EFFECTS OF STRATEGIC PLANNING ON PERFORMANCE IN …

EFFECTS OF STRATEGIC PLANNING ON PERFORMANCE IN UNITED BANK FOR AFRICA (UBA) NIGERIA

OBIRU JELOMI IRENE

Department of Business Administration Faculty of Management Sciences

Kogi State University Anyigba

Email: [email protected]

ADEJOH MATHEW ISAIAH



ISAH MOHAMMED OGAJI



ABSTRACT

Banks are key players in the financial and money markets in Nigeria. The role of commercial banks in the structural formation of the national economy therefore cannot be under-stated. The study examines the effect of strategic planning on organizational performance in united bank for Africa (UBA) in Kogi state. Specifically, the study determine how strategic planning enhance performance in UBA, relationship between strategic planning and achievement of objectives in UBA, impact of strategic planning on growth and stability in UBA. System theory was theoretical framework adopted. The study adopted the quantitative method via survey research design and stratified random sampling techniques to select 146 respondents. Data obtained were analyzed using inferential and descriptive statistics. Findings from the study reveals among others that; strategic planning help enhance performance in United Bank for Africa in Kogi state. Implementation of strategic planning has brought about improve performance both in quality and standard in United Bank for Africa although, lack of commitment was identified as the challenge to the implementation of strategic plan in United Bank for Africa. The study among others recommends that; for efficiency, effectiveness and higher productivity in UBA, there is need for staff motivation and training for actualization of UBA SMART objective, United Bank for Africa need to build a planning team with same vision. The strategic plan that emerges from the process is generally more realistic and achievable, and working or interdependent relationships within the organization are strengthened and developing a renewed sense of organizational mission and

consensus, so that individual perspectives, roles, and problems are subsumed by an overall plan that coordinates all staff members and volunteers so that agreed-upon goals and objectives are achieved in a timely manner

Key Words: Strategic Planning, Performance, Efficiency and Effect on Productivity in

United Bank for Africa (UBA) INTRODUCTION

Strategy is designed to help firms achieve competitive advantage, this is because competitive advantage is what allows a firm to gain an edge over its rivals. Competitive advantage enables a firm to achieve high performance over an extended period of time (Innocent and Nwosu, 2017). Strategic planning therefore is part of the contemporary managerial tool kits not only for dealing with the inevitable uncertainty in the management environment, but also, for stimulating organizational performance (Schendel, 2009). Today large-scale management processes have become more sophisticated. These processes respond to increases in the size and number of competing firms; role of government as a buyer, seller, regulator and competitor in the free enterprise system, suppliers; increasingly scarce resources; customers whose preferences often shift inexplicably; political priorities and technological developments. These internal and remote external environments affect the growth and profitability of a firm (Pearce and Robinson, 2003). Therefore, firms need competitive advantage to survive and achieve high performance over a period of time. It is predicted that through strategic planning an organization can notice environmental changes and act pro-actively (Adeleke, Ogundele and Oyenuga (2008) cited in Owolabi and Makinde, 2012).

Strategic planning is defined as the set of decisions and actions that result in the formulation and implementation of plans designed to achieve a company’s objectives (Pearce and Robinson, 2003). Strategic planning therefore becomes a part of contemporary managerial tool kits and a game plan for dealing with the inevitable uncertainties; strengthening organization’s position; pleasing customers, but, also for stimulating organizational performance (Alaka, Abass and Tijani, 2001, Adegbie and Fakile, 2013). This confirms that well- articulated long-term planning aids in identification of future organizational opportunities, and threats, thereby encouraging a favourable attitude to change among alternative courses of action and financial benefits in firm performance. However, it has been observed that most organizations are more concerned with the formulation of strategic plan, and not how to implement them.

Thompson and Strickland (2005) and Draft (2008) opined that plan without effective and measureable implementation is no plan at all and that managers must combine good strategy making with good strategy execution for company performance to approach maximum potential. It was observed that commercial banks in Nigeria faced many challenges such as increased competition and harsh economic conditions and sometimes distresses in their profitability performance, probably not keeping pace with accelerating industrial change and organizations’ strategic policies. Adegbie and Fakile (2013) noted that between 1990 and 2005, most distressed commercial banks in Nigeria were liquidated; resulting to loss of depositors holding, job losses by workers, and adverse effect on other sectors of the economy. In addition some commercial banks could not maintain sustainable performance growth and have either been silently merged or acquired. For instance, Afribank to Mainstreet bank, to Skye bank, now

Polaris bank. The key question remains: could there be a relationship between strategic planning and profitability performance of commercial banks in Nigeria?

