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Chapter One of The Application of Production Skills in the Management of Business Organization to Gain Competitive Advantage ( a Case Study of Unilever Nigeria)
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Production skills (defined)
Industries and business organization be it private or public, have one thing in common, the human workforce, this could confidently be said, that organization, will not exist without its human resources, since a business organization cannot even start without a workforce, and effective and efficient skills, will gear the ability of the organization to stand out among its competitors.
Production control is defined by Burbidge (1992). In his book the principles of production control, “Is the function of management which plans, directs and controls the material supply and processing activities of an enterprise, so that the specified products are produced. By specific methods to meet an approved sales programme. These activities being carried out in such a manner that the labour, plant and capital available are used to the best advantage.
Poter (2006). In his book, effective entrepreneurship, he is of the view that companies can choose between three general strategy to build competitive advantage a differentiation strategy, a low-cost strategy and third approach, frequency used by entrepreneurs in focus, or ninche strategy. A firm that uses a differentiation strategy competes on the basis of its ability to do things differently than its major competitors do.
Beal, Reginald (2000). In his journal competing environmental scanning competitive strategy and organizational performance in small manufacturing firms is of the view that pursuit of an effective entrepreneurial strategy is mainly through advantages, has been mapped through the collection and analysis of information from existing and potential customers.
Boxalla (1996) Boxall 1996 defines strategy as a firm’s frame work of critical ends and means. This definition helps to make the point clear, that means do not flow unproblematically from ends. Rather the historically developed means to shape what ends are conceivable and possible.
Mitchell Porter (1984), Competitive advantage is a very basic word, a position a firm occupies against its competitors. The three methods of creating a sustainable competitive advantage are through: cost leadership, differentiation and focus.
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Iornum (2005). In his book introduction to material management defines material management as practical in business today, as “ A confederacy of traditional materials, activities bound by a common idea; the idea of an integrated management approach to planning, conversion flow and distribution of production materials from the raw materials state to the finished product state. Managers or individual should understand that core competencies include the particular set of skills and resources firm posses as well as the way those resources are used to produce outcome.
Usage of these resources depends on the skills and ability of the human work force in the organization. Therefore the need for effective and skilled labour is required to stage ahead in competing with other competitors. The creation of knowledge is a dynamic and continues process.
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
In the past years, various issues to the effective management of industries and business organizations to gain competitive advantage over others have been noticed and highlighted as follows:
Unskilled Labour:
Unskilled labour has been the major problem facing industries and business organization, this is as a result of personnel managers, not recruiting and selecting employees, base on merit, skill, and expertise, but rather on selection based on man know man, a connection of whom you know to get to were you want. Hence, the effect is having the wrong people at the right place and thereby affecting the quality of service or product to be delivered to the market.
In Nigeria today, you will be surprise, seeing somebody who read a different course entirely been employed in a different field. i.e. a mechanical engineer working in a banking sector, such the expected performance will be upturned and unsatisfactorily.
Technology
Inability of industries and business organization. To use the modern ways to get things done, effectively and efficiently. Is another major problem, A supplier may be expected to produce technical, particularly during the early stages of design and manufacturing.
Late Delivery speed
Inability to make the product or deliver the service quickly “in some markets a firm’s ability to deliver more quickly than its competitors may be critical. A company can offer an on-site repair service in only/or 2 hours, has a significant advantage over a competing firm that guarantee service only within 24 hours.
In-ability to cope with changes in demand
Changes its volume, in many market, a company’s ability to respond to increase and decrease in demand is important to its ability to compete. Its is well known that a company with increasing demand can do little wrong.
Poor product quality and reliability
Customers wants product without defects, thus the goal of process quality is to produce defect-free products and services, product and service specification, give in dimensional tolerance and/or service error rate. Define how the product or services is to be made.
Adherence to the specification is critical to ensure the reliability of the product or service as defined by its intended use.
Cost or price
Is another problem when the price of any product is too high it affects its competitive strength in the market.
Scarcity of fuel/petroleum products
I find out that sometimes when the refineries are working in full capacity, the dealers and distributors of the petroleum products hoard these products and truck drivers are said to be diverting these product elsewhere.
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