Research Article: 2021 Vol: 27 Issue: 1
Achonwa Sarah, Covenant University
Olusola Olujobi, Covenant University
The study aims to explore the traits of leadership of communicating organizational goals, as it affects the economic performance of selected private organizations in Abuja. The study or leadership trait is essential as it performs a major role in the effectual achievement of organizational sustainability. There has been an emergence of new development and changes in virtually every business area in recent years, which is also spreading to areas of leadership. This change is creating an importance for the need to focus on effects of leadership traits hence the problem that had to be tackled. The basic target of this research was to assess effects of communication of organizational goals on the economic performance of private companies, using a case study of some selected private companies. An aggregate of 207 questionnaires were distributed and they all were properly completed and retrieved. The descriptive method of analysing the study was adopted. The results showed that there is a significant relationship and effect between communication of organizational goals and economic performance of the organization. It was recommended that in order to maintain a competitive stand in the economic market, management should pay attention to this connection between leadership traits and organizational sustainability.in the quest for sustainability, there is a need for leadership to pay attention to attributes in followers that can help to maintain the continuity of sustainable drive in the organization. Also management should ensure proper communication of organizational vision and goals to the staff through trainings so as to avoid them lowering the standard.
Leadership Traits, Communication, Sustainability, Vision, Economic Impact.
The turbulent changes in the environment and the need for an organisation to survive have given rise to a prevalent call for organisational focus to move beyond its quest for competition towards long-term sustainability. It is important for every organisation to have the capabilities of sustaining itself, even though not all organisations are able to. Also, a leader plays vital roles in influencing the sustainability of organisational goals (Kurucz et al., 2017).
There has been an emergence of new development and changes in virtually every business area in recent years, which is also spreading to areas of leadership. This change is creating an importance for the need to focus on changes in leadership traits. Leadership traits can be portrayed mostly when leaders are sensitive to notice the development need with regards to their individual followers. This can be evident when leaders intellectually encourage their followers, to make high expectations known, make a holistic acceptance of goals available, set examples by being a role model, as well as producing a joint futuristic vision for the organisation
Over the last two decades, organisational sustainability as a subject has constantly and progressively established significant attention from both the academic world and the corporate world because it is pertinent not only to organisational performance (e.g high profitability improved employee welfare, industrial attitude or performance as well as work engagement, innovative work performance, and information distribution) but it is also crucial to long-standing organisational accomplishment (Eriksson, 2017).
In order to build sustainability a rising number of organisations have been proactively influenced in the dealings with the rise caused from rapid globalisation, constant organisational revolution, progressively competitive market as well as talent retention that aims at achieving organisational goals and objectives (Kim et al., 2016)
In maintaining a competitive stand in the economic market, it is imperative to pay attention to this connection so as to offer strategic approaches for improving the application of work-place leadership for organisations in a competitive business world.
Ineffective leadership and its negative effects on performance of an organisation and its employees’ approach have proven the significance and worth of effective leadership. Experts and professionals on the topic of leadership imply that leadership plays a pivotal role in the success or failure of organisations. Scholars and specialists also identify leadership as a key element for influencing organisational performance (Hussain & Hassan, 2016).
Furthermore, minimal study has been conducted that explicitly focuses on the context of leadership exhibited in the workplace with regards to the private sector, as previous study relies on styles of leadership primarily on public organisations, health sectors, education sector among others. Scrutinising and maximizing leadership traits in workers, could assist leaders enhance leadership traits experience as directors will be well informed on areas of concentration and importance in work terrain. Organisations fail to pay attention to the traits that make the leaders, hence having problems focusing on the strengths that would be efficient and efficient for a sustainable environment
There is no doubt that there are numerous homogeneous measures for leadership and sustainability, majority have not been applied to the workplace and this has created the opportunities for better approaches to measuring leadership traits and organisational sustainability. This becomes inspiring and therefore, there is need for research on these variables to inspect results within the Nigerian environment to improve involvement, responsibility, profitability and growth in an organisation. It was also found in a research by Salau et al. (2016) that communication is a dependent factor for leadership practices, they concluded in their findings that communication is significant to leadership practices which in turn has a positive effect on the success of an organization. García-Alcaraz et al. (2017) show in a study of the impact of communication on economic performance via the use of information communication technologies, that communication implementation can act as a source of economic competitiveness as the help to push companies in increasing their supply chain. Their findings show that information communication technology has an effect on the economic performance of an organization. However, this was possible only when the supply chain agility and the operational performance were present.