Statement of Research Problem Banks are key players in the financial and money markets in Nigeria. The role of

commercial banks in the structural formation of the national economy therefore cannot be under-stated. In 1952, there was bank failure in Nigeria, under the banking legislature and stabilization period this is because of the inability of the indigenous bank to provide the minimum paid up capital requirement of N12, 500 (equivalent of N25, 000). Also course of the indigenous banks failure was the bank poorly conceived lending programs in an industry that generally had relaxed credit standards and compromised in the quality of lending. In 1990’s there was another bank failure. These banks were indigenous banks having complied with the Indigenization Policy of 1972. At this time, the Central Bank licensed many commercial banks following a report that Nigeria was under banked. There was stiff competition among the banks to the extent that some were crowded out.

That was again the time when the banks practiced what was referred to as the armchair banking. Bankers relaxed in their offices while customers came to them. There was little or nothing like serious thinking and planning. Between 2009 and 2010 is yet another hectic period for the banks, this is because this time, the Central bank was able to link up the problems to managerial problems. The cash collected during the recapitalization was excess and so top managers resorted to squandering bank’s money rather than making judicious use of them to earn more profit for the banks (Nnamdi, 2011). These problems would have been averted if banks were fully committed to strategic planning. The need to constantly update plans strategically, to put in place proactive measures to address competitive challenges as well as dynamic environmental demands cannot be downplayed. This is because the success or failure of an organization is tied to planning. It is against this background that this study is geared toward assessing the effect of strategic planning on performance in UBA, Kogi state

Objectives of the Study 1. Determine whether strategic planning helps to enhance performance in United Bank for

Africa in Kogi state. 2. Determine the relationship between strategic planning and achievement of objectives in

United Bank for Africa in Kogi state. 3. Determine whether strategic planning check waste of time, money and human resources

in United Bank for Africa in Kogi state.

Conceptual Review The strategic approach to management is as old as warfare and even has military origin.

The history of strategic planning traces to the ancient Greek through early 20th century and modern business practices and to recent public and private sectors efforts (Blackerby 2003 in Emeka, 2015). Emeka (2015) reflecting on its origin stressed that, from this military roots, strategic planning extends to recent origin when in early 1920s, Harvard Business School developed the Harvard Policy Model (HPM), one of the first strategic planning methodologies for private businesses. Through the late 1950s, strategic planning’s focus shifted away from organizational policy and structure towards the management of risk, industry growth, and market share. The next evolutionary steps led to the industrial economic model, where strategic decisions derive from analyses of competitive power relationships. For Musibau, Oluyinka, and Long (2011), strategy has its origin from the military; it is used to describe a set

of programmes that involves development that will make sure that an army not only gains an upper hand in a battle, but also goes on to win the war. Though, the significance of the word, “strategy” can be found in other activities such as games and management. Hence, one learn of game plan, management strategy etc. Although our understanding of strategy as applied in management has been transformed, one element remains prominent: the aim is to achieve competitive advantage (Wall and Wall, 1995). Strategy is designed to help an organization gain competitive advantage over its rivals. Gaining advantage however involves articulated planning. Strategic planning therefore focuses on long range objectives and short term priorities through the adoption of various business analytic techniques (Alaka, Tijani and Abass, 2011).

Stressing further, Alaka et al (2011) noted that strategic planning therefore is part of the contemporary managerial tool kits not only for dealing with the inevitable uncertainty in the management environment but also, for stimulating organizational performance. Taking its name and roots from the military model, early formal strategic planning “reflected the hierarchical values and linear systems of traditional organizations, undertaken by elite planning function at the top of the organization, its structure was highly vertical and time-bound.

Put differently, Schendel in Emeka, (2015) define strategic planning as an evolution of managerial response to environmental change in a focus moving from internal structure and production efficiency, to the integration of strategy and structure, and production, innovation, multinational expansion and diversification. Strategic planning is an organization’s process of defining its strategy, or direction, and making decisions on allocating its resources to pursue this strategy including its capital and people (Adeleke, 2001 cited in Alaka, Tijani and Abass, 2011).

