Management and the Nigeria Culture

This paper analyzes the impact of Nigerian culture on organizational management and its positive and negative attributes to the business environment. It also discusses the political structure, norms and values, family relations, diversity and ethnic issues, and the economy of Nigeria. The paper concludes with a cross-cultural analysis of the ethical and cultural challenges in managing businesses in Nigeria.

Running head: ISSUES IN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS 1
Management and the Nigeria Culture
Name
Institutional Affiliate

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Management and the Nigeria Culture
Introduction
Culture today is a very vital item in the organization management. The impact of national
of culture has a significant impact on the organizational culture of a business on how a business
responds to various issues. Generally, national culture is considered a representation of social
values. Irrespective of the type of business operated, social culture and values cannot be ignored
as they largely influence both the internal and external environment of the business (Davidov,
Schmidt, & Billiet, 2012). Apart from the basic values of national culture, the framework of
business culture can be very largely integrated into various parts which comprise of people,
corporate culture, strategy and leadership, information technology, education, and many others.
This paper will be reflecting on Nigerian culture and its positive and negative attributes to the
business environment.
Nigeria is one of the fastest developing countries in West Africa with a population of
about 168.8 million people. Currently, Nigeria is widely renowned as one of the largest oil
producing countries in Africa which makes it a unique destination point for many investors.
Despite its oil reserves, Nigeria is still characterized as a poor country where over 62.6% of the
population is considered to be poor. Due to this also, Nigeria has a significantly large number of
cheap labor which offers more attracting factors for investors (Zhao, 2011). With this in mind,
the paper will review Nigeria national culture and its relation with the organization (business)
culture i.e. in consideration of cultural beliefs and values and economic perspective of the
country.
Nigeria Political Structure and System

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Like most countries in Africa, Nigeria is characterized as a republic state where the
president is considered as the chief head of State. Over a long period of time, Nigeria has faced a
long history of dictatorship and military rule. In the past two decades, this has come to change
where under the new constitution the country has managed to strip away the reckless leadership
styles and the misuse of power. However, Nigeria political life is majorly dominated and
controlled by the wealthy in the country who have been enabled by the high rate of corruption in
the country (Davidov et al., 2012). The history of Nigeria leadership style can be termed as
“noble-peasant system of politics” where leaders in both military and politics are renown to use
any means of necessary to retain their position thus creating an enormous gap between the
wealthy and poor in the country (Eisenbeiß & Brodbeck, 2014). The acceptability of the power
distance in the country has been majorly brought about by high percentage rural population
which tend to isolate itself from the rest of country politics.
Some of the common challenges in Nigeria as a country and in most urban areas include
Poverty and lack of opportunities, ethnic issues, poor health, increased crime rate, and many
other issues (Ogbeidi, 2012). On the other hand, with the continuous improvement in Nigeria
politics and leadership, the government has been able to make major strides in improving the
living standards of the people. A good example of the success Nigeria has been able to achieve is
the improvement of infrastructure and public health. Apart from the terrorist issue facing the
country, Nigeria has maintained a good political stability which has favored the growth of the
country economy (Nurudeen & Usman, 2010). In comparison to Singapore, both countries have
a lot in common except that Singapore has also Prime Minister who is the head of the
government whereas the president is the head of State.
Norms and Values

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Nigeria is one of the major countries in Africa which is deeply rooted in cultural ways.
Norms and values play a very important role in Nigeria society where the equality and
integration of power are perceived to be properly applied through the approach of norms and
values. Through this, one of the basic values which have been well nurtured over the years as
part of Nigerian culture is an increased collectivism and less of individualism personality. For
example, behavior control is considered to be effective when it approached through the social
sanctions (McGuigan, 2010). The society sanctions are designed to promote unity and justice in
the society through the effective application of spiritual and moral values in human and
interpersonal relation, respect for the dignity and work of individuals, promotion of the physical,
emotional, and psychological development of the entire society, and the responsibility of society
common good.
Also, like in most societies today, Nigeria people don’t entertain extreme behavior types
such as killing, stealing, and generally any lack of integrity. The issue of traditional values and
norms are one of the continuous topics which tend to provoke major issues between the people
where currently most of the values have been condemned as too outdated and/or they have lost
their significance in today society (Okpara & Kabongo, 2011). For example, the issue of
virginity, especially to women, was one of the strongly upheld values but with the changing
times, the tradition has continued to diminish on its significance in today world.
Family Relation and Social Structure
The issue of families in Nigeria is considered is considered as one of the strongest virtues
in the country. Despite the democratic reforms and the influence of Western culture, family
values are considered as one of the main pillars of society (Agbo, Nzeadibe, & Ajaero, 2012).
The general structure of families in Nigeria can be characterized as more of patriarchal where

