CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of study

 Time is an essential resource every manager needs to achieve the goals and objectives of an organization. It is so delicate that it cannot be saved but can only be spent and once misused it can never be regained. Every manager is looking for ways to improve time management. Whether it is the management of an organization looking for business improvement or an individual looking for ways to better spend their time, time management is important to both. According to the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary time is defined as a period either long or short, during which you do something or something happens while management is defined as the act or skill of dealing with people or situations in a successful way.

Time is the period in which processes and actions take place. (Healthier, 2005) says that time is a resource which is scarce and must be well managed or else you can’t manage anything.

Effective Time management is the use of tools and activities which help an individual manage and strategize his time effectively (Healthier, 2005). (Hellsten, L. M. 2012).

Key elements to perfecting time management are, setting goals, delegation and decision making. (Hellsten, L. M. 2012). Effective organization of time, planning for the future, scheduling activities, writing to do lists and avoiding time waster activities are employed by time management In the micro finance institution, time has to be managed because with less time high quality services will be provided that means a micro finance institution will be in a position to retain customers and get more of them hence generate more income ( Hellsten, L. M. 2012). Efficiency on effectiveness and life balance are emphasized by many of today’s time management books (Hellsten, L. M. 2012). The needs for time management is greater than ever, as the pace of life increases the perception of time changes although effective time management had its starts over a hundred years age. People concentrate on a single task at a time or a few simple tasks, this is because they attend more to rumors than work and become bored sometimes, (L.M. Prasad, 2007). Due to the greater concentration of single task compared to previous generations where it shows there was a freedom of working rather than today where most of the sectors or organizations are privatized (L.M. Prasad, 2007).There is no agreed definition on performance. Performance of individual employees can only be accumulated by time spent on doing a specific task given, by describing all of their work-linked behaviors, which also represent their contribution. (L.M. Prasad, 2007) agreed that, the difference between employees’ competencies or capabilities and their actual effectiveness is the motivation or the willingness to present appropriate behaviors. (L.M. Prasad, 2007) also thinks that the various definitions and different understanding of performance management term is strictly connected with the above mentioned issues. The integration between the individual units and the whole enterprise led to another evolution of the above mentioned concept. The joint creation of plans, goal implementation and strategy achievement was the main source for the creation of shared vision of company’s success. People started to be measured in areas, which were the most essential for future evaluation.

(Benson, J. and Brown, M, 2007) explained that, despite the terms’ evolution and various types of definitions and meanings, performance management can always be described in three points;

1. Effective, which provides human resources with required knowledge and skills to achieve certain level of results
2.  Strategic, which refers to long-term strategic decisions and essential objectives.

• Integrated, which connects and combines strategic, operational and financial information and factors

Therefore, effective time management needs to be taken into account that, the implementation of organizational performance needs to be aligned with time management that needs to be adapted and linked to company’s specific branch operational and strategic goals, current and future financial situation (Armstrong, M. 2006) .As long as above mentioned system is not capable of making a significant change, there is no point in implementing it. Armstrong, M. (2006) suggested that, according to the literature, management of time is the behaviors aimed at getting efficient utilization of time and therefore achieving set goals. There are many barriers which could suppress the expected influence of the whole process. It is recommended to collect and analyze data and information linked with the implementation stages, because unsuitable system or a misuse of it can lead to consequences that are negative, such as employee’s de-motivation or even whole organization financial and functioning (Gardiner, M. 2007) problems. So, the basic objective of studying this was to gain knowledge about how to manage organization following the time management so as to optimize the organization achievement.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

 In an organization there are number of resources which must be utilized such as people, money and materials which are all important. But there is one resource we all have in common which is time. Time has to be managed so as improve performance. Performance in an organization revolves around efficiency (doing things right) and effectiveness (doing the right thing). In Bali Central Cooperative Credit Union Ltd ( Bamenda II) poor  time management greatly affected the institution as customers come during working hours and don’t find workers   which to an extend made the performance poor. You need to know how to manage resources and employees over time in an organization. Time is a very important factor in decision making , Bamenda II experience a significant problem in decision making in relation to  time as the management board were slow in taking certain decision on time which led to poor time management thus slowing down effective performance of the organization. Planning influence organizational performance in a long run and short run. Bamenda II plan their activities for a long run forgetting to plan for short run thus Bamenda II run most of their short run activities base on procrastination which has significantly affect the performance of the organization. Therefore, the researcher intended to assess effective and efficiency of time management in enhancing the performance in micro finance institution in Cameroon.(north west region ,Bamenda ii)

1.3 Research Questions

1.3.1 Main Research Question

The main Research Question of this study is:

What are the Effects of effective time management on Organization Performance?

1.3.2 Specific Research Questions

The specific Research Question of this study are:

1. How does planning of time and time attitude affect organizational performance in Bamenda II subdivision?
2. To what extend do time wasters affect organizational performance in Bamenda II subdivision?
3. To what extend do set priorities affect organizational performance in Bamenda II subdivision?

1.4 Research Objectives

1.4.1 Main Research Objective

The main Research Objective of this study is:

 To evaluate the Effects of effective time management on Organization Performance in Bamenda II subdivision

1.4.2 Specific Objectives

The specific research objectives of this study are:

1. To examine effects of planning of time and time attitude on organizational performance in Bamenda II subdivision
2. To analyse the effect of idle time on organizational performance in Bamenda II subdivision
3. To evaluate the effects of setting priorities on organizational performance in Bamenda II subdivision