Strategic Thinking and Strategic Management It is important to focus on the idea of thinking and managing strategically as opposed to

engaging in strategic planning for the sake of having a formally written plan. It is very important to incorporate strategic thinking in the process of drafting a strategic plan, and eventually incorporate strategic management in the process of implementing the strategic plan. Although strategy is seen to have many forms, the importance of strategy comes out clearly in all the forms (Nickols, 2016). For instance, strategic planning is very important for any organization but this is subject to the implementation of the plan in the entire company.

One of the important qualities that those in senior management should strive to possess is the ability to think and manage from a strategic point of view as they are the ones directing the company. Strategic management unveils the strive to achieve the benefits realized from strategic thinking as seen through putting into action “strategy formulation”, “strategy planning”, and “strategy deployment” (Nickols, 2016).

Strategic thinking as well as strategic planning run concurrently throughout, especially in circumstances where there is an ongoing yearning for innovative and novel strategies which are unveiled from deep within the organization. Strategic thinking also includes the involvement of diagnostic procedure to uncover such issues as the “feasibility” and the “desirability” of the strategic plan to be implemented effectively. Strategic management is a “tool for introducing concepts and approaches”, but, the concept of “strategic thinking” by its definition is difficult because of “the conceptual complexity in this approach”. The numerous definitions which are presented for strategic thinking have paid attention to every aspect of this approach. Although,

no one of them is quite multi-dimensional. Conditions like this, make it necessary to confront the “nature and characteristics” of strategic thinking in explaining it as opposed to the use of the definitions (Emran and Emamgholizadeh, 2015).

The concept of strategic thinking is a key tool in strategy development. Strategic thinking involves an identification and an imagination of the “possible and plausible” options for the future scenarios of a company. The knowledge gained is what is used to interpret and forecast the possible futures of the company effectively which guarantee a competitive edge in the environment through being in a position to take “well informed and robust” decisions today to impact on tomorrow. In study after study, it has been found out that strategic thinkers are greatly successful leaders due to thinking and acting strategically. The fact that strategic thinking is more of a “mind-set” as opposed to being a set of tools and skills makes the concept of strategic thinking a tough one to figure out or learn. Moreover, in the real life company situations the current demands often get relatively much more attention as compared to long-term vision and planning. Among companies employing strategic management it still remain to be seen that some companies manage to perform relatively better than the others and this could be due to thinking strategically. Strategic thinking is seen as the key tool for strategy formulation, which directly impact on the competition by giving a different and detailed vision from a present situation.

Strategic thinking is considered more a way of looking at a current situation conclusively and developing the possible futures both to a company and other stakeholders. Another advantage of strategic thinking is that it make it possible to depict or predict a future situation and having a “pragmatic “action for the challenges and all other issues. Strategic thinking may be seen at two different levels: individual level and organizational level. Organizational level provides a field, in which the individual strategic thinking can be possessed .Organizations need processes that create continuous strategic dialogue among the senior team and exploit the advantage of the ingenuity and creativity of all employees (Emran and Emamgholizadeh, 2015).

Research Methods This research work adopted survey research method and made use of primary data as the main source of data collection through the instrument of structured and unstructured questionnaire. The study randomly selected 146 respondents. Data obtained were analyzed with both descriptive and inferential statistical method via SPSS. From 146 questionnaires distributed to the respondents one hundred and thirty four (134) were correctly completed by the respondents. The data comprises the socio demographical information of the respondents (bankers) and their perceptions on the effect of strategic planning on performance in United Bank of Africa (UBA) in Kogi State.

RESULT AND DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS Socio-Demographic Characteristics of Respondents Table 1: Socio-Demographic Characteristics of Respondents (N = 134)

Variable Category Frequency Percentage (%) Gender Male 87 64.9

Female 47 35.1

Age 18-35 years 4 3.0

26-32 years 41 30.6

33-39 years 85 63.4

40-45 years 4 3.0

46 years + 4 3.0

Academic Qualification

SSCE/WAEC 4 3.0

NCE/ND 59 44.0

B.Sc./HND 51 38.1

M.Sc 20 14.9

Bank Age 5-10 years 45 33.6

11-15 years 20 14.9

16-20 years 12 9.0

21-25 years 5 3.7

26 years and above 52 38.8

Field Survey, 2018 Table 1 detailed the socio demographic characteristics of respondents over sixty percent of the respondents were male and within the age range of 33-39 years of age. Also, majority of the respondents had National Diploma (44.0%). The respondents stated that the bank has been in existence for more than 26 years.