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male dominance is still highly embraced. Many families living in urban areas tend to live in a
nuclear form where in rural areas extended form is very highly common. The issue of family
survival is significantly important where firstborn males have an obligation in maintaining
family ‘name’ continuity (Simpson & Yinger, 2013). Also, due to this, the issue of nepotism in
the country is very highly practiced making the development of opportunities to the individual to
be very hard. On the other hand, the issue of early marriages, especially to girls, is still
commonly practiced which reflect on the unfavorable culture of the country (Mordi, Simpson,
Singh, & Okafor, 2010).
Diversity and Ethnic Issues in Nigeria
Nigeria is one of the most diverse and most populated nations in Africa with a population
of about 191 million. The population is made of approximately 250 ethnic tribes with over 520
spoken languages thus making it one of the most complicated countries in the entire world.
However, there are three major ethnic groups in Nigeria which comprise of Yoruba, Hausa, and
Igbo. Over the years since independence Nigeria has continued to face an ethnic crisis as one of
its major challenges which have led to the death of millions (Antai, 2011). The main cause of
this challenge has been the issue of religion where 50.4% of Nigerians are considered to practice
Islam while the rest of the population which constitute 48.2% are considered to Christians. Only
a small percentage of about 1.4% are considered to practice traditional religion (Salawu, 2010).
Due to this, Nigeria has been split into two i.e. the north where the majority are Islam and the
south where Christians are the majority.
Economy Analysis

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Nigeria economy can be majorly characterized as monocultural economy due to its high
dependence on oil and gas industry. Oil and gas are considered as the main export which
contributes to about 96% of the total export revenue. Despite its abundant resources, Nigeria still
struggles with poverty issues where the majority of the population still live below one dollar a
day (Ebegbulem, Ekpe, & Adejumo, 2013). However, Nigeria has continued to make efforts in
minimizing the corruption rate in the country and promoting effective development in the
country. Nigeria has also been named as one of the fastest growing countries in Africa with
abundant capability and resources to support new investments. The economic strength in support
of new businesses and industries has also been contributed by the availability of cheap labor and
energy which are very essential to new industries and businesses (Ihugba, Odii, & Njoku, 2014).
Five Cultural Dimensions of Nigeria
As stated earlier, the political and leadership system of Nigeria portrays a very huge gap
in the power distance among individuals in the country. The major cause of the gap has been
attributed by the resistance to remain in power even after completion of serving time. The
leadership system of the country can, therefore, be characterized as a hierarchy where some

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families seem to inherit and dominate the control of Nigeria politics and important sectors such
as the oil industry (Okolie & Okoye, 2012). On the other hand, power distance in Singapore is
considered to be of much less influence despite still the issue of some noble families impacting
on the country politics and economy. Investors should consider the involvement of noble
families such as the Dantata-Dangote Family, the Briggs Family, and others who have enormous
control of resources and support from the local people (Kuye & Sulaimon, 2011).
Generally, Nigerians believe that effective administration and continuous development
can be mainly achieved through the collective involvement of the entire society. This can be
mainly perceived in society administration level where this is considered a source of people
empowerment (Shi & Wang, 2011). Singapore also has leveled society control where both
individualism and collectivism are highly emphasized in the approach to promote increased
involvement in the society. In the issue of industrialization and/or business investment should
consider promoting both collectivism and individualism in all major business operations thus to
boost innovation and production outcome.
The role of men in Nigerian culture is considered to be very important. As part of social
values, people are trained to respect men authority in cultural and family leadership. Despite a
few strides taken by the government to empower women, still, women face a lot of difficulties
and unfavorable challenges which are contributed by the perception of the society (Alesina,
Brioschi, & Ferrara, 2016). In the case of Singapore, the issue of male dominance in most sectors
has been more revolutionized where rigid gender rules have been put in place to safeguard the
girl child. Investors aiming to start a business in Nigeria should approach the mode of
empowering women by exposing them to equal opportunities as men while at the same time
focusing on guiding principles which protect social values and cultures.

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In relation to the adaptability to change, Nigeria does not have a very good perception to
ambiguity and uncertainty. According to Nigerian culture characteristics, people are often
sensitive to any risk factors where the issue of rules and procedures are highly upheld to avoid
unnecessary outcomes. Trust issues are commonly perceived where people who are not related
by blood or any other form tend to avoid uncertain relations (Mangan, 2013). On the other hand,
is not the same case in Singapore where people are often characterized as risk takers with much
less insecurity. Nigeria long-term and short-term orientation are considered to be significantly
very low people are described to be more of normative rather than pragmatic. The culture of
Nigerians is more focused in maintain respect for tradition with a very little emphasis in saving
for future (Minkov, 2013).
Conclusion
In summary, Nigeria is culture can be characterized as one of the most diverse cultures in
the world with the significant potential for different kinds. Despite the huge power distance,
Nigeria political stability has continuously improved over the years where ethnic clashes have
also significantly dropped in the past decade. The issue of ethnic clashes is one of the major
issues which have led to the uprise of one of the deadliest terrorist groups, i.e. Boko Haram,
which has led to a significant damage in country reputation and economy (Ihugba et al., 2014).
The economy of Nigeria has significant resources capable to support the development of new
industries where due to the large percentage of the country population there is also high readily
available cheap labor (Mordi, et al., 2010). The culture of Nigeria can be termed as very
“welcoming” where foreign investors can easily adapt to the environment. One of the basic
issues investors should consider include the corruption and ethnic issues which are one of the
highly sensitive topics which tend to provoke a mixed reaction to the public.

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