Effect Of Time Management As A Tool For Organizational Survival

(Case Study of First Bank, Abuja.)

5 Chapters
|
40 Pages
|
9,040 Words

Time management plays a fundamental role in enhancing organizational survival and success by efficiently allocating resources, optimizing productivity, and adapting to dynamic environments. Effective time management enables organizations to prioritize tasks, meet deadlines, and capitalize on opportunities, thus enhancing competitiveness and resilience in the market. By fostering a culture of efficiency and accountability, time management mitigates risks associated with procrastination, inefficiency, and resource wastage, ensuring sustained growth and viability. Moreover, by empowering employees with time management skills, organizations can foster innovation, creativity, and adaptability, essential attributes for navigating turbulent business landscapes. Consequently, integrating robust time management practices becomes indispensable for organizational survival in today’s fast-paced and competitive business landscape, enabling entities to thrive amidst uncertainties and challenges while maximizing their potential for long-term success and sustainability.

ABSTRACT

In an organization there are a number of resources which have to be used such as money, people and materials. But there is one resource everybody has in common and that is time. The problem being scrutinized in this study was how to manage time in order to improve performance. The study assessed time management in improving organizational performance in the bank industry in Nigeria, a case of First Bank, Abuja. The specific objectives of the study were in three folds: Firstly was to find out the awareness of effective time management among employees, secondly was effective utilization of time management in service delivery, thirdly to know if time management can ensure timely completion of assigned duties and fourthly was to describe challenges facing bank industry in implementing time management. The study involved literature review in relation to effective time management among employees which supported the formulation of the study and streamlined the research. The study employed a descriptive research design. The study adopted the case study design as a model of investigation whereby respondents were grouped according to their Bank branches. Data was collected using questionnaires, interviews and observation and presented in terms of percentages, frequency distribution and tables. Generally, the findings revealed that time management had a great role to play in organizational performance at First Bank. The target population was 90 employees and managers drawn from the three bank Branches in Abuja. The sample size was 50 respondents. The study then provided important information to many interested parties which include the human resource management. It was found that time management was not fully implemented and some of them do not understand the value of time. The study recommends every individual must see time as a company resource and concern and not a personal issue.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the study
Management study has revolved over long period of time and successive means of thought in industry and commerce have severely described it as the basic ingredient of administering a business.
In support of this view Yakubu (1989) defined management “as a social process entailing responsibility for effective and economical planning and regulation of the operation of an enterprise, in fulfillment of given purpose or tasks” while organization have been working hard to attaining the purpose for which they have been established, the issue of the time it takes to achieve this often neglected. This situation is unfortunate and need to be taken seriously by organizations if the attainment of set goals is to be at maximum profit.
In other words, organization have to properly manage the time it take to attain their goals so as to reduce costs to the bearest minimum.
Adamu (1974) has defined time management as “the art of planning a job, measuring such jobs through reducing such activities to time elements (expressed in terms of pieces per unit or time per piece) and monitoring it to determine efficiency and productivity.
This implies that work must be divided among and between specialist workers with at a time instead of the whole, thus minimum effort is applied by individual workers and maximum output achieved.
Despite the gaining advantage of time management or not attention is paid to it by organization.
This evident when one carefully leads individual workers exclaims that it is not my factors business are also find a lot of individual working hard over organization are meant of the theories of management.
At independence, the size of its armed forces were small and growth was to be a gradual process, and if the influence of the country was to be yet in the sub region, Africa and the world at large, a dynamic foreign policy was to be vigorously pursued.
Time is the period in which processes and actions take place. (Healthier, 2005) says that time is a resource which is scarce and must be well managed or else you can’t manage anything.
Time management is the use of tools and activities which help an individual manage and strategize his time effectively (Healthier, 2005). (Hellsten, L. M. 2012).
Key elements to perfecting time management are, setting goals, delegation and decision making. (Hellsten, L. M. 2012). Effective organization of time, planning for the future, scheduling activities, writing to do lists and avoiding time waster activities are employed by time management (Hellsten, L. M. 2012).
In the bank sector, time has to be managed because with less time high quality services will be provided that means a bank will be in a position to retain customers and get more of them hence generate more income( Hellsten, L. M. 2012). Efficiency and increasing productivity with little emphasis on effectiveness and life balance are emphasized by many of today’s time management books (Hellsten, L. M. 2012). The needs for time management is greater than ever, as the pace of life increases the perception of time changes although time management had its starts over a hundred years age. People concentrate on a single task at a time or a few simple tasks, this is because they attend more to rumors than work and become bored sometimes, (L.M. Prasad, 2007). Due to the greater concentration of single task compared to previous generations where it shows there was a freedom of working rather than today where most of the sectors or organizations are privatized (L.M. Prasad, 2007).
There is no agreed definition on performance. Performance of individual employees can only be accumulated by time spent on doing a specific task given, by describing all of their work-linked behaviors, which also represent their contribution. (L.M. Prasad, 2007) agreed that, the difference between employees’ competencies or capabilities and their actual effectiveness is the motivation or the willingness to present appropriate behaviors. (L.M. Prasad, 2007) also thinks that the various definitions and different understanding of performance management term is strictly connected with the above mentioned issues. The integration between the individual units and the whole enterprise led to another evolution of the above mentioned concept. The joint creation of plans, goal implementation and strategy achievement was the main source for the creation of shared vision of company’s success. People started to be measured in areas, which were the most essential for future evaluation. (Benson, J. and Brown, M, 2007) explained that, despite the terms’ evolution and various types of definitions and meanings, performance management can always be described in three points;
i. Effective, which provides human resources with required knowledge and skills to achieve certain level of results
ii.Strategic, which refers to long-term strategic decisions and essential objectives.
iii.Integrated, which connects and combines strategic, operational and financial information and factors
Therefore, time management needs to be taken into account that, the implementation of organizational performance needs to be aligned with time management that needs to be adapted and linked to company’s specific branch operational and strategic goals, current and future financial situation (Armstrong, M. 2006) .As long as above mentioned system is not capable of making a significant change, there is no point in implementing it. Armstrong, M. (2006) suggested that, according to the literature, management of time is the behaviors aimed at getting efficient utilization of time and therefore achieving set goals.
There are many barriers which could suppress the expected influence of the whole process. It is recommended to collect and analyze data and information linked with the implementation stages, because unsuitable system or a misuse of it can lead to consequences that are negative, such as employee’s de-motivation or even whole organization financial and functioning (Gardiner, M. 2007) problems. So, the basic objective of studying this was to gain knowledge about how to manage organization following the time management so as to optimize the organization achievement.