This is in line with the statement on www.ubagroup.com/group/history that UBA’s has more than 65 years of providing uninterrupted banking operations, dating back to 1948 when the British and French Bank Limited (BFB) commenced business in Nigeria. BFB was a subsidiary of Banque Nationale de Crédit (BNCI), Paris, which transformed its London branch into a separate subsidiary called the British and French Bank, with shares held by Banque Nationale de Crédit and two British investment firms, S.G. Warburg and Company and Robert Benson and Company. A year later, BFB opened its offices in Nigeria to break the duopoly of the two existing British owned banks in Nigeria then.

Field Survey, 2018

Figure one showed that United Bank of Africa have had five or more strategic plan since inception with over seventy percent (70%) of the respondents attesting to this. According to Kazmi (2008), who affirmed that strategy is a broad based formula for how business is going to compete and what policies will be needed to carry out the goals in order to achieve success. Buttressed by Uvah, (2005), the strategic planning process is as important as the actual plan and its implementation. He further suggested a strategic planning process which includes - Plan Design which deals with the design stage of a strategic planning exercise and should resolve questions such as who should be responsible for what? This shows that strategic planning is an important tool to achieving organizational goal and a bank like United Bank of Africa should have implemented more than one strategic plan to help achieve organisational goals.

Table 2: Strategic Plan is important for the Banking Industry Option Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Valid

Strongly Agreed 112 83.6 83.6 83.6

Agreed 14 10.4 10.4 94.0

Disagreed 4 3.0 3.0 97.0

Strongly Disagreed 4 3.0 3.0 100.0

Total 134 100.0 100.0

Field Survey, 2018 From table 2, it can be deduced that over 80% of the respondents considered strategic

plan important for the banking industry while only few of the respondents disagreed that strategic planning is important in the banking industry. Fairholm, (2009) sees strategic planning as management by plans, an-analytical process and is focused on making optimal strategic decisions. This shows that strategic planning is very important in the baking industry as its sets the stage for enterprise architecture, process improvement, risk management, portfolio management, and any other enterprise-wide initiatives. Table 3: There is effective implementation of Strategic Planning in UBA

Two, 3% Three, 12%

Four, 12%

Five, 73%

Figure 1: Strategic Plan of United Bank for Africa since Inception

Two Three Four Five

Option Frequency Percent Valid Percent

Cumulative Percent

Valid

Strongly Agree 105 78.4 78.4 78.4

Agree 21 15.7 15.7 94.0

Strongly Disagree 8 6.0 6.0 100.0

Total 134 100.0 100.0

Field Survey, 2018 Up to 80% of the respondents strongly agreed that there is effective implementation

of strategic planning in United Bank of Africa. As stated on allianceonline (2005), strategic planning assumes that an organization must be responsive to a dynamic, changing environment (not the more stable environment assumed for long-range planning). Strategic planning, then, stresses the importance of making decisions that will ensure the organization's ability to successfully respond to changes in the environment. Therefore it can be stated that the United Bank of Africa (UBA) been effective to the implementation of strategic goal to adapt to a dynamic changing environment which involves making decisions that will ensure the organization’s ability to successfully respond to changes in the environment.

Field Survey, 2018 Figure 2 detailed the challenges to the implementation of strategic plan in United Bank of Africa,

39.6% making majority of the whole respondents identified lack of commitment is the challenge of implementing strategic plan in UBA. Other factors such as inadequate fund, poor leadership, industrial action/strike and political influence were identified as a less challenge to the implementation of strategic plan in UBA. Table 4: The implementation of Strategic Plan has brought about improved performance both in Quality and Standard in UBA

9.0

0%

6.7

0%

6.0

0%

39

.60

%

3.0

0%

35

.80

%

I N A D E Q U A T E F U N D

P O O R L E A D E R S H I P

I N D U S T R I A L A C T I O N / S T R I K E

L A C K O F C O M M I T M E N T

P O L I T I C A L I N F L U E N C E

A L L O F T H E A B O V E

FIGURE 2: CHALLENGES TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF STRATEGIC IN PLAN