The main objective of this study is to investigate how communication of organisational goals impact on economic performance of selected private owned companies in the Abuja Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nigeria.
The Concept of Leadership
Leadership is very vital to the future of humans with respect to organizations’ individuals and the nation as a whole. There is a growing trend in the shift of organizational management from the traditional function to the model of people/employee empowerment which is based on various models drawn from the concept of leadership.
Leadership is one the most studied phenomena in social sciences. The deep research directed towards leadership is expected, in the instance that it is a general activity apparent in humankind and animal species. Leadership has been relatively plausible across the classical, Western and Eastern writings; there has also been a widespread view that leadership is essential for efficient organizational and societal functioning. In setting forth any leadership definition, it is also essential that one distinguishes it conceptually from power and management because these two notions are often confused with leadership (Antonakis & Day, 2018).
Leadership not only is the steady mechanism of the prevalent to his/her aides but is the aggregate gradual control or impacts of leaderships in and around the framework. Nature of such relationship is not self-deciding, rather it is manufactured extra time by leaderships and supporters (Akram et al., 2016).
The notion of leadership is conceivably one that is relatively tough to express considering its dynamic nature. As claimed, leadership is a major factor behind the accomplishments and dismays of organisations.
Leadership can be seen as a social control method where the leader requires the subordinates’ voluntary involvement to accomplish organisation goals. A leader is a person who assigns or influences others to act to carry out outlined objectives. Today’s organisations need efficient leaders who recognize the complexities of the fast-developing global environment. If the assignment is extremely structured, and a healthy relationship exists between the leader and the employees, effectiveness will skyrocket on the end of the employees. The research further showed that democratic leaders exercise great awareness to include the entire team in discussions and can as well operate with a minimal but deeply encouraged team (Nanjundeswaraswamy & Swamy, 2014).
Leadership is the process of stimulating and directing others towards accomplishing objectives. It is a process of regulating others' behaviour for the attainment of organisational goals, in support of the definition above. It is important to explain that the term leadership and manager are not synonymous; they are not necessarily interchangeable since leadership is a subclass of management (Kowo & Akinbola, 2019).
In this regard, a leader is a person who is dynamic and has the power to form the path of a nation, and this may affect the organisational management. Leadership is also perceived as a prime force that may determine the corporation’s competitiveness in a global economy.
One approach to group sorts of leadership hypothesis is to comprehend the three perspectives: Heroic leadership, Post-Heroic, and Critical leadership theory. Heroic is known as leader driven points of view and apparently is the 'standard worldview.' Heroic is depicted as "focusing on the central inquiry of what comprises a compelling leader" by examining leaders' practices, qualities, and skills. In this view, the Approaches to contemplates include theories about individual leaders having innate or basic qualities, which require mental examination through positivist techniques. This view regularly incorporates huge examples of quantitative information, for example, questionnaires (Akram et al., 2016). For instance, ground-breaking investigations that adopt a leader driven strategy to investigate how leaders can move supporters to a more prominent duty by fulfilling their requirements, qualities, and inspirations. Ground-breaking investigations which likewise include recommendations that are developing leaders' allure is imperative to turning out to be viewed as good examples so others will be roused to copy them.
