CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1    Background to the Study

It is no longer a controversy that we live in a globalised world characterised by fast information transfer across large geographic areas by means of the Internet. The consequence of this globalization is the emergence of policy making and implementation-based economies where importance is placed on effective management of human capital to ensure that workers continue to create the right value for the economy. Nowadays, organisations no longer compete solely on the basis of financial capital and strength but policy making and implementation is the new competitive advantage in business. In fact the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate is now determined, amongst other factors, by the quantum and quality of knowledge stock harnessed and applied in the production process in sectors of the economy.

Every organization aims to survive and grow in a competitive environment. To do so, it must respond and adjust to the social, economic and political environmental changes that occur. The environments of public organizations according to (Bryson, 2004) have become not only increasingly uncertain in recent years but also more tightly interconnected; thus changes anywhere in the system reverberate unpredictably, and often chaotically and dangerously throughout the environment. This increased uncertainty and interconnectedness requires a response from public organizations. First, these organizations must think strategically as never before. Second, they must translate their insights into effective strategies to cope with their changing circumstances and lastly, they must develop the rationale necessary to lay the ground work for the adoption and implementation of their strategies.

Strategic decision making or strategic planning, involves in the process of creating an organization's mission, values, goals and objectives. Deciding upon an action plan, an organisation also involves in changing strategies based on outcomes being observed. Strategic decision making can transform companies into large groups and industries. Directors of organisations are endowed with the ability to make policy quickly, sometimes with limited information. The process of policy making utilizes metrics that provide a real picture of the organisation, creating the necessary motivation for the development of a policy making. According to a survey taken, the process of strategic decision making can be executed in a few steps and the selected strategy must be sufficiently robust to enable the organisation to perform activities differently from similar activities in a more efficient manner. Error from strategic policy making can affect individual economic decisions; it has impacts on corporate strategic planning as well. Financial goals and financial performance can have a big impact on the policy making process, particularly in the implementation stage.

In order for organisations to improve their performance management capabilities and drive profitable growth, they need to take a comprehensive approach that not only implements driver decisions, but also uses the decision to systemically link business strategies with the market,  competitor, operational and financial forces that drive value and, by extension, good decision-making. Organisations waste less time and money on collecting, formatting and analyzing distracting and often irrelevant data points. This project however, aimed at examining policy making and implementation as a tool for organisational growth.

1.2              Statement of the Problem

Most organizations, especially in Nigeria, strategic plans are not carried out and implemented properly. Some public organizations do not attach any importance to strategic planning and therefore do not have strategic plans for their organizations. This could be due out to lack of appreciation and knowledge of the relevance of policy making and implementation to organizational growth. In a bid to address this ugly development, there is a need to critically assess the relevance of policy making on organizational growth in Nigeria to enable management appreciate its worth in gaining competitive advantage at the market place.

1.3       Research Questions

These are some of the questions the study is designed to answer:

i)                   what is the prevalence of policy making and implementation as a tool for organizational growth?

ii)                 what are the challenges facing policy making and implementation for organizational growth?

iii)               what are the relevance of policy making and implementation on organizational growth?

1.4       Objectives of the Study

The objective of this study was to investigate examining policy making and implementation as a tool for organisational growth. The specific objectives are:

i)                   to examine the prevalence of policy making and implementation as a tool for organizational growth

ii)                 to identify the challenges facing policy making and implementation for organizational growth

iii)               to investigate the relevance of policy making and implementation on organizational growth

1.5       Significance of the Study

The findings from this study will be of great value to policy makers, stakeholders, board of directors and Human Resource Managers, as it will assess the relevance of policy making and implementation on organizational growth, clarify the challenges and the ways to meet them. Researchers in related areas will also find the study a useful literature for reference.

1.6       Scope of the Study

This study covered both private and public organizations in Nigeria. The data gathered from the respondents were subjected to further analysis.

1.7       Limitation of the study

The only constraint encountered by the researcher was finance. This limited the researcher to print just one hundred and twenty questionnaires as against the proposed two hundred and fifty questionnaires. The researcher, however, came up with findings that would be worth making reference to in future and also contribute to the existing literature.

1.8       Definitions of Terms

The following terms were used in the course of this study:

Policy making: the formulation of ideas or plans that are used by an organization or government as a basis for making decisions

Implementation: the process of putting a decision or plan into effect; execution.

Organisational growth: getting focused on important goals, and involving others in achieving them.