ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AS A STRATEGIC TOOL FOR RE-ENGINEERING (A CASE STUDY OF NIGERIAN TELECOMMUNICATIONS LIMITED (NITEL)

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1   BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

In the business world, there are high levels of uncertainty in the operative activities of business organization.  These uncertainties came to be because of changes in the business environment due to limited resources and the misapplication of the required management technique.

It is noteworthy to know that any business plan, policy or strategy without due recourse to proper research to current and future behaviour, structure and changes of the market forces in its industry is a disaster in the making.  That is therefore the reason necessary for organization to study their own management, economic and technological structures in order to predict future changes and the effect they will have on their operational activities. It is therefore in this wise that I delve into carrying out a study on how the Nigerian Telecommunication Limited (NITEL) could through its strategic formulation and implementation of the situational management technique of organizational development strategies achieve its target objectives.

Telecommunication is an essential infrastructure and key ingredient for promoting rapid socio-economic and political development of any nation. It is an indispensable system in effective business operations and in the times of national emergency or natural disaster.  Therefore, because of its vital nature to any nation, or economy, the telecommunications system must be universally accessible and cost-effective. In order that Nigeria should be counted relevant, he must as a matter of urgency properly organize and manage strategically her telecommunication system to be functional and efficient.

According to the National Telecommunications policy write-up of September, 2000, telecommunications facilities in Nigeria were direct established in 1886 by the British Colonial Administration for discharging administrative functions rather than the socio-economic development at the country. The policy report stated that the total number of telephone lines at independence in 1960 were only eighteen thousand, seven hundred and twenty four for a population estimated at about forty million people.  The data above however indicated that Nigeria then was having a tele-density of approximately are telephone time per two thousand people.  As at that time, the telephone network consisted of one hundred and twenty one exchanges of which one hundred and sixteen were analogue (magnet type) and only time were automatic.

Basically, between 1960 and 1985, the Nigerian Telecommunications sector consisted of the departments of posts and telecommunications (P & T) in charge of the internal communications network and a limited liability company, the Nigerian External Telecommunication (NET) limited responsible for the external telecommunications services.

The Nigerian Telecommunication Limited (NITEL) is the Federal Government owned company that provides public network telecommunication services in Nigeria.  Set up in 1985 as an amalgam of the telecommunication vision of the defunct P & T department and the Nigerian External Telecommunications Limited (NET). NITEL has a staff strength of about fourteen thousand (14000).

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