Subsequently, this viewpoint is named 'heroic' as the focal point of leadership intrigue is overwhelmingly on the 'top-down' activities of the individual head (for example 'incredible man') with negligible regard for supporters, who are thought to be latently consistent, thus irrelevant to getting leadership (Sethibe & Steyn, 2017). Ways to deal with contemplating and speculating leadership related with this viewpoint are regularly scrutinized as romanticizing individual positional leaders' expected hugeness to hierarchical achievement. The subsequent view post-heroic incorporates approaches that endeavour to deliver issues identified with leader anti-extremism. Post-brave strategies comprehend leadership to be a less progressive idea with more spotlight on casual practices and circulated duty, and altogether, acknowledging adherents as having a possibly significant job, whereby leadership should be analyzed in relationship with followership. This is a respect to adherents which included investigating the different ways individuals can take part in followership and impact an organisation's presentation. In any case, while it is recommended that there are considerable advantages from this possibility by decentring the leader and pointing out their association with supporters for ordering leadership, it is investigated for "Remaining restricted inside a standard administrative spotlight on adherents' expansion to authoritative exhibition” and disregards the job of intensity relations among leaders and devotees. Reactions that advise the third point of view (Hussain & Hassan, 2016). Basic leadership contemplates the attempt to address constraints connected with chivalrous and post-gallant perspectives, by considering power elements engaged with the acts of driving and following, just as giving close consideration to how leaders and supporters are deciphered and depicted. This implies there is a focal enthusiasm for how leaders and supporters become socially built, which identifies with an inclination for basic leadership studies to be educated by subjective and interpretative techniques. Inside this viewpoint, there is uncommon consideration on how leaders can control, in negative ways, devotees to agree, adjust, and assent, and how adherents,' at times, can disturb and contradict leader endeavours at controlling them. The basic point of view likewise has to do with investigating negative parts of driving, for example, how leaders can cause serious and changeless mischief on social orders, organisations, and devotees. When all is said in done, the basic viewpoint challenges hypothesize that the leaders are consistently the individuals' in control' and analyze complex leadership elements among settings, leaders, and adherents, with specific thoughtfulness regarding force, leadership, and control issues in an organisation (Kowo & Akinbola, 2019).
Leadership Traits
The idea of leadership traits and qualities is without a doubt an old fashioned one, originating before the logical investigation of the executives and venturing once again into vestige, all through a few early human advancements. The term trait has been the wellspring of across-the-board vagueness and disarray in the writing, alluding every so often and differently to character, personalities, auras, and capacities and any suffering qualities of the individual, alongside segment and physical traits. Besides, its utility for clarifying social change has been essentially tested by (Lee, 2018), despite the fact that this view has been obscured through more current contentions. Undoubtedly, the ascent, fall, and resurgence of the leader attribute see generally equal the notoriety (or scarcity in that department) of individual qualification research in well-known brain science, notwithstanding modern and authoritative brain research. Attributes allude to steady or customary styles of conduct that are remarkably impervious to situational possibilities people with specific traits indicating exact social inclinations could respond in tantamount strategies over a mess of conditions having practically different conduct prerequisites. Leader traits are particularly steady and reasonable incorporations of individual qualities that cultivate a consistent example of leadership generally speaking execution over a few gatherings and authoritative conditions. These qualities repeat a few stable individual contrasts and character, demeanor, intentions, intellectual capacities, aptitudes, and skill. (Zaccaro et al., 2018). From filling in as the chief of a youth ball club to turning into the CEO of a Fortune 500 organization, leadership experience is to be accessible all through life and springs in heaps of various structures. In spite of the fact that reviews have tried the results of leadership experience on leaders' perspectives and practices, analysts have not tried how this experience impacts how much leaders want certain character inclinations. On the off chance that leadership experience influences quality allure, and these favored traits anticipate vital leadership results, at that point the board decision and advancement may likewise pick up from an assessment of the impact experience has on trait attractive quality (Nichols, 2016).
Traits had been perceived as inborn or heritable traits of the individual in the early leadership logical investigations convention. This point of view, expecting patterns to be changeless properties present toward the start of a possible chief, is not, at this point acknowledged. Afterward, it was said that leadership exists among individuals in a social circumstance, and that individuals who are leaders in a single circumstance won't generally be leaders in various circumstances. Numerous researchers in the field seem to concur that any trait's effect on leadership conduct will consistently rely on the situation. In any case, various analysts have made exhaustive scrutinizes about leader attributes that have been truly examined, feeling that leadership is not a conduct that a leader takes straightforwardly to fit a specific circumstance. They characterize character as predictable contemplations and conduct of a person which is generally steady after some time and relatively consistent across various circumstances. Subsequently, by definition, moral leadership is predictable and thusly requires a stable dispositional establishment in the leader (Nichols, 2016). Qualities have additionally been mostly separated into the accompanying: Honesty, Integrity, Confidence, Inspiring others, Commitment and Passion; Good Communicator, Decision Making Capabilities, Accountability, Delegation and Empowerment, Creativity and Innovation, Empathy, Resilience, Emotional Intelligence, Humility, Transparency, Vision, Purpose and substantially more just to specify a couple. Hou and Li (2019) hypothesizes the activity of submitting workers to make their best type of commitment to the organisations relies upon a superb key arrangement of the leadership. Since people end up being individuals from an organisation to get positive destinations, the degree to which they are dynamic people depends on the amount they are persuaded that their participation will permit them to achieve their prevailed objectives. This type of investment is especially found in profitability dealing which is a game plan between a laborer and his manager to the way that an expansion in his productiveness will cause him to acquire an additional compensation (Atkin et al., 2017).