UBA

Inadequate fund Poor leadership Industrial action/Strike

Lack of commitment Political influence All of the Above

Options Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent

Valid

Strongly Agree 81 60.4 60.4 60.4

Agree 53 39.6 39.6 100.0

Total 134 100.0 100.0

Field Survey, 2018 Table 4 indicate that 60.4% of the respondents strongly agreed that that implementation of strategic plan has brought about improved performance both in quality and standard in UBA. In line with the view of Schendel (2009), who stated that strategic planning is part of the contemporary managerial tool kits not only for dealing with the inevitable uncertainty in the management environment, but also, for stimulating organizational performance. This therefore means the implementation of strategic planning has improved the performance and quality of UBA.

Table 5: The Implementation of strategic planning is of tremendous significant to UBA Option Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Valid


Agree 41 30.6 30.6 97.0

Disagree 4 3.0 3.0 100.0

Total 134 100.0 100.0

Field Survey, 2018

From table 5, it can be deduced that abo sixty percent of the respondents agreed that the implementation of strategic planning is of tremendous significant to UBA. This is in consonance with the perspective of Schendel and Hoffer (1979) strategic planning becomes the management approach or process through which an examination of external and internal factors affecting an organization results in a set of mission, purpose, objectives, policies, plans and programmes for implementation.

Field Survey, 2018

Proper monitoring (41.8%), adequate funding (3.0%), involvement of all staff (6.7%), proper orientation and sensitization (3.0%) were all identified as measure that must be taken to effectively implement strategic planning in UBA. Alaka, et al (2011) identified fourteen processes that could fast tract strategic planning in management. They are; setting objectives, planning strategy, establishing goals, establishing policies, developing company’s philosophy, planning the organization structure, proving personnel, establishing, providing facilities, providing capital. Others are, setting standards, establishing programmes and operational plans, providing control information and activating people. Succinctly, it is a process by which organizations look into the future, paint a picture of that future based on current trends, and influences the forces that will affect them.

Table 6: Lack of Strategic Plan is Responsible for the challenges faced by UBA in Kogi State Opinion Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Valid


Agree 21 15.7 15.7 24.6

Undecided 70 52.2 52.2 76.9

Disagree 23 17.2 17.2 94.0


Total 134 100.0 100.0

Field Survey, 2018 Table 6 indicate that over 50% of the respondents were neutral whether or not strategic plan is responsible for the challenges faced in Kogi State. The reason for not making a choice was unknown to the researcher.

PROPER MONITORING,

41.80%

ADEQUATE FUNDING, 3.00%

INVOLVEMENT OF ALL STAFF, 6.70%

PROPER ORIENTATION AND

SENSITIZATION, 3.00%

ALL OF THE ABOVE, 45.50%

0.00%5.00%

10.00%15.00%20.00%25.00%30.00%35.00%40.00%45.00%50.00%

PROPERMONITORING

ADEQUATEFUNDING

INVOLVEMENTOF ALL STAFF

PROPERORIENTATION

ANDSENSITIZATION

ALL OF THEABOVE

Figure 5: WHAT DO YOU THINK CAN BE DONE TO ENSURE EFFECTIVE IMPLEMENTATION OF STRATEGIC PLANNING IN

UBA

Figure 5: WHAT DO YOU THINK CAN BE DONE TO ENSURE EFFECTIVE IMPLEMENTATION OF STRATEGICPLANNING IN UBA

Field Survey, 2018

Strategic planning was rated by the respondents to be high with 55.2% of the respondents attesting to this. In the view of Hayward and Ncayiyana, (2003: 11) Strategic planning is a dynamic process requiring a high standard of future focused thinking on the part of those involved in the planning process. Among the keys to strategic planning success at an institutional level are creativity and viability of the vision, mission and goals developed for the future, commitment of the institution’s leadership to the plan,, extent to which the vision is communicated, understood and shared by the institution’s leadership and members, scope and depth of analysis involved, relationship of the plan to budget, human capacity and environmental realities, care with which the plan is developed and implemented; early achievement of smaller goals that are noted publicly and celebrated, ability to be flexible in the course of implementation; and commitment to ongoing review, evaluation and adjustment of the plan on a regular basis. Table 7: Relationship between Strategic Plan implementation and internal efficiency in UBA Option Frequency Percent Valid

