STAFF TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT; A TOOL FOR INCREASE IN PERFORMANCE IN ORGANIZATION IN ABIA STATE

1.0 Introduction

1.1 Background of the Study

In any administrative organization, a large or small, public or private, competent personnel are required for the actualization of the organization's goal and objectives.

After workers have been hired to work for an organization, one striking thing about them is that they have different backgrounds, though they may have the same qualification.

Also by having not worked for that organization before, they may not have indebt knowledge for the techniques, procedures, and culture of the organization.

In the same vein, Okezie, Obi and Abonyi (2005) stated that; Life is dynamic and new inventions and ways of doing things are continually evolving change is now regarded as anything permanent in life. in the work place, the workers need to be aware of these changes and also innovate accordingly.

As people work and rise in the hierarchy, they take on more responsibilities which may not even bear much resemblance to the ones they were exposed to at the early stage, hence they are supposed to be prepared early enough so that future challenges would not overwhelm them. They above in a nutshells, under show the need to equip the workers with necessary skill that will help in both present jobs and future responsibility and which can be achieved through training and development.

It is common for people to see training and development as the same thing. However, it is important to point out that though, they are similar but are not the same things.

In the work of Campbell 91971), training “is a planner learning experience designed to bring about permanent change in an individual knowledge, attitude or skill”

Cole in Obikeke, Obi and Abonyi (2005) opined that training — any learning activity which is directed towards the acquisition of a specific knowledge and skill for the purpose of an occupation or task.

In addition, Ogunna (1996) opine that training “is a process by which the attitude, skills, technical knowledge and abilities of the employee to perform specific job are increased”.

Development on the other hand, according Onuoha in Obikeze Obi and Abonyi (2005) states that staff development involves “preparing employees for high responsibilities in the future”

It is also a programme with the intent to improve employees conceptual and human skill in preparation for future jobs.

In addition to that Cole in Obikeze, Obi and Abonyi (2005) opine that staff development is refers to any future needs rather than the present needs and which is concerned more with career growth than immediate performance.

Writing on the staff development and training in organization, Ubeku (1975) state that “employees who have received adequate training before being assigned responsibilities lack the necessary confidence with which to carryout their job”. That the employees should be helped to growth into more responsibilities by systematic training and development so that he will be confident enough to carryout the responsibilities of their jobs.

However, Campbell (1971) states that the distinction between training and development is that development aimed at the managerial personnel and that training course are designed for short term and stated set purpose, such as operation of some pieces of machinery and others.

From the above, it is now clear that there is a major different between training and development. Though both of them are geared toward increasing or improving the skills of workers.

Training is concerned with teaching the workers specific skills that will assist them in their immediate task while development is concerned with teaching the workers more general skills that will assist them in career growth, thereby enquiring for the future.

Commenting on the inevitability of training and development, Onyemesim (2008) indicate that effective training programme can result in increased productivity, reduce labour turnover, and greater employee satisfaction.

Countless writers on the subject on the other hand come out with the conclusion that the need for training and development cannot be overemphasized, yet public organization place it at the bottom of their priorities.

Still on that Ogunna (1996), opine that “training of personnel has not been given adequate alteration in Nigeria while Federal Ministry are specialized bodies of government and norms peculiar to it.

Britain gives specific alternation to regular specialized training for public organization staff. So, this was inherited by Nigeria during colonial era.

The Federal Government in its programme of training designed three universities, namely Obafemi Awolowo University for the western zone, University of Nsuka for the Eastern zone and Ahmadu Belo University Zaria for the Northern zone as national training centers for organizational personnel. In addition to formal academic training. The centre organized regular seminar and workshops for the public and private organizational personnel. However, various categories in addition to these national centers were also ill equipped, poorly financed and inefficiently managed staff towards the development of workers.

Secondly, the training of staff in the organization and handled by non experts and in some cases by people who never studied Public Administration as a subject.

Thirdly, sometimes the training programme contract is awarded to in-law, friends and relation in a manner that will heavily enrich the officer that controls the training vote.

Moreover, training programme contract is often fives as a form of public political patronage or friendship favour. Sometimes that training contract is given to non-existence consultancy firm. There is an absence of well articulated and properly designed training programme for the Federal Ministry of education personnel. In some case they are poorly planned ill-organized and ineffectively executed. In short, the Federal ministry of Education training in Nigeria is haphazardly gross inadequate and in inadequate and inefficient, which has led to low productivity in almost all the Federal ministry of the federation.

Federal ministry of education Abia State was established in the year 1993 under the military head of state, major General Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida. This ministry was established for inspectorate service of both government and private schools. This ministry was sited at No 3 Ojike Street Umuahia in Umuahia North Local government of Abia State. The ministry is made up of coordinator of inspection (CJ) as the head of the ministry and other departments of Administrative department, Account, Store, Registry, Typing pool and technical department that made up the driver and security section.