At the point when individuals in organisations have contending perspectives, there might be huge potential for individual and authoritative clash as far as sustainability (Allen, Marshall and Easterby-Smith, 2015). The idea of leadership effects people's motivation to leave or remain in a venture or participate in authoritative exercises. There is an attestation made that an awful relationship leadership style, a result of imperious leadership style or creation concentrated leadership fitness, fills in as a significant motivation behind why representatives find employment elsewhere or resort to freak practices. Likewise, the unfavorable relationship among leaders and subordinates can make workers lose devotion and fulfilment with their occupations. It is accepted that the essential explanation people quit occupations is that their managers treat them inadequately (Puni et al., 2016).
For the purpose of this study, we would be looking into a few of the traits that can be attributed to leadership in the light of, communication, integrity, vision and resilience.
Communication
Solaja et al. (2016) carried out a research of exploring the relationship between leadership and communication style, show that communication in its prolific state has a significant link to the quality of leadership traits in organisational research and practice, they express how the quality of leadership can help in the alleviation of failure in an organization while striving to survive in the fast-changing economy and increased business challenges. These challenges may result in waste of potentials, misplacement of talents, and misused resources which are needed for the optimal achievement of organizational productivity. Their evaluation of various literatures disclosed the seamless movement, between styles of communicating articulated ideas and information to employees, has been a major challenge faced by leaders in the corporate world. Similarly, Abdullah et al. (2018) depicts the importance of communication between different levels of an organization and how it affects the productivity in the organization. Ohunakin et al. (2016) express communication as important in the day-to-day activity of an organization. They viewed communication as essential for leadership while considering the transactional leader. For day-to-day activity, leaders have to motivate their workers, they cannot accomplish this without an effective form of communication which could also help in motivating the workers.
Tella et al. (2020) while considering communication in crisis, show that the inability to communicate effectively during crisis can put an organization in a very fatal state. Communication is a dependent factor when considering leadership practices and the use of appropriate channels cannot be over emphasized (Salau et al., 2016).
Concept of Sustainability
Nicholson, (2019) delineate sustainability as a challenged thought with two or three translations. Directly it is used to plan significance of human improvement inside the restrictions of the biosphere with a definitive reason for individual and cultural prospering. Following this viewpoint, sustainability concerns are 'underhanded' or difficult issues with several measurements (natural, social, and financial) and rise up out of endeavours to shield and oversee ordinarily held assets which incorporate climate, water and vitality. There is a need for a more profound information on the executives measures that help endeavours of leaders to manage inconveniences of the house that sustainability offers foundationally.
Sustainability stays a profoundly challenged term, with on-going and inescapable difference about the implications and suggestions. Nonetheless, the fundamental requesting circumstances which have propelled enthusiasm for the term can altogether be credited to the logical assessment of environmental change and debasement of worldwide neighborhood biological systems. Clarke et al. (2015) give some key exploration which comprises of the work by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (2014) Stockholm Resilience Center (2015) Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2005) and Limits to Growth (2005). This methodology shows that, in the broadest terms, sustainability involves keeping up the progression of human social orders inside biophysical natural surroundings (the world) (Allen, 2019). The expression "sustainability" is known in writing in unmistakable ways, so it is a multi-vocal thought with various implications. In a couple of cases, it might seem uncertain; hence, it's far helpful to explain its development and points of view. The enthusiasm for sustainability and manageable improvement is expanding in the twenty first (21st) century in light of new worldwide economies described by increasing speed and unpredictability, a developing mindfulness about ecological issues, and the utilization and abuse of advantages and the related dangers for fate ages (Di Fabio & Peiró, 2018).