Percent Cumulative

Percent

Valid


Agree 83 61.9 61.9 96.3

Undecided 5 3.7 3.7 100.0

Total 134 100.0 100.0

Field Survey, 2018 Table 7 indicate that sixty one point nine percent of the respondents agreed that there is relationship between strategic plan implementation and internal efficiency in United Bank for Africa. In the same vein, Okoro and Nwosu (2017) conducted in his study indicated that there is relationship between effective strategic planning and organizational performance and also that lack of accountability, lack of commitment and lack of understanding of the role in the execution process are challenges in the implementation of strategic planning and therefore recommend among others that Nigerian firms should give more serious attention to strategic planning and finally, employee welfare should also be given adequate attention for efficiency

44

.80

%

55

.20

%

V E R Y H I G H H I G H

FIGURE SIX: HOW DO YOU RATE THE LEVEL OF IMPLEMENTATION OF STRATEGIC PLAN

IN UBA

very High High

and effectiveness in organization. Table 8: UBA in Kogi State allocates adequate resources for effective implementation of Strategic Plan


Cumulative Percent

Valid


Agree 70 52.2 52.2 80.6

Disagree 18 13.4 13.4 94.0


Total 134 100.0 100.0

Field Survey, 2018 Table 8 indicates that majority of the respondents (52.2%) attested that adequate resources for effective implementation of strategic plan is been allocated to staff of UBA. In a study conducted by Nwosu (2015), result of the study revealed that organizational structure has significant positive effect on the performance brewing firms; that technological changes has significant positive effect on the performance of brewing firms; that leadership stability has significant positive effect on the performance of brewing firms; that Merger and Acquisition significantly affect firm’s performance positively; and that there is significant positive relationship between staff welfare and performance of brewing firms. In view of the above findings, the study concludes that adequate resources for effective implementation of strategic management increases the performance of the staff of UBA in Kogi state. Table 9: Link between implementation of Strategic plan and the Performance in your organization

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent

Valid


Agree 44 32.8 32.8 94.0

Undecided 4 3.0 3.0 97.0


Total 134 100.0 100.0

Field Survey, 2018 Table 9 indicated that there is link between implementation of strategic plan and the performance in UBA. In line with the view of Ajagbe, Solomon and Choi (2011) in their survey study investigated the relationship that is inherent between Strategic Planning and Marketing Operations” and how they reflect on the performance of government owned and managed companies especially in Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) as a case scenario. The research findings revealed that strategic planning contributes substantially to the effectiveness of marketing operations in public corporations. The shows that there is link between strategic plan and the performance

Table 4.9: Development and application of strategic plan amount to waste of Resources


Cumulative Percent

Valid


Agree 29 21.6 21.6 30.6

Undecided 17 12.7 12.7 43.3

Disagree 64 47.8 47.8 91.0


Total 134 100.0 100.0

Field Survey, 2018 Majority of the respondents which entails 47.8% of the respondents disagreed that development and application of strategic planning result to waste. According to Nnamdi (2011), strategic plans in most organisations are considered as mere administrative and management exercise that has culminated in waste of time and money due to lack of effective sensitization mobilization as well as monitoring and evaluation. Table 10: Effective monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of strategic plan in UBA


Cumulative Percent

Valid


Agree 42 31.3 31.3 97.0

Disagreed 4 3.0 3.0 100.0

Total 134 100.0 100.0

Field Survey, 2018

Sixty five point seven of the respondents strongly agreed that effective monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of strategic plan in United Bank for Africa. According to Marx (2004), no plan could be effectively implemented without reviewing progress of plans regularly. Plans could not be effective without proper monitoring system. When plans are not reviewed regularly then no corrective erasures could be made and as a result plans become irrelevant to the business operations.

