BT as public limited company.

Another important objective of BT is to increase their sales and market share. This obvious goal for a company such as BT operates in an environment where market share is fiercely to battle. The aim is that having a large market share by selling more products, BT can afford to purchase more stocks from its suppliers at a lower cost per unit. This allows BT to lower their prices, which in turn increases sales and profits.

Another key objective of BT is to develop the skills of their employees. By developing employees' skills it increases motivation and improves communication skills. This is very important because a well-served customer swill be more satisfied and will almost certainly return for another service.

It is also important for BT to develop staff, as training will build up their knowledge and understanding of the ideas and concept of running a successful business. These acquired skills and knowledge gained by staff as a result training allows certain members of BT staff to make important decision on behalf of the organisation. This is why despite BT loss of market share, they were able to make huge profit in the last year.

Producing high quality product is another important objective as far as BT is concerned. For a product to be of high quality, it must be well economically and able to please the customer. The Marketing Research and Development departments have keen interests in the development of high quality service and are somewhat responsible for maintaining the standard of such service.

E3

THE FUNCTIONAL AREAS THAT EXIST WITHIN BT

• FINANCE
• HUMAN RESOURCES
• PRODUCTION
• MARKETING
• ADMINISTRATION

• RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

Finance Department:

The chief Accountant being responsible for the supervision of the department' controls this department.

The Accounts section always make sure that detailed record of all finance and that have been paid in and out of the business are recorded as transactions. This department prepares financial records of the business. By these responsibilities they help the business to meet it aims of making profit.

Human resource

Headed by the Human Resources manager, this department is responsible for the recruitment, selection appraisal and training of employees in the business. This responsibility is to create a proper work force for the business.

Production Department

This Department creates a proper and appropriate process of raw materials to finished goods. It supervises standard procedures for work to be carried out smoothly and effectively and organising efficient products to the best values and qualities to meet the consumer's needs.

Marketing Department

This department creates a proper by way for the organisation to meet its customer needs. It uses its research to create full demands for the company's product to help maintain maximum profit.

Administration Department

This department works as an overseer in maintaining proper standards for the organisation. It deals with all paperwork and any form of communication with in and outside the organisation.

Research and Development

This department keeps the company remain successful. it creates proper flow of improved products. Developing new and better products and services with expert advice.

E4

THE MANAGEMENT STYLE AND CULTURE OF BT

BT has a flat management structure with the managing Director at the top, followed by the section managers and the floor workers. The management style of Bt is a democratic management because the managers give permission the subordinates to function and make decisions. The managers always set limit and ask the team to contribute to the making of decisions.

And it is said that if all this is happening in an organisation then it is said to be democratic organisation.

The Culture of BT

In BT they have a deep -seated belief about how the way work should be organised and the way authority should be exercised, how staff are rewarded and controlled. They also have a strong belief about proper staff dress code, obedience and initiative. Employees go to work on time and they also have to respect each other.

BT staff has something that is very different from all other workers. One of these cultures is that ideas come ultimately from individuals and that staffs are responsible, motivated and capable to govern themselves.

BT employees see themselves as a team and try to consider the community first before making decision as well as putting the community before profit and are always trying to make a difference. They are always trying to keep the prestige up as Europe leading communication provider.

E5

THE USE OF ICT FOR INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL COMMUNICATION OF THE BUSINESS:

Communication can be defined as the way which data or on message is passed from sender to the receiver with a feedback from the receiver. BT as a business organisation needs to communicate with suppliers, employees, customers and competitors as well within the organisation.

Information and communications technologies (ICT), a term used to describe the coming together of computer technology and telecommunications technology, has revolutionised information system. ICT has been critical to the success of BT as support activity, that is providing responses to queries; a production activity ensuring the smooth running of current operations; as a turnaround activity in which it is used to open up new opportunities, example to enhance the flexibility of marketing and as a strategic activity where without it the organisation could not function at all.

Networking in this organisation involves linking together computers to allow facilities and information to be shared. This has the effect of decentralising information and communication so that manager has more information upon which to base their decisions.