Olokundun et al. (2017) in their work, see that mechanical development and globalization turn out in innovative market competition putting immense load on little and medium scale undertakings in Nigeria (McDowell, 2017). The resolute load of market competition in Nigeria is logically making it all the harder for SMEs to keep up the advantage (Ibidunni et al., 2016). Little and medium scale endeavours are stood up to with the choices of either getting one of the market heads or experience stagnation; hereafter this explains the plunge and high demise pace of little and medium scale adventures experienced in Nigeria at present. One of the frameworks little and medium scale undertakings in Nigeria can hold onto as regards to battling stagnation and the antagonistic effects of decline is to help the presentation of leadering conduct by its agents (Ogbari et al., 2016). This would achieve agents outlining new strategies, beginning new quest for innovativeness inside their organisations and breaking new unsettled areas concentrated on progression execution. Undertaking exertion is a critical driver of innovative introduction particularly in light of the fact that it overhauls laborers to impart rehearses got ready for perceiving and manhandling novel contemplations, new frameworks for business advancement and better methodologies for keeping up a flow business (Lambert, 2016). This paper battles that definitive headways are not so much in light of developed exploration gauges yet are the eventual outcome of inventive delegate direct that upsets customary business practice. Subsequently, the objective of this examination is to show that the innovative activities of Intrapreneurs inside SMEs in Nigeria can be amazing at achieving progression execution. This examination relied upon a hypothetical system prepared towards the headway of thoughts with a reasonable methodology, clarification of suggestions similarly as establishment of the linkages proposed. Thus, the assessment proposed a determined model to layout the organisation among big business attempt and advancement execution as a purpose behind developing inventive execution of SMEs in Nigeria.
Leadership and Sustainability
Experts regarding the matter of leadership declare that leadership is significant in the disappointment or achievement of associations. Scholastic researchers and different specialists around the world have perceived leadership as a key segment that influences authoritative presentation. Numerous Academic specialists have closed decidedly that compelling initiative assists with upgrading the profitability and execution of associations and helps achievement of wanted objectives. The unfavorable impacts incapable initiative has on the association's exhibition and efficiency, and representatives' mentalities additionally show the centrality of successful leadership. Hussain and Hassan (2016) expressed the ramifications of incapable leadership which delineated significant association between powerless leadership and the negative mentalities/parts of representatives' exhibition, for example, a decrease in bunking off, yield, and carelessness of work. Subsequently, at the focuses where compelling leadership helps with improving the authorization of the associations set of principles that prompts the achievement of foreseen objectives, inadequate initiative will impactsly affect hierarchical profitability/execution and perspectives of workers (Hussain & Hassan, 2016).
Sustainability issues, primarily identifying with environmental change and debasement of worldwide neighborhood biological systems, had been of fringe enthusiasm for initiative exploration. The enthusiasm of both the courageous and post-gallant perspectives has been radically connected with getting leaders (and supporters) with respect to authoritative execution. Notwithstanding, inside the immense writing on authoritative leadership, there are a couple, and developing scope of examination that have attempted to interface initiative and sustainability. (Allen 2018). Weber (2010) expressed that developing supportability science ability has regularly been seen as terrible news or even no news inside in vogue associations and organizations; advanced information on environmental change, biodiversity misfortunes, or financial divergence impacts are usually not engaging to leadership, explicitly for business.
The helpless discernment has hampered associations and initiative's advancement equipped for proactive developments intended for sustainability (Hockerts, 2015). While as of now the standard, the broadly negative reaction is not changeless as more associations are looking for techniques to emphatically utilize sustainability information in esteem creation (Gitman, 2015). To allow for majority and prod imagination and energy, logically powerful conditions for sustainability ought to be characterized, without being prescriptive concerning the suitable and explicit situations which can follow such circumstances. This attitude depends on a mastery of what the board characteristically is about: to co-make an engaging vision of where to be; to find key-zones and entertainers that must on the whole agree to the vision, just as current difficulties and qualities from this achievement point of view; and to format stepwise projects of progress to get from where one is to where one wants to be, while continually training, moving, and adjusting through system, working round such changes. The propensity for initiative exploration related with supportability is to take a post-gallant viewpoint. Be that as it may, a couple of investigates do take a leader focused viewpoint through thinking about leaders' qualities according to ecological sustainability execution (Glass et al., 2016).
