THE IMPLICATION OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION ON MANAGERIAL PERFORMANCE IN SHELL PETROLEUM DEVELOPMENT COMPANY, WARRI, WESTERN DIVISION, DELTA STATE

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

• BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

As human beings, we are constantly faced with the urge to transmit or receive information, express our feelings, share ideas and attitudes. In other words, people are always engaged in the act of talking, seeing, feeling, reacting to one another’s experiences, behaviours and making others behave. Hence, when a person speaks, writes, listens or makes gestures to another, there is constant action and reaction between the both of them. When someone speaks to us, we do not only interprets the words we hear, we also listen and assign meaning to the voice, the face content of the person, the thoughts in his eyes ad soon when we experience that, communication has taken place.

Nothing affects human relation more than communication. It is the cohesive element of what makes all co-operative ventures possible when two or more individuals attempt an undertaking the very first thing what they must do is to communicate, what shall we do? How shall we do it? What are the problems we both envisage? It is obvious from the above that communication is a two way process in the world. Every order demands a feedback, every thought or idea creates a reaction, every policy, program, objective and so on demands explanations or responses and reactions themselves can become questions, thoughts, facts and considerations when they are transmitted back, triggering additional responses from the sender. And so it goes back and forth until each party has established clearly in the mind what is to be done. These are the challenges facing the management staff of an organization.

If the cause of all the problems and mistakes in any organization had to be summed up in a single phrase, it probably would be “a breakdown in communication” more often than not, these difficulties or players involved in organizational activities did not or do not understand each other usually, long standing communication breakdowns are as a result of an emotional impasse between individuals. Nothing will disrupt communication faster than arrogance, cynicism, insincerity or personal dislike, if they are allowed to intrude into conversation, conversion or correspondence.

The manager’s task of holding the organization together requires an adequate flow of information upward, inward and outward. Upward flow of information is one that flows from subordinates to the boss while from the boss to the subordinates is referred to as downward flow of information. While the inward flow of information entails all information that goes into a give organization in a written form or oral form. It can be that information received as government regulation, taxes, intelligent reports of their competitions etc. No company operates in a vacuum and no organization also succeeds without enlightening the help of others. For this help to be easily rendered, the company potentials would or must be adequately communicated to investors, suppliers, customers and partners and so on. This cannot be done without a proper flow of outward information when organization/companies publish their annual reports, auditing reports and advertisement of their products or services and so on, we can say that outward flow of information have taken place in that organization.

The adequacy of this information flow is measured by the consensus that results from it, i.e. the extent to which members of the organization come to agree about the organizational goals. With high consensus, an organization will have few quarrels or problems, with intermediate consensus, there will be many quarrels of problems but most of them will be resolved, but with low consensus, there will be frequent and severe conflicts and any one of them may lead o a crisis.

“Every organization can be analyzed as communication network” as Chester Barnard (1971) said long ago in his book titled “The Function of the Executive”, he also explained that network of this nature of kind are fascinating and that they come in all sorts of shapes and sizes and they use a variety of desires to code and transmit information. The analysis of the multiple factors that affect the communication network such as strenuous noise, authentication and circuit design is perennially interesting.

Communication is fundamental to the existence of any business or firm like Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), Warri. To exist with myriad competing iron producing similar products, it has to think of the communication strategies that would lead to managerial efficiency and eventually increase its market shares, remain competitive, increase its sales volume and improve its profit objectives.

• STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Communication devices such as telephones, websites, and internet are used for Ms the recent or modern method of communication towards the achievement of organizational goals. Most organizations engage in different strategies to achieve communication goals. However, majority of these organizations finds it difficult to install in an effective communication system. Some organizations may be faced with the problem of poor communication strategies unknowingly to them to poorly designed messages.

This research is aimed at finding out how effective the communication system in Shell Petroleum Development Company and its implication on managerial performance as well as any other organization cannot be completely free of communication problems. So, the problem of this research is to discover how communication in Shell Petroleum Development Company implicates managerial performance of the company.

• PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

This research is specifically aimed at the following;

1. To examine the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), Warri Western Division, communicates within the organization.
2. To know the type of communication system that exists between the management and the subordinates.