Field Survey, 2018

From figure seven indicated that the management team (67.4%) is in charge of strategic planning. This shows that the management is strictly in charge of strategic planning. No committee or consultancy unit carrying out strategic plan. In line with the view of Marx (2004), when management did not take interest in formulation and implementation of strategy then all other hurdles abound. Limited accountability, strict time limits on reviews and a strict scheduled for reviewing the plans all are the obstacles just due to lack of management commitment. Table 11: All staff of United Bank for Africa (UBA) are carried along in the formulation and implementation of Strategic Plan


Cumulative Percent

Valid


Agree 37 27.6 27.6 97.0

Disagree 4 3.0 3.0 100.0

Total 134 100.0 100.0

Field Survey, 2018 Sixty nine point four percent of the respondent strongly agreed that all the staff of United Bank for Africa (UBA) are carried along in the formulation and implementation of strategic plan. According to Adan (2014), In order for the banking institutions to perform better, there is need to put in place strategic plans that are effective for the organization to achieve its goals and objectives. The Banking institution should consider how best to motivate their staff and continuously develop new products.

DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS The finding showed that a large number of the respondents were male and were within

the age range of 33-39 years. Majority of the respondents had NCE/ND qualification and affirmed that the bank has been in existence for more than sixty years which was further

16.40%

67.40%

15.70%

Figure 7: STRATEGIC PLAN IN UBA IS PREPARED BY

STRATEGIC PLANNING COMMITTEE IN UBA MANAGEMENT TEAM

STRATEGIC PLANNING CONSULTANT

confirmed on www.ubagroup.com/group/history the official United Bank for Africa website which sate that the bank has been in existence for over sixty years. The findings showed that strategic planning help enhance performance in United Bank for Africa in Kogi state. The bank have had more than five strategic plan since inception as it was perceived to be an important tool for the banking industry. In line with the view of Uvah, (2005), stated that strategic planning process is as important as the actual plan and its implementation. He further suggested a strategic planning process which includes - Plan Design which deals with the design stage of a strategic planning exercise and should resolve questions such as who should be responsible for what? The next stage is the formulation stage.

Strategic plan has been effective implemented by United Bank for Africa. Although, lack of commitment was identified as the challenge to the implementation of strategic plan in United Bank for Africa. However, the implementation of strategic plan has brought about improve performance both in quality and standard in United Bank for Africa Schendel (2009), who stated that strategic planning is part of the contemporary managerial tool kits not only for dealing with the inevitable uncertainty in the management environment, but also, for stimulating organizational performance. This therefore means the implementation of strategic planning has improved the performance and quality of UBA.

In order to ensure effective implementation of strategic planning in United Bank for Africa, the respondents suggested proper monitoring, adequate funding, and involvement of all staff and proper orientation and sensitization of staff. The implementation of strategic planning in United Bank for Africa was rated very high which has improved the internal efficiency of the bank. According to Nwosu (2015), organizational structure has significant positive effect on the performance brewing firms; that technological changes has significant positive effect on the performance of brewing firms; that leadership stability has significant positive effect on the performance of brewing firms; that Merger and Acquisition significantly affect firm’s performance positively; and that there is significant positive relationship between staff welfare and performance of brewing firms. In view of the above findings, the study concludes that adequate resources for effective implementation of strategic management increases the performance of the staff of UBA in Kogi state.

CONCLUSION Any organization embarking on strategic planning must first decide if it is to be a major,

one-time an event or a significant though periodic process, or geared towards outlining a change in roles or the way day-to-day operations are run. While the complete answer probably encompasses all of these goals, strategic planning must culminate in a significant change in the way daily business is conducted. Strategic planning should constitute a major modality or a foundation that supports participants’ longer-range goals or vision. Therefore, those participating in strategic planning must be prepared to define their ideal future and core strategies necessary for preparing and monitoring consistent, meaningful annual operating plans and budgets. In other words, you must be able to clarify where you want to go, and how you will get there step-by-step.

RECOMMENDATION From the findings, the study proffers the following recommendation:

i. There is need for pragmatic and long term visible strategic planning United in Bank for Africa by the management for efficiency, effectiveness and higher productivity for organizational productivity and the achievement of the Bank smart Objectives.

ii. The management need to devote their commitment to promoting strategic planning in United Bank of Africa.

iii. The involvement of staff in strategic plan of United Bank of Africa is a necessity as this will enable the staff to key into the goals and vision of strategic which can be achieved when involved in the whole process of building strategic plan.

iv. There is need to allocate necessary resources for the implementation of strategic plan so that strategic plan wouldn’t be theoretical only but practical and achievable.

v. There must be quarterly auditing of the bank lending and retrieving policy for bank sustainability

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