Sustainability and leadership cannot be separated as sustainability will be affected. Autocratic, transactional, bureaucratic, charismatic, laissez-faire, servant, democratic, transformational, situational, or instrumental leadership: to make a pick of any leadership style, and you will locate an overflowing measure of examination on its impacts on results, for example, the presentation and inspiration of alleged "subordinates" or "supporters." Droulers, Bamberry & Roberts, (2020) state that this likewise applies to the area such as the wellbeing research which leadership most often is possibly concentrated on, as a factor that conceivably influences representatives' wellbeing and prosperity. For instance, one's leader (or all the more regularly known as one's boss or administrator) is frequently viewed as a potential source of social help. Similarly, the existence of "good" leadership traits is viewed as an asset in the notable Job Demands-Resources model (Droulers et al., 2020).
Organizational Sustainability
In a bid to redefine the concept of organisational sustainability by assimilation into the Tripple Bottom Line (TBL) concept, measurements of TBL have widely become accepted as a very optimistic course toward sustainability, the concept and its dimensions are perceived by some to be deficient of something less tangible and less disposed to this form of dimension and adjustment, which is important for note by managers responsible for the execution of reforms in organisational sustainability (Zawawi & Abd Wahab, 2019).
Though strategic management works has advanced considerably in the past two decades, there appears to be a developing consensus over the essential traits that describe successful organisations. The more recent line of thinking debates on elasticity, adaptability of the organisation in economies experiencing changes and corporation with business partners all as fundamentals of sustained competition (Van-de-Wetering et al., 2017).
Organisations need to interrelate on ecological and humanitarian matters, in search to contribute to the execution of sustainability wholly with more social accomplishments. Considering that an organisation is part of a system, they cannot solely focus on solving a problem, but rather act in a precautionary manner with regards to humanity and the society as a whole (Isaksson et al., 2015).
Up until now most studies have mentioned the subject from an all-or-nothing perspective. Thus, corporate sustainability does or does not create competitive advantages (Hockerts, 2015). The significance of sustainable business practices brings up the following questions. What are sustainable business practices presently being utilized by business entities? Do corporations anticipate a significant shift in the relative significance of these practices in the future? What hints may be given to business entities for implementing sustainable practices? In what areas can regulatory agencies offer extra incentives to induce entities to adopt sustainable practices? The answers can offer instrumental knowledge for absolutely everyone who would love to function as an effective facilitator for implementing sustainable business practices. However, contemporary studies give scant information to deal with these questions (Chang & Slaubaugh, 2017).
Organizations function in a business environment that is consistently changing. Some of these changes are driven by increasing forces of globalization, constant change in trends and demand and unavoidable competition. These have posed a demand on organizations to critically analyse organisational strategies in order to ensure that they align with the constantly changing environment. Hence, organizations have been compelled to debate and make policies on strategic reactions and how they affect the performance and sustainability of the organization. (Wilden & Gudergan, 2015).
This restriction of leadership research goes to the front when we inspect 'sustainability' in organization and society. A focal point on sustainability, revaluates the institution of leadership in organization that are a piece of an open framework, and installed in an advancing public and worldwide setting. These revaluations of the results of leadership are reflected in the undeniably well-known measurements intended to gauge the triple bottom line of leadership execution social, ecological, and financial results (Hallinger & Suriyankietkaew, 2018).. This development towards a more extensive conceptualization of the objectives and obligations of organization and their leaders implies that we can no longer depend as certainly on discoveries from past examination on compelling leadership. This reorientation of the 'ends', towards which leaders endeavour has been prodded on to a great extent by authorities that can be seen in the organization. Environmental change, shortage of assets, monetary reconciliation, social clashes, interruptions brought about by human relocation, mechanical advancements, and political flimsiness have made a world in which authoritative leaders must give nearer consideration than at any other time to their indigenous and global environments.
The introduction of globalization has delivered a profound change in the world, creating a global village in this regard. Further, globalisation may be an element fuelling regular change in organisations. In adapting to these changes, companies come across a lot of challenges to satisfy their objectives. To attain a competitive advantage, organizations need a committed, creative, innovative, and imitable workforce (Eroje et al., 2019).