1.2 Statement of the Problem
In an organization there are number of resources which must be utilized such as people, money and materials which are all important. But there is one resource we all have in common which is time. Time has to be managed so as improve performance (Gardiner, M. 2007).
Performance in an organization revolves around efficiency (doing things right) and effectiveness (doing the right thing). As a manager, you need to know how to manage resources and employees. The company is faced with problems and challenges coming from not being efficient in its time management (Benson, J. and Brown, M, 2007). These are, poor job security and bad conditions of working, poor maintenance of human resource policies, not properly structuring the organization which needs to have new cultures that will improve its performance and make it profitable, lack of team building skills and not having Self-discipline. Therefore, the researcher intended to assess effective and efficiency of time management in enhancing the performance in bank industry.

1.3 Objectives of the Study
The main objective of the study was to assess effectiveness and efficiency of time management in improving organizational performance in bank industries. Specifically the objectives are:
i. To find out the awareness of effective time management among employees
ii. To examine the effectiveness of time management in service delivery in bank industry.
iii. To know if time management can ensure timely completion of assigned duties in bank industry
iv. To describe challenges facing bank industry in implementing time management.

1.4 Research Questions
i. Are the employees aware about effective time management?
ii. What is the effectiveness of time management in service delivery in the banking industry?
iii. What are the effects of time management in ensuring timely completion of assigned duties?
iv. What are the challenges facing bank industries in implementing time management?

1.5 Significance of the Study
This study is aimed at creating awareness and assessing time management in improving organizational performance in bank industry, Therefore the study is expected to be of much value to a number of people as follows:
Members of organization including the human resource management will be informed on importance of time management in increasing performance Also, it will help decision makers to formulate different strategies which will help the implementation of time management
The researchers will be benefited by identifying variable areas for further Research, and will be used as an additional reference to researchers on time management.
It will also add knowledge to the academic community and stimulate further research in the field Time management.
The research will be useful to the industry.

1.6 Scope of the Research
The scope of the study was limited to time management and how it affects performance of employees in post bank. The population of the study was 90 people with a sample size of 50 people composed of employees and management.

1.7 Limitation of the Study
This study was financed by the researcher herself and was conducted during the working days. It was therefore faced by both financial and time constraints. Financial constrains for accommodation purpose and field research studies. For the case of time, the study was conducted from morning where the First Bank employees and management have a lot of things to do hence having a short time deal with my study. Due to those two constraints the study was done in a single public organization; it may therefore not yield comprehensive results for generalization of findings to other public organizations.

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Time management plays a crucial role in the survival and success of organizations. Efficient use of time can lead to increased productivity, better decision-making, and improved overall performance. Here are several ways in which time management serves as a tool for organizational survival:

  1. Increased Productivity:
    • Time management helps employees and teams prioritize tasks and focus on high-priority activities. This, in turn, leads to increased productivity as resources are allocated efficiently.
  2. Resource Optimization:
    • Effective time management allows organizations to optimize their resources, including human capital and equipment. It ensures that resources are allocated to tasks that contribute most to the organization’s goals.
  3. Goal Achievement:
    • Organizational success often depends on the achievement of specific goals. Time management ensures that efforts are directed toward goal-oriented tasks, increasing the likelihood of successful goal completion.
  4. Adaptability to Change:
    • In a rapidly changing business environment, the ability to adapt is crucial for survival. Time management facilitates agility by enabling quick responses to changes in the market, technology, or other external factors.
  5. Improved Decision-Making:
    • Time management allows for thoughtful consideration of decisions. When time is managed effectively, leaders and teams can gather and analyze information, leading to better-informed and timely decision-making.
  6. Customer Satisfaction:
    • Meeting deadlines and delivering products or services on time contributes to customer satisfaction. Time management helps in ensuring that customer expectations are met, fostering positive relationships and repeat business.
  7. Employee Morale and Work-Life Balance:
    • Efficient time management can contribute to a healthier work-life balance for employees. This, in turn, boosts morale, reduces burnout, and enhances overall job satisfaction.
  8. Cost Reduction:
    • Wasted time often translates to wasted resources and increased costs. Time management helps identify and eliminate unnecessary processes or delays, contributing to cost reduction.
  9. Competitive Advantage:
    • Organizations that manage their time effectively are better positioned to outperform competitors. The ability to deliver products or services faster and more efficiently can be a significant competitive advantage.
  10. Innovation and Creativity:
    • Time management practices that allow for dedicated periods of creative thinking and problem-solving can foster innovation within an organization.

In conclusion, time management is not just about meeting deadlines; it is a strategic tool that contributes to an organization’s survival and long-term success. It allows for the optimization of resources, enhances productivity, and enables organizations to adapt to changing circumstances in a competitive and dynamic business environment.