BT has a networked system, which serves both the purposes for internal as well as external communication. The facilities, in terms of communication, which such a system provides to this organisation is outlined below:

• Use of the internet- company like BT use the Internet in many ways. it uses the internet to provide access to its database, to carry out commerce online including advertising, selling, buying, distributing products, and providing after- sales service.

BT uses the Internet for voice and video conferencing and other forms of communication that allow people to telecommute, or work from a distance. The use of electronic mail (e-mail) over the Internet has greatly speeded communication between companies, selling co-workers, and between other individual.

• Use of electronic mail – E-mail has become a key part of the communications networks of most modern offices. Data and messages can be transmitted from one computer to another using telephone lines, microwave links, communications satellites, or other telecommunications equipment. The same message can be sent to number of different addresses. E-mail is sent through a company’s own local area network or beyond, through a nationwide or worldwide communications network. BT uses email to send data/messages to and from stakeholders. This means communication is instantaneous, more secure and economical.
• The use of fax is a means of sending exact duplicate of a document via a telecommunications link. This can be used to communicate with other organisations and its various branches.
• The use of internet – this is used for internal communication where electronic bulletin board is used to deposit messages for everyone to see, and in turn, read what other people in the have left.
• The use of electronic funds transfer- this is used to communicate with banks where the organisation uses the system to pay employee salaries into there various bank accounts.
• The use of Electronic Data Interchange- this is a system used for computer-to-computer data interchange. Details of inter company transactions are sent via telecommunications link avoiding the need output and paper at the sending end and for rekeying of data at the receiving end.

In the first decade of the twenty first century it can be started that ICT has totally transformed ways of communicating within and without BT.

ADDING VALUE TO ITS PRODUCTS OR SERVICE

One of BT prime concern is to converts inputs into outputs in order to satisfy the needs of the customer. In BT, the operations manager is responsible for controlling and coordinating the organisation’s resources such as finance, capital, equipment, labour and material.

Timetables and schedules are used to plan how resources are used in production lines. This involves producing a number of identical services produced at regular intervals. Design is one of the main factors in adding value to a service. A well- designed product stands s out form its rivals and telephone customers loyalty.

Quality control is used to ensure that no product is substandard. Scrapping defective products is considerably wasteful. This is why BT prefers not to produce below quality products in the first place. BT quality assurance sector is concerned with trying to stop such faults from happening.

The aims of quality assurance are to produce with zero defects and prevent any production related errors. Quality assurance is the responsibility of BT workforce, working in team rather an inspector (although inspections do take place)

C1

In providing quality and efficient services, BT is making immense profit, which is evidenced with its day-to-day increase of its unlimited subscribers. BT is also meeting its objectives because it promptly and accurately gives customers services at all times. BT is meeting its objectives because it gives prime attention to staff skill development.

C2

BT’s organisational structure if a formal one based on the main managerial functions and controlled from the top layer of senior management. At the top is the managing director who ensures that all the functions (sales function, marketing function, finance function, production function and the personnel function) are coordinated.

In terms of organisational culture, BT practices the role culture. In this culture the role (job description) is often more important than the individual employees who fill it. The tasks are clearly defined with a clear chain of command and position power is the major source. Individual departments are very strong, self- contained  and guards their own power and roles are precisely defined using clear job descriptions and definitions of authority.

With this structure and culture BT’s objective, providing better service to customers and achieving its profits target and market share can be achieved.

C3

Information and communication technologies (ICT), a term used to describe the coming together of computer technology and telecommunications technology has revolutionised the information system in BT.

Computers are central to ICT it is central to the success of BT. In terms of internal communication, computer are networked to provide services like intranet, electronic bulleting boards that enable employees to communicate by sitting behind their computers.

In terms of external communication, computers are connected to the Internet providing email facilities, online services as well as information to public. How ever there are some general advantage of ICT in terms of communication in BT and this include higher information quality communicated that is more accurate, more detailed and more readily available information, Leading to better decision- making. Money savings in the time taken and costs involved in the use of electronic correspondence more than the traditional paper correspondence for internal communication.

It also leads to data sharing across the organisation’s boundaries such as the use of databases thereby improving communication