To emerge as more sustainable, more and more organizations have been proactive in handling the problems from rapid globalization, increasingly competitive markets, steady organizational change, and talent retention to attain their business goals. Having received a fantastic deal of interest from the realms of both business and academia, the subject of sustainability has, for two decades, been perceived as being a critical long-term goal for businesses. From a survey in 2011 involving more than 2800 managers and executives from 113 countries, the outcomes confirmed that 67% of respondents regarded sustainability as being a vital issue for businesses in search of a competitive benefit in today’s marketplace and that 70% of businesses view the problem of sustainability as being a key element of their management agendas (Kim et al., 2016).
Organizations that pursue a sustainability vision are frequently criticized for taking a method that represents ‘weak’ sustainability, focusing on incremental enhancements to fifteen operations and upholding the current status quo. Kurucz et al. (2008) emphasizes on the importance of understanding that the reason for business is to focus on financial consequences for shareholders with little regard to the surroundings or society. While incremental techniques may also do nicely with a more conventional method to leadership including planning, organizing, managing and controlling, more transformational techniques to sustainability require very unique leadership capabilities and skills to realize their more progressive (i.e., Strongly sustainable) objectives (Kurucz et al., 2017).
Growing studies at the intersection of sustainability and business models attempt to perceive principles, tools, and realistic examples that contribute positively to improving the natural environment, human society, and economic system (Kurucz et al., 2017).
Communication and Economic Performance
Communication cannot be over emphasized as its effect has been over viewed in different respects. Communication has a significant link between the quality of leadership traits and the success visible in an organization, (Solaja et al., 2016) show in their work that. Their cross-sectional evaluation with 112 participants of the University of Lagos academic staff, showed that majority of the staff were in support of the existing connection between leadership communication style and personality trait. Their findings also established the combined impact that personality traits and communication style have on the productivity of an organization.
It was also found in a research by Salau et al. (2016) that communication is a dependent factor for leadership practices, they concluded in their findings that communication is significant to leadership practices which in turn has a positive effect on the success of an organization. García-Alcaraz et al. (2017) show in a study of the impact of communication on economic performance via the use of information communication technologies, that communication implementation can act as a source of economic competitiveness as the help to push companies in increasing their supply chain. Their findings show that information communication technology has an effect on the economic performance of an organization. However, this was possible only when the supply chain agility and the operational performance were present.
Augustine, Wheat et al. (2016) examined the sustainability of economic performance in relationship to the gender diversity within the work force comparing the micro finance industry with the rest of the world he expressed the importance of the measurement of economic performance with regards to the demonstration of the effective use of resources. This is measured to utilize the effective achievement of social performance objectives. Their analysis was carried out using a data set of 1,389 responses in 1053 firms. Their findings show the positive impact of gender diversity on the economic performance of the workplace for the sustainability of the organization. Communication can help with activities geared towards staff development as lack of communication especially a two-way system; can cause a lasting effect on the productivity of workers (Adeniji, 2011).
H0: Communication of organisational goals does not have significant effect on economic performance of selected private owned companies.
Research Methods
This research study was a descriptive and quantitative survey by means of investigations to acquire primary data from respondents, depicted by (Creswell & Clark 2011), who determined that this technique is valuable when the researcher collects data from the concerned populace and perceives explicit highlights and organisations of suitable analytical factors.
Population Determination
The organisations selected are GraceTech Group Nigeria Plc and XD Group of companies. Following information obtained from Human Resources Managers of the both companies, the staff strength in all their offices located across Abuja, Port-Harcourt, Bornu and Lagos State is a total of 207 persons with a breakdown below.
GraceTech Group: Abuja - 32, Lagos - 38, Port-Harcourt -22, with a total of 92
XD Group: Abuja - 28, Lagos - 15, Bornu - 72, with a total of 115.
The total number of staff comes to 207 for both companies; therefore, the population for the research is 207.
The purposive sampling technique which is a non-probability method was adopted here. In research, the technique to be utilized is dependent on the nature, type, and purpose of the study. When focuses are chose because of the near proximity to a researcher, (the ones that are easier to access for the researcher), the researcher is making use of a convenience sampling. But in the case of purposive sampling, a researcher has a focus in mind and participants suiting the purpose of the study are encompassed (Etikan et al., 2016).
Sources of Data Collection
The source of this study data is primary data which refers to that which is attained newly for research plans, as feedback acquired from disbursed questionnaires. This work employed survey as major mechanism for collecting data.
