CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 1.1   BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

The term management refers to the process of getting activities completed efficiently with and through other people. The process represent the functional or primary activities engaged in by managers. It is the process of designing and maintaining an environment in which individuals working together in groups, efficiently accomplish selected aims. This base definition can be expanded as follows.

As managers, people carry out the managerial function of planning, organizing, staffing, leading, and controlling.

Management applies to any kind of organization, it applies to managers at all organizational levels.

The aim of all managers is the same: to create a surplus. Management is concerned with productivity, this implies effectiveness and efficiency. In abroad term management could be seen as “a coat of many colors”in terms of definition. This is predicted in the fact that management connotes different meanings to different people. Some people see management as referring to a group of people. They think of management  as a team or a group of individuals in an organization. It refers to those who guide and control the activities of others in an organization. To a student, management is an academic discipline. It is a field of study which is offered in institutions of higher learning like the federal polytechnicNekede, Imo state university Owerri (Evan Enwerem university) etc. people study the art of managing or management science.

As a process, it connotes the process of combining and utilizing organizational resources to achieve stated goals effectively and efficiently. As a process, functional management could be seen as the action(s) taken to reach once goals.

In terms of scope, management applies to all functions of formal organization such as production, human resource, marketing, finance and accounting, engineering, public and human relations etc. in terms of specialization,Onuoha (1991), opined that the specialized areas of management comprises the following discipline: administrative management, public administration, human resource management, management information system (MIS),international management, operations research and production management. Management applies to small and large organization, to profit and non-profit enterprises, to manufacturing as well as service enterprises.

Good management is a basic requirement for a successful business enterprise. The workers effectiveness and input is determined largely by the way it is been managed. for an organization to achieve its goals and objectives, there must be a relationship between the management and his/her subordinate or the management and the manger. In the history of management a manager could simplybe defined as an individual who guide and control the activities of others in an organization.

Drucker 1973. defines a manager as someone who is responsible for the work of other people. The definition serves as a useful purpose at this time because, a manager is simply a hired hand with some level of authority and salary above that of other workers.

A manager is a person who gets things done`through the effort of organizing, directing and controlling of organizational resources in a manner that will lead to effective and efficient actualization of organizational goal(s). Managers are individuals in an organization who direct the activities of others. They are those responsible for supervising the use of an organizations resources to achieve its goals.(NJOKU and NWOSU).

1.2   STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEMS

The manager from our introduction/background of the study is seen and known as the pillar behind the success of any existing organization, he is also known as an indispensable tool needed in all aspects of industrial development and he is the life wire of every organization.

There is need to bring out these problem which the manager encounters, which affect the efficiency and effectiveness in his job performance in the industrial establishment in order to determine how those problem can be solved.

The inability of organizations in employing of qualified and certified modern office managers, which has in-turn affected the performance office management.

1.3   PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

The primary objective of this project is to determine the importance of an office manager in an organization and the methods management used to achieve organizational goals.

In specific terms, the study intends to:

1. Find out how the qualification of the office manager affects his performance in office management.
2. To ascertain how the qualification of the office manager’s team affect his performance in achieving organizational goals.
3. To determine how the tools and equipment used in office management affect productivity.
4. To determine the extent to which the manager and the workforces remuneration affect achieving set goals.

1.4   SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The result of the study will assist the government policy makers, private sectors, officials of the ministries of education, and manufacturing industries to fashion out decision and polices that will give prominence to the importance of office managers in Nigeria especially the industrial sectors.

The result of the study will be relevant to business operators, chief securities of company, financers, investors and bankers as well as the general public. This is because, with the knowledge of the extent the managerial role in the organization, they will be better informed on how their performance can improve and elevate the organizational “breakdown in Nigeria”.

1.5   RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1. How does the qualification of the office manager affect his/her performance?
2. In what ways do the qualifications of theoffice managers team affect the organizational set goals?
3. How do the tools and equipment used in the office affect organizational productivity?
4. How can you determine the extent to which remuneration of staff affect the achieved set goals.

1.6   DELIMITATION OF THE STUDY

The study is limited to find out how the manger as an indispensable tool can be used in achieving the goals of an organization and helps in the effective running of the organization.

Three oil companies were used and two public institutions. Agip oil company of Nigeria limited, Intels Nigeria limited, power holding company of Nigeria, Rivers State polytechnic, Bori and institute of Abia State polytechnic, Aba.

1.7   LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

Due to constants lectures, time factor and financial constraints the researcher find it very difficult to extent this study to find out how mangers can help in the growth and development of industries in Nigeria, it was time by finding all the mangers pay in the office through the organization because of his/her position in the office.

1.8   DEFINITION OF TERMS

These are some unfamiliar words used in this write up and their meaning.

Competence: The ability to do a job correctly

Cordiality: This is a process by which the workers/employees are being friendly and pleasant by their         fellow workers.

Development: The latest in a number of actually existing.

Indispensable: This is a state of being too important.

Office Automation: This is the process or means by which man organizer his knowledge and materials to improve, develop, change or manipulate his environment for betterment of his living.

Prominence:    This is a state of being important, distinguished, conspious, eminent and easily seen.

Subordinate:   Means a person who has a position with less authority.

Technology:    Technology is a system by which every society utilizes the physical and sociology environment of man to solve the most fundamental problems of human survival and to achieve some degree of physical comfort and well being at it members.