• To examine the advantages they derive from using the type o communication employed in the company.

1. To know if the subordinates are being misinformed by their immediate supervisors.
2. To determine the effectiveness of the company’s communication on managerial performance.
3. To find out the schedule officers/departments responsible for drawing up communication procedure in the organization.

• SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This research would be useful to Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) Warri and any other companies involved in the oil industry. Also, the study would be useful to researchers and students as it contributes to knowledge in the area of communications. The research would be useful to the members of the general public who may wish to learn and know more about communications in business administration.

• RESEARCH QUESTIONS

In the course of this study, the following research questions were raised;

1. To what extent has communication contributed to the achievement of Shell Petroleum Development Company, Warri objectives?
2. Does free flow of information determine managerial performance?

• What type of communication exists between managers and their subordinates?

1. How does staff react to misinformation received from their immediate supervisors?
2. Does downward communication often reach the people the information intended for?

• SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This research is aimed at finding out the implication of effective communication on managerial performance in Shell Petroleum Development Company, Warri, Western Division, Delta State. The researcher will highlight the implication of effective communication on managerial performance.

• LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

The research work of this nature is never complete without limitations. The researcher encountered numerous problems which affected the conduct of the research work. These include;

1. Financial Constraints: The researcher would have carried out the research to cover the Western and Eastern Division of the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), but there was no enough funds to do so, even the company that was used as part of the population involved a lot of money. The researcher was able to understand that research work entails spending much money in a bid to acquire information sought for.
2. Time Constraints: A lot of time was spent as the researcher visited the respondents sampled. The researcher went to their offices several times without meeting them because of the time schedule they were having an appointment. In facts, the researcher visited Warri all the time in order to interview these staffs and more so, many of the staffs sampled could not fill in the questionnaires on time while 16% of the staff sampled could not return their own questionnaire at all.

• Prejudices: This formed a major handicap for the researcher. Most of the respondents were reluctant to give the desired co-operation as such, by releasing the information the researcher sought for.

• HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF SHELL PETROLEUM DEVELOPMENT COMPANY (SPDC)

Shell Petroleum Development Company is a commercial organization serving customers in most of the countries of the world and there are many thousands talented working together within this organizations. As a group, they are one of the largest integrated oil company in the world, generating wealth for society and their share holders by creating a platform of top-performing business in oil, gas, petro-chemical and the aimed fields in which they wish to work.

Shell Petroleum Development Company activities range over a wider geographical area than those of any other major oil producer. Shell is the largest retailers of automotive fuels and lubricants in the world; one of the largest petro-chemical companies and the leading private producer of natural gas. The company has a tradition of excellence in developing and applying technology and engineering.

Shell Petroleum Company is the largest oil and gas exploration and production company in Nigeria. It is operated on a joint venture in which Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) holds 55%, Shell 30%, Elf 10% and Agip 5%. The fore-runner of the above mentioned company (SPDC) Shell D’Arey, pioneered of exploitation in the country. The company was formerly called Shell D’Archy, and was later changed to Shell B.P. in the month of April, 1956. On December 13th, 1979 the name Shell B.P. was changed to Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) of Nigeria Limited.

The company was granted an Exploration License in 1938 and discovered the first commercial oil field at Oloibiri in Niger Delta Area in 1956 leading to the first export of oil in 1958. Formerly in the first Participation Agreement in ¼ /73, Federal Government of Nigeria increase its equity share in Shell B.P. to 55% in July 1, 1979, the third Participation Agreement took place where the Federal Government increased its equity share in the NNPC/Shell Joint Venture from 60% of 55% while Elf interest was increased from 5% to 10%.

• DEFINITION OF KEY TERMS

In order to facilitate a better grasp of the issues discussed, a definition of some key terms is given below;

1. Communication: The term “communication” has many and varied meanings. To some, it denotes the means of information or media of passing information from one person to another.
2. Effectiveness: Effectiveness is the ability to determine appropriate objectives “doing the right thing”.

• Management: Management is the act of getting things done through efficient and effective planning, organizing controlling and co-ordination of the activities of people in order to be successful.

1. Performance: This is the measure of how efficient and effective a manager is; how well he or she determines and achieves appropriate objectives.

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