Reliability of Research Instrument
The instrument reliability was tested using Cronbach Alpha with the aid of SPSS. The Table 1 below show the outcome of the Cronbach Alpha test.
| Table 1 Reliability Statistics | |
| Cronbach's Alpha | N of Items |
| 0.943 | 28 |
Validity of Research Instrument
The researcher sought after expert contribution on content validity by consulting the supervisor of the study. The type of validity used in this study was face validity. When an instrument has face validity, it is said to have been accepted by an expert without the need of additional verification or analysis. Accordingly, since the questionnaire was developed for the purpose of this research and was carefully evaluated and approved by experts in the field of study, it is said to have face validity.
Test of Hypothesis
H1: Communication of organisational goals does not have significant effect on economic performance
Table 2 shows the model summary. The adjusted r square value shows that 35.1% of the variance in the dependent variable is explained by the independent variable. The R, a measure of correlation, shows that both variables are positively correlated at 0.595.
| Table 2 Model Summary | ||||
| Model | R | R Square | Adjusted R Square | Std. Error of the Estimate |
| 1 | 0.595a | 0.354 | 0.351 | 0.54023 |
Table 3 assesses whether the model was statistically significant at P<0.05. The results above show that the model is statistically significant.
| Table 3 ANOVAa | ||||||
| Model | Sum of Squares | df | Mean Square | F | Sig. | |
| 1 | Regression | 32.761 | 1 | 32.761 | 112.254 | 0.000b |
| Residual | 59.828 | 205 | 0.292 | |||
| Total | 92.589 | 206 | ||||
Table 4 presents the effect of communication of organisational goals on economic performance. The results show that the effect of communication of organisation goals on economic performance is positive and statistically significant (P<0.05). The null hypothesis is therefore rejected.
| Table 4 Coefficientsa | ||||||
| Model | Unstandardized Coefficients | Standardized Coefficients | t | Sig. | ||
| B | Std. Error | Beta | ||||
| 1 | (Constant) | 1.314 | 0.248 | 5.307 | 0.000 | |
| Communication of organisational goals | 0.627 | 0.059 | 0.595 | 10.595 | 0.000 | |
This implies that increased communication of organisation goals would lead to increased economic performance of the organisation.
Results from hypothesis show a variance existing in the correlation between the dependent and independent variable. The results show that both variables are positively related. It also shows that there is a statistical significance between the two variables. The coefficient table shows that the effect of communication of organisation goals on economic performance is positive and statistically significant. The null hypothesis (H01) is therefore rejected. This further explains that the communication of goals effectively, accessibility of communication channels, task communication and healthy communication between superior and subordinate has an effect on the use of resources effectively, interaction with stakeholders, and market standing of the organisation. This implies that increased communication of organisation goals would lead to increased economic performance of the organisation.
The study has shown from its investigation the effect of communication of organizational goals on economic performance of private owned companies. It has also shown how an orientation of leadership and not just the styles are essential in management. The leadership style of communicating organizational goals is a major prevalent fact that can influence the attitudes that employees portray along sides their behaviours including the commitment to the organisation, which can affect the economic performance of the organisation. However, a total orientation of leadership across the workforce in the area of communicating organizational goals has great influence on these outcomes too, especially economic performance of the organisation. This study has shown extensively how the involvement of employees in the leadership process of the organisation, be it in communicating the organizational goals to them; can have an impact on how the employees respond to leadership activities towards achieving a sustainable economic performance. A vast orientation of leadership and its processes in an organisation, can give employees a great sense of commitment which helps the organisation in it strive to survive in the competitive marketplace.
Based on the findings, it is recommended that:
1. Employees should be properly communicated to, in respect to the organizational goals, because in the leadership of any organisation, it is important for clarity to be made with every aspect of operation. One of the major antagonists of sustainability is clarity of work. Employees should have a clear understanding of their deliverables and of the future picture of the organisation.
2. The leaders in organisations have a proper orientation towards sustainability, because leadership has a major part to play in equipping employees as this would help them develop necessary skills for work. This would also help to project the different skills and abilities in the employees.
3. Leaders should be able to see individual weaknesses and try to help motivate and coach. There should be proper communication of organisational vision and goals to the staff through trainings so as to avoid them lowering the standard.
4. In maintaining a competitive stand in the economic market, it is important to pay attention to this connection between leadership traits and organizational sustainability.
The authors appreciate the management of Covenant University for funding this research.