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CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

The concept and definition of leadership and style may differ from one person or situation to the other. The word “leadership” has been used in various aspects of human endeavour such as politics, businesses, academics, social works, etc. Previous views about leadership showed it as personal ability. 

Mesick and Kramer (2004) argued that the degree to which the individual exhibits leadership traits depends not only on his characteristics and personal abilities, but also on the characteristics of the situation and environment in which he finds himself. Since human beings could become members of an organization in other to achieve certain personal objectives, the extent to which they are active members depends on how they are convinced that their membership will enable them to achieve their predetermined objectives. Therefore, an individual will support an organization if he believes that through it his personal objectives and goals could be met; if not, the person’s interest will decline. Leadership style in an organization is one of the factors that play significant role in enhancing or retarding the interest and commitment of the individuals in the organization. Thus, Glantz (2002) emphasizes the need for a manager to find his leadership style. The employment of the right caliber of personnel does not effectively achieve or attain organizational goal if leadership of the organization are not favourable to the staff. It is from this that, this research work “The study of the effect of leadership styles on the secretary’s productivity” is based as a topic of interest. In fact, leadership style is a corporate task of the top management whose decisions determines the extent of achieving styles favourable, there is satisfaction in work and if they are not favourable secretaries will be dissatisfied.  They are not keen on working towards the attainment of the organizational objectives and thus do not bring organizational effectiveness and peace in the long run. To this end, it could be deduced that the success of any organization depends, to a large extent, on the caliber of its labour force.  In fact, it is seen as the foundation upon which every organization is built. This is why it is important for every organization to engage the right leadership style and provide everything necessary to make or keep them satisfied in their job performance. Personnel administration is virtually concerned with management of secretary’s productivity in organizations. This productivity is significantly affected by the quality of the relationship between the secretary and the leader. The supervisor is the manager at the office and he does manage through inspection, overseeing and controlling, while the top management manages these offices from a distance. The secretary on his own support to the progress of the organization has the duty of giving account of what is going on in the organization and is expected to produce the desired results of the unit or departments.  He is described as the man in the middle. In the office the supervisor is seen as somebody who is able to motivate and influence people to work towards a common goal willingly. To be a leader he must have a special quality that puts him high above others. As a supervisor he should be more interested not only in making his subordinates perform but also more importantly in helping them to achieve, as well as satisfying their relevant needs and aspirations while meeting the requirements of the organization. An organization is said to be goal directed and activity centered. An organization requires a good leadership and a good secretary among other factors to be able to survive in an environment of scarce resources. Efficient and effective leadership and index of organizational satisfaction and key to success is often judged by relative performance. Behaviour on the other hand is activated by basic needs. A supervisor must be a good leader and leadership is made up of a number of characteristics, vis-a-vis, He must be productive, he must exercise authority and direction in such a way as to get maximum response.  One cannot become a supervisor unless one is willing to excuse leadership which is necessary because the various jobs determine priorities and makes decisions about a variety of problems.  The successful supervisors must be a successful leader because he must lead a group to the successful completion of its work. 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 linked to some other role such as manager or expert. Here, there can be a lot of confusion. Not all managers for example are leaders; and not all leaders are managers. Leaders need a new mix of competences to properly shape their board 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 competencies-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. 

An important factor in the leadership process is the relationship that a leader has with individual followers. Previous researchers have shown that successful interaction between leaders and their followers are central to the overall functioning of a company (Noormala and Syed (2009). Productivity is the ratio of output to inputs in production; it is a measure of the efficiency of production. Secretary’s productivity is the ability of a secretary to meet up with the required output that is expected. High quality leader – follower relationships have been found to have impact on secretary’s productive effort, organizational commitment, delegation empowerment and job satisfaction (Noormala and Syed (2009). One rationale for this study is that good leader – follower relationships are vital to ensure the effective functioning of any organization.

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY AREA

GlaxoSmithKline is one of the world’s leading research-based pharmaceutical and healthcare companies. Headquartered in the UK with major business operations in the US, they employ over 97,000 people in over 100 countries. They have the mission of improving the quality of human life by enabling people to do more, feel better and live longer. The company’s head office in Nigeria is located at 1, Industrial Avenue, Ilupeju, Lagos State with a manufacturing plant at Km 32 Igbesa Road, Agbara Industrial Estate, Agbara, Ogun State. In Nigeria, GlaxoSmithKline has been a dominant and leading force in the healthcare industry, having a strong presence in the country for the past 40 years. GlaxoSmithKline operates globally with business units focused on pharmaceuticals, vaccines and consumer healthcare products.

GLAXOSMITHKLINE FOCUS IN NIGERIA

Consumer Healthcare

GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Nigeria Plc is one of Africa's largest consumer healthcare companies. The company’s portfolio consists of many well known brands, most of which are leaders in their categories. They play in the nutritional health drinks, oral healthcare and wellness categories. Our leading brands are (Lucozade, Ribena and Panadol).

Pharmaceuticals and Vaccines

The pharmaceutical products of the company include treatments for asthma, malaria, depression, migraine, diabetes, heart failure, digestive conditions and cancer. They also market over 25 vaccines to protect against illnesses such as hepatitis A and B, diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, typhoid, influenza and cervical cancer.

Global Manufacturing and Supply (GMS)

GMS is the manufacturing unit of GSK Consumer Nigeria Plc. It is located in Agbara, Ogun State. Because they are committed to continuous improvement in the manufacturing operations, they have continued to advance the commitment to fully satisfy industry standards and regulatory expectations. They continue to ensure that their factory consistently complies with these requirements to facilitate state-of-the-art upgrades. GMS caters for almost all the products within the stable of the Consumer division of the business. With huge investments in capital projects aimed at multiplying our current production capabilities, GMS is set to be a strong driver of the business goals. The Site provides for the Nigerian market, and just recently commenced export into Ghana. In line with their commitment to improving the quality of human life by enabling people to do more, feel better and live longer, they offer career opportunities in functions within the organization. They place strong focus on leadership-secretary/employees relationship, because they believe that they are the key drivers of their business growth.