1.0 Introduction
1.1 Background of the Study
The issue of the personnel department and its impact in employee performance has been a major issue for organizations throughout the world. Almost all organizations, business and firms that engage in production activities whether tangible or intangible provide services for their personnel in form of the personnel department.
Personnel department plays important role in any organization no matter how small the organization may be. The role of personnel officers, have received increasing recognition over the late quarter of the last century.
While other kinds of management are engaged in such performance as buying, production, marketing and accounting, the personnel manager seeks to discover staff of the right type with skills, knowledge and ability to induct them adequately and train them effectively to plan for the long term development, arranged scheme of pay and conductions of service which meet legal and trace requirements to advice on health and safety aspects.
According to Ohadinma and Uwaoma (2003) personnel department is responsible for directing co-ordinating and controlling of all the activities for supplying required human resources and optimizing their performance.
In corroborating the above, Agu (2003) defines personnel department as a sub-system which creates and maintain a conducive environment for increased participation of the employees towards the achievement of the organizational goals and objectives and who can get things done quickly effectively and efficiently.
Giving the frequent problems Nigeria organization face in regard to managing their workforce and considering the outright incompetence demonstrated by employees of the organization it has became necessary to highlight the need of effective personnel department.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The future prosperity of an organization is dependent to a large extent by the quality and quantity of personnel. If management fails to make plans to ensure that the organization ahs the personnel it needs. The future of the establishment will be bleak. Demger (1994). But it has been observed that organizations have problems due to the following:
- Usurping of the functions of personnel department especially recruitment, selection and training of staff.
- Lack of conducive working environment
- Inadequate authority to the unit.
The above have made the department not to be effective in sourcing, employing and maintaining the right caliber of staff in the right number.
1.3 Objectives of the Study
The broad objective of this work is to determine the role of personnel department in employee performance. The other specific objectives include:
- To find out the functions of personnel department in organization.
- To determine how conducive environment impact workers performance.
- To ascertain how personnel department is affected by authority level.
1.4 Research Questions
Looking at the objectives above; the following research questions were deduced:
- What is the relationship between personnel department and employee execution of tasks?
- How does conducive environment impact workers performance?
- What is the relationship between personnel department and authority level?
1.5 Research Hypothesis
- HO: Personnel department does not contribute to the attainment of organization objectives.
- HA: Personnel department contribute to attainment of organizational objectives
- HO: Personnel department performance of its function does not have significant relationship with authority level.
- HA: Personnel department performance of its function have significant relationship with authority level.
1.6 Scope of the Study
This study on the role of personnel department focused on Federal Polytechnic Nekede Owerri.
1.7 Limitations of the Study
The hindrances encountered in carrying out these research work include:
- Time constraints: combining lectures and writing project.
- Financial constraint: lack of funds for the research work.
- Hoarding of necessary information by the respondents.
- Limited knowledge of statistics; getting the right estimate of a parameter calculated from a set of data gathered from a sample was a challenge.
1.8 Significance of the Study
- The study will help employers of labour particularly Federal Polytechnic Nekede Owerri and future investors in a proper selection of both personnel department.
- The scholars will acquire additional information on the role of personnel department.
- It is one of the requirement of Higher National Diploma (HND) in Business Administration & Mgt.
1.9 Definition of Terms
Effectiveness:
Being able to bring the desired result.
Human Resources:
The totality of knowledge, skills, creativity abilities, talents and aptitude of an organization, often referred to as a personnel department.
Management:
The co-ordination of all the resource of an organization, directing and controlling in order to attain organizational objective.
Personnel Manager:
A person who is framed and charged with the management of human resources.
Personnel Department:
The department in a company that deals with employing and training of workers.
Productivity:
The rate at which a worker produce goods
Recruitment:
It is the creation of a large pool of labour force which organization can draw both inside and outside an organization for employee to fill vacant positions.
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