ABSTRACT

This study was undertaken among other reasons of leadership style on the employee's performance in organization using the Ojo Local Government Area, Lagos as a case study.

The study employed survey research method. Data were gathered through secondary source with the aid of a well structured questionnaire.  A sample of sixty (60) was drawn from the population and questionnaires were administered to them, out of the sixty questionnaires forty-two were returned.

For the purpose of drawing reasonable conclusion from this research, three hypotheses were formulated and tested. The hypotheses were tested with the use of chi-Square analysis.

The results of the analysis resulted to rejecting the three null hypotheses and accepting the three alternates, thereby concluding that; there is significant relationship between good leadership style and employees performance; good leadership style can be used to promote effective communication within the organization and that leadership style or pattern effects on tne performance of workers in an organization.

Recommendations were proffered to the staff and management of the local government and other organisations in general.

 CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1    BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Leadership is one of those qualities that you know when you see it but it difficult to describe. There are almost as many definitions as there are commentators. Many associate leadership with one person leading. Four things stand out in this respect, First, to lead involves influencing others. Second, where· there are leaders, there are followers. Third, leaders seem to come to the fore when there is a crisis or special problem. In other words, they often become visible when an innovative response is needed. Fourth, leaders are people who have a clear idea of what they want to achieve and why. Thus, leaders are people who are able to think and act creatively in non-routine situations and who set out to influence the actions, beliefs and feelings of others. In this sense being a "leader" is personal. It flows from an individual's qualities and actions. However, it is also often linked to some other role such as manager or expert.

Leaders need a new mix of competencies to properly shape their broad and develop their subordinates to meet 21st Century challenges. Shifting cultures, rapidly changing technology and other factors will require new patterns of leadership.

The 21st Century leaders will need greater awareness of diverse factors and new sets of competences - characteristics that lead to success on the job to help them make relevant, correct and timely decisions in the leadership of change and leadership of people.

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An important factor in the leadership process is the relationship that a leader has with individual followers, previous researches have shown that successful interactive leaders and their followers are central to the overall functioning of cony-any (Normal and sued, (2009); Green and Uhi Bien), (1995), High quality leader-follower relationships have been found to have effect on employee performance, organizational commitment, delegation, empowerment and job satisfaction and day (1997), One rationale for this study is that good leader- follower relationships are vital to ensure the effective functionality of any cony-any. An organization has the greatest chance of work towards achieving its goals. Since leadership involves the exercise of influence by one person over others, the quality of leadership exhibited by supervisors is a critical determinant of organizational success.   Thus supervisors study leadership in other to influence the actions of employees towards the achievement of the goals of the organization. Therefore, supervisors can learn about leadership through research. Good leaders are made not born. If you have the desire and willpower, you can become an effective leader. Good leaders develop through ending process of self-study, education, training and experience. Therefore, leadership is a process by which a person influences others to accomplish, an objective and direct the organization in a way that makes it more cohesive and coherent. Leaders carry out this process by applying their leadership attributes such as beliefs, values, ethics, character, knowledge and skills. Leadership differs achieve high goals, rather than simply bossing people around, all these brings makes up what is called leadership style.

1.2    STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The interest in the influence of leadership on workers performance represents an alternative to the traditional focus on the leader as the center of attention and power as with the sum in the "Solar System." Although the qualities of leaders are obviously important especially in teamwork in particular, leaders need the skills to engage followers in productive and satisfying mutual pursuits. However, this is a departure from the usual way of seeing leader qualities as possessions, rather interpersonal links to others involved in shared activities.

Because not all leaders wish to be participative, understanding and followers becomes important. Not least as a source of resistance is the problem of shared responsibility and who will be accountable. It is on this background that this research work aims to assess the extent to which leadership impacts on the productivity of the workers.

i.        To enumerate the basis for a good management style.

ii.       To analyze the elements of a good management style

iii.      To analyze the role of good management style on effective communication within the organization.

iv.      To investigate whether good management style is germane to effective management of people in an organization.

v.       To determine the relationship between leadership style and leadership effectiveness.

vi.      To evaluate the, importance of leader-employee/follower relations in organizationalbuilding.

vii.     To analyze the objectives, relevance and importance of a good management style to organizational profitability, growth and survival.

1.4    RESEARCH QUESTION

The following research questions are pertinent to this study:

i.        To what extent does leadership style influence employees' performance

ii.       How does leader-employee relations affect organizational growth?

iii.      What are the factors that hinders cordial leader-employees relationships

iv.      Is there any significant relationship between leadership style and leadership effectiveness?

v.       How relevant is good management style to the attainment of the overall goals of a firm?

1.5    RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS

1.       H0:     There is no significant relationship between good leadership                              style and employees performances

Hi:     There is significant relationship between good leadership style                                   and employees performance

2.       H0:     Good leadership style cannot be used to promote effective

communication within the organization

Hi:     Good leadership style can be used to promote effective

communication within the organization

3.       H0:     That leadership style or pattern does not have effect on the

performance of workers in an organization

Hi:     That leadership style or pattern effects on tne performance of

workers in an organization

1.6    SCOPE AND LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

The scope of this study will be limited to the influence of leadership on employee performance in Ojo Local Government Area. The research work will focus mainly on leader-follower relations and how it affect the performance of the workers.  The study also aims at using Ojo Local Government Area for the Sammy-ling of opinions. The field survey shall be conducted in Lagos because it is the commercial nerve of the country.

1.7     LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

In the course of carrying out this study, a lot of challenges were prevalent and the principal among these were the following: Finance, Time and Lack of relevant material:

1.8    SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The significance this research work is that it would explore the effect of leadership on the performance of employees in organizations with speed references to Nigerian context. This particular local government area was chosen because of the rigour employees are made to go through in the local government in the course of meeting the targets of the management. This has affected the economic, social and private lives of the employees. It is intended to investigate whether employee’s performance is related to the leadership style, adopted by the management. It is also hoped that the study would contribute to the promotion of the existing frontier or boundary between human knowledge and strengthen the relationship, between the management / employer and the employee in the local government of Nigeria.

1.8    DEFINITION OF TERMS

MANAGEMENT:                  This is also the act of coordinating the resources of an organization through the process of planning, directing, controlling and organizing in order to achieve the organizational goals and objectives.

EMPLOYEE:                         This is a person who paid to work under the supervision of a manager or an employer.

MOTIVATION:                     Motivation involves all the activities which give rise to the behaviour aimed at satisfying one or another kind of want.

TASK LEADERS:                  Task leaders are generally concerned with completion of task, accomplishment of goals and the general effectiveness of the work-group.

LEADERSHIP:                       This is a process by which a person influences others to accomplish an objective and directs the organization in a way that makes it more cohesive and coherent.

LEADERSHIP STYLE:          This is the manner and approach of providing direction, implementing plan and motivating people

PRODUCTIVITY:                  This is the rate at which a company produces goods and the amount produced compared with how much time and the amount which was used for the production.

PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL: It's the assessment of how well an employee

does his job, especially an assessment carried out as part of an organization's formal procedure in which records are kept and corrections are taken in order to improve on performance.

PROMOTION:                        This indicates a move to a important job or rank in a company or an organization which involves greater responsibility skill, status and higher rate pay. Therefore, promotion is also the movement of a worker to a more important position with greater responsibility.

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