This study describes critically the continuous influence of classical management

approach in the telecommunication industries in Nigeria today. This was to evaluate the
extent of use of the Scientific Management and Administrative theories in Nigerian
Telecommunication Industry and the impact of the application to the improvement,
development and growth of this industry.

The methodology employed in this research is descriptive which involves, Interviews

and Participant observations. The study showed that the application of the Scientific and
Administrative theories in management to this industry was successful in most cases.
This industry has seen initial development and growth from the onset and overtime the
industry had witnessed little of waste, workers layoff, low productivity and closure.

Looking at management in general which is said to be the organization and direction of

the activities of a corporation in order to accomplish a well-defined objective
(BusinessDictionary, 2020), and also looking at Taylor’s theory of Scientific
management which is the application of scientific methods to the management of
employees and processes and also emphasizes the best way to carry out a task or
increase in the efficiency of employees which will reflect on the overall objective of the
organization.

This method was initially introduced when the telecommunication industries started to
develop in Nigeria in the early 2000, where technically inclined individuals and
graduates where employed and trained to carry out a specific task. The industry was
seen to have attained rapid growth and development within those periods. Employees
were categorized base on the area of training and skill sets, A customer service
personnel worked professionally as a dedicated customer service person, a network
engineer worked specifically in that area and likewise a system administrator and a
marketer for specifically for their units. With this method, the industry developed rapidly,
and workers were very efficient in their job role.

Taking a look at the Administrative theory of management which was developed by

Henri Fayol (1841 – 1925), was mostly about establishing guidelines for managing a
complex organization, which involves putting a management structure in place to
manage the activities and resources of an organization. Child (1972) defined
Organizational structure as "the formal allocation of work roles and the administrative
mechanisms to control and integrate work activities including those which cross
formal organizational boundaries".

When observing the telecommunication organization structure and the administrative

management theory in Nigeria which are made up of several level of management such
as the CTO, CFO, CIO, HOD’s and they are all responsible for managing and
coordinating the task and processes. Also observed are certain activities in this
particular structure which includes Technical, Commercial, Financial, Security,
Accounting and Management and these makes up the Organization. Another key
function observed that comprise managerial activity are forecasting and planning,
organizing, coordinating, command and control of available resources to achieve a
given objective. The principles of administrative theory observed in the
telecommunication industry are Division of labor, Authority by the managers, Discipline
by the employees, unity of Direction, sufficient remuneration, employee’s initiative etc.

In conclusion, the classical management addresses the need to increase efficiency and
productivity is still very relevant in modern-day management and also from the study
and the current performance of this industry in Nigeria, it is obvious that little effort is
required for the classical management theory to be fully applied appropriately to enable
employee motivation and continuous development and growth of this industry.

BusinessDictionary (2020) Available at:

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/management.html (Accessed: 22 Feb
2020)

Child, J. (1972), Organization structure and strategies of control: a replication of the

Aston study, Administrative Science Quarterly, Vol. 17 No. 2, pp. 163-77.