of enhancing the conflict management situation in Nigeria, bearing in mind that improvement in the level of conflict resolution of organization in a country, signifies that the country is partly developing or not.

4. The study will also serve as a body reserved knowledge to be referred to by other researcher who may want to pick and interest in their area of study.

1.7   SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This study, in every way, attempts to determine the impacts of conflicts management on the efficiency and effectiveness of business. The research will be conducted on the Lagos State University as our unit of analysis" in the Nigerian economy. Therefore, a survey of the officials of the functional areas of this establishment will comprise of our major source for comparative data and information.

1.8   LIMITATION OF THE STUDY  

No matter how much effort one may put into the study, some' extraneous circumstances may create imperfections. The conduct of research in Nigeria and of course generally is imbued with a lot of problems. However, in this particular research, the following problems are anticipated.

1. The inability to retrieve all the questionnaires to be distributed

2. Imperfection in sampling procedures and procedure for processing data.

3. Finance in this era of economic hardship, financial resource has become a problem for many people including this researcher, thereby may affect the financial demand of the study.

1.9  DEFINITION OF TERMS

For the purpose of this study, certain words would be regularly used and are capable of assuming different times, meaning, and situation. Therefore, it's imperative to clearly define or operationalize them, so as to facilitate a clearer understanding and perception of the subjects - matter as hey are used in this research work. They are as follows;

1. Conflict: A disagreement over issues of substance and / or emotional antagonism.

2. Management: The act or skill of dealing with a situation that needs to be controlled in some ways.

3. Industrial conflict: The inability of labour and management to reach agreement on any issue connected with the objective of employer-­employee interaction.

4. Conflict resolution: The removal of the reason substantial and for emotional for a conflict.

5. Conflict management: The methods, approaches, art or style of handling conflicts usually be experts in industrial relations fields.

6. Industrial relations: The process of control over the employmentrelationship, the organization of work, and relations between employers and their employees.

7.  Organization effectiveness: The continuous existence., or forgoing ahead of a company despite competition.

8. Effects: The Oxford Dictionary of Current English dcl1ncd "Effect as; the result or consequence of an action.

1.10 OUTLINE OF THE RESEARCH STUDY       

Chapter1: INTRODUCTION: This chapter will consist of introductory section of the research study. Chapter 2: LITERATURE REVIEW; It   will Endeavour to give theoretical framework by reviewing all relevant literatures on which this study is based Chapter 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY; It will present the methodology of the research study and the principal means  of collecting and analyzing data. Chapter 4: PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS OF DATA; This will centre on the presentation, analysis of data and discussion of result based on the research questions and the test of hypotheses formulated.

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