1. Like other Federal ministries in the Federation, Federal ministry of Education Abia State has the primary goal of carrying out inspection on the positions of schools and with regard to the provision of:
   • Good management of the school
   • Quality of teachers
   • Conducive environment
   • Data of the number of schools and staff
   • Staff and overall standard.
2. Conducting workshop which as a problem living oriented discussion meeting. These handle very technical issues and strive to find solutions or generate information and ideas about them.
3. Recruitment of workers on grade level 1 to 6 through the “Junior staff Committee (local)” in the primary and secondary schools.

But it has failed abysmally in this quest for development because there a high rate of economic underdevelopment show cased inform of lack of well trained personnel, Godfatherism, bribery and corruption. The most crucial problem facing Federal Ministry of Education in Abia State is not from financing but inadequate quality manpower resources. Staff are not well qualified and lack the requisite experience. Training and development programme are hindered by those factors mentioned above.

In conclusion, personnel are the life of any organization. Its effective management is therefore very central and crucial in the achievement of organization objectives. The effectiveness of Federal ministry of education Abia State depends to a large extent on the efficiencies of its staff. What emerges as a conclusion is that staff is not given specialized training and development that will give effects to professionalism of the Federal ministries services.

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1.2 Statement of Problems

It is generally accepted that the livewire of any organization is the human resources. The quality of staff in the Federal ministry of Education will determine the quality of development service provide to the general public. Federal Ministry of education is full with these problems that make training and development an inevitable tool for increase in performance.

1. Workers come from different backgrounds and lack indebt knowledge of techniques, procedure and culture of the organization
2. Life is dynamic because there are always change of government, economic system and policies.
3. New inventions and ways of doing things continually evolves for example manual typewriter to computer.
4. Workers rise in the hierarchy which makes them take more responsibilities.
5. From the above, it is necessary that a scholarly research will be done on this aspect of social science as to unveil as much as these problems.

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1.3 Objectives of the Study

In view of the identified problems of this study, the objective of this research will include amount other things the following:

1. To ascertain the relationship between staff determining and development and performance.
2. To examine the extent to which training and development can contribute to increase in performance.
3. TO identify problems associated with employee training and development programmers in administrative organization.
4. To make useful recommendation based on finding of the study.

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1.4 Research Questions

Training and development need refers to any deficiency of skills and knowledge on the part of the employee which can be rendered through training. When the performance of worker is not ideally poor and cannot be improved through motivation and simplifying the work procedures, then a training need has arisen. Also when an organization adopts a new system of operations or buy new machines, that are quite different from the one currently arisen. Theretofore, it is pertinent to ask the free questions.

• What is the relationship between training and development towards the staff in their performance in the organization.
• Will the different background of workers in the organization lead to poor performance.
• What is the impact of training and development in the organization.
• Do training and development in the organization lead to increase in workers performance.

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1.5 Significance of the Study

1. In addition to serving as a partial fulfillment of the requirement(s) for an award of National Diploma. (ND), this study will benefit administrative organization, government, researchers and academics.
2. On the part of administrative and the government, the importance of this study will expose to the importance of employee training and development and its relationship to organizational productivity and therefore provide guiding steps towards policy formulation, strategic planning and attain other major decision making in this regard.
3. Researchers and academics will stand to benefit by way of having additional materials for academic work such as lecturing seminar and conference materials available in this complication is use for class work and assignment.
4. Federal ministry of Education Abia State will be the highest beneficiary of this work, adequate facts and limitation regarding training and development will be identified and this will form a guiding yardstick or criteria for limitation so as to establish proper solution to its low productivity.

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1.6 Scope of the Study

Scope of the study deals with the areas a research covered. This study was scoped on staff training and development as a tool for increase in performance in organization in Abia State, with emphasis on the Federal ministry of Education Umuahia Abia State.

The ministry was made up of seven (7) department, which for the sake of convenience, the researcher intend to study only four (4) departments of Registry, Administration, Accounts and Store.

However, no move was made to go into other Federal ministry of Education of other states of the federation.

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1.7 Limitation of the Study

The factors that militate against this work include:

Finance:

This was in fact the most limitating factor; inspite of this, the researcher has to travel in search for materials that carry vital information for the work, coupled with high cost of minutes for browsing.

Time:

In this kind of research a lot of time is required by the researcher to conduct exclusively survey of the topic, but enough time was not given to get necessary information needed for the work.

Inadequate Information:

This involves the gathering of relevant materials of data to aid the researcher to achieve a successful research. This is very problematic in the sense that some the officers are afraid of the letting out of information for security reasons.

Security:

The research was confronted with the problem of secret code to obtain some vital information from the net and scanty of information when the code numbers could not be provided by the researcher.

Academic Overhead:

This is deals with different academic task faced by the researcher at the time of this work.

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1.8 Definition of Terms

Administration:

Is the process of harmonizing and coordinating the activities of two or more people to accomplish certain ends.

Productivity:

The ability to produce required result.

Personnel:

Human elements in the organization.

Federal Ministry:

A body or agent of government of the federation established for a set goal.

Organization:

An organize group of people that come together to work and achieve a set objective.

Skill:

The ability to do something very well.