Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics
Term Paper for International Students of MIB

Subject: INTRODUCTION TO CHINESE CULTURE

Title: THE INFLUENCE OF CULTURE ON BUSINESS ACTIVITIES: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF CHINA AND NIGERIA

Name: Afouda Dotun Ehizojie

Student’s ID number: 31540020

Date: 2015-11-27

Grade:
Teacher’s signature:

Abstract
According to Zimmerman (2015), culture is the characteristics and knowledge of a particular group of people, defined by everything from language, religion, cuisine, social habits, music and arts. It was also described by Murphy (1986) as that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, customs, and many other capabilities and habits acquired by members of society, which gives them their sense of identity. From this we understand that the influence of culture on individuals cuts across every aspect of their lives including business practices. This paper seeks to analyse the influence of culture on the business practices of these two different countries; China and Nigeria, and also comparatively analyse the influence of the traditional culture of these two countries in other to better understand their business practices to foster smooth business relations.
Keywords: Culture, Business practices, China, Nigeria, Society.

INTRODUCTION
Culture which is widely referred to as the total way of life of a particular group of people which is passed down from one generation to another, generally influences every aspect of human life both consciously and unconsciously. From the moment a child is born in a particular society, the child’s mind set and behaviours are shaped by events happening in his or her immediate environment, starting from within the family and u to the community at large. These events all sum up together to transform the behaviour of the child to fit into that of the society in which he or she grew up. What this means is that, all of us has human beings have had our behaviour and ways of life shaped to a particular society’s standard, depending on our families or the location where we grew up. This goes to show the level of influence which culture has on the different aspect of life of human beings and societies.
The focus of this paper is on the influence of culture on the business activities of different societies, including negotiations, discussions, contact building, timing and so on. Furthermore, this paper will comparatively analyse the influence of culture on the business life of China and Nigeria, with the aim of identifying similarities and differences which can be properly synchronized so as to facilitate smooth business dealing amongst citizens of these countries. This paper also seeks to help understand the business behaviour of citizens of these countries, especially in the area of differences, which will facilitate smooth business alliances and negotiations. It is impossible to neglect the influence which culture has on the business life of our country, given the fact that culture influences the behaviour and way of life of individuals, and it is these individuals that conduct business activities. This comparative analysis will be conducted from the perspective of the history of these cultures, its major influences, its rituals and practices and how it influences the way which people from these cultures conduct their businesses.

CHINESE BUSINESS CULTURE
Origin:
Chinese culture has a very long history which dates back over 5000 years, it is one of the cultures with the longest known history in the world and has been influenced by many prominent individuals and rulers at different times. Over the years, different ruling dynasties have exerted their influence on the Chinese cultural practices. However, to a very large extent, the Chinese culture has remained fairly universal over all of China over the years, meaning it greatly influences almost if not all the areas of life of the People of China. Although in recent years, especially since the open door policy was enacted, there has been many western influences on the way of life of the Chinese people, especially among the younger generation, however, in the area of business practices, it is still the traditional Chinese culture that has the most influence on the Chinese people.
Practices:
Generally speaking, the Chinese culture is a relationship oriented culture which has its foundations firmly rooted in family relationships thus, has a great emphasis on role laying and loyalty. This is shown in the importance of relationship and contact building to Chinese people often referred to as ‘Guanxi’. This reflects in the general practices of the culture of the Chinese people including rituals such as funerals and weddings, organizational set up and especially in the way in which the Chinese people conduct their business dealings.
In business, the Chinese place loyalty and relationships often over efficiency. Most businesses are set u with family members taking u key positions in the business, with the expectation of having an unflinching loyalty to the head of the business, who is most times the ‘father’ or regarded as such.
Furthermore, because it is a family-oriented culture, long term business partners or associates are often treated as family over time, with the expectation of the same level of loyalty from them. This is reflected in the importance that Chinese business people place on the length of time of a business relationship. For them, trust in business in built over time and is the basis of judging the importance of one business client or partner over another.
Again, because of the nature of business relationships, the business contacts of most Chinese people are often very inter-related with one another, this is because referrals is very important for Chinese business. Therefore, business contacts are often linked and inter-related, this is because it is easier for the Chinese business people to trust a new client or partner that has been recommended by an existing partner. This shows the influence that the family oriented culture of the Chinese people have on their business practices.

Influences:
Over the years, Chinese culture has been influenced by many rulers and individuals, especially in its practices. The most influence on Chinese culture have been the Confucius philosophy as propounded by the great Chinese philosopher, Confucius. Confucianism thus influenced a lot in China; education, government, public and private attitudes and, etiquette. This influence still holds sway on the Chinese people today, and it is reflected in the way they conduct business and other related activities. Confucianism is not a religion, but a philosophy and a guide to morality and good government.
Confucius’s entire teachings were based on relationships and virtues, and these were expressed by the cardinal relationships and virtues, where he places emphasis on the importance of relationships and trust in relationships (Chinaculture.org). He also spoke about the roles of individuals in the society and the virtues which the individual must strive to attain in other to function in their given role. The relationships are; Lord over subject; Husband over wife and Father Over son.
The influence of Confucius teachings and philosophy is seen to be reflected in the way the Chinese people set up their business organization and conducts business generally, with a great emphasis and importance being attached to relationships and loyalty from long-time business associates. Furthermore, in agreeing to contracts, Chinese business people tend to be influenced more by personal relationships, rather than business relationships. This is a direct effect of Confucius’ influence, which preaches the need for family to come first in the decisions of an individual. This is a bit different from the business practices of other countries. Furthermore, even top multinational Chinese firms like Huawei have their management style tailored along this philosophy, where there is always a chain of command and stipulated progression system through the ranks for employees that is strictly adhered to in internal relations among its workers and in its promotion system.

NIGERIAN BUSINESS CULTURE
Origin:
Although the greatest influence on the Nigerian business culture comes from outside of Nigeria, the origin of some of the most fundamental ways in which the people of Nigeria carry out their business activities dates back many centuries ago to the beginning of the civilization of the present day Nigerian people.
Influences:
Although many different individuals and regimes in ancient times had a lot of influence on the cultural practices of the Nigerian people over time, in the area of business, the most influence has come from the British and by extension the West. Given our colonial history in the hands of the British, it made way for a unification of most of the business practices of the different people of Nigeria who had their individual traditions and cultural tendencies. The British system therefore became a standard that was adopted for conducting business, therefore bringing some kind of uniformity. However, depending on which region a Nigerian is from, the traditional culture and sometimes religion still have certain influences on business practices today.
After colonialism ended in 1960, Nigeria found it easier to adopt most of the British systems, which had taken a strong hold on the Nigerian society as a way of easily integrating itself with the global community. This meant that both in politics, education, economic planning and so on, and the British system was the standard. This meant that most business activities followed this line and it still holds true for the most part today.
COMPARATIVE ANALYSES OF CHINA AND NIGERIA’S BUSINESS PRACTICES
The business practices of China and Nigeria will be compared on different levels in other to identify the similarities and differences involved in the practice of business in this two countries and by the people of these two countries, as influenced by the culture.
Expressing Views at Business meetings
In business dealings, when it comes to stating one’s opinion or view on a particular subject matter, Chinese people tend to be more or less indirect in this aspect. Due to the influence of the Chinese culture, which lays emphasis on relationships and its importance, when it comes to expressing their opinions, especially when it is contrary to that of the other arty, Chinese people tend to look for a kind of soft landing by not going straight to the point they try to arrive at.
However, this is very much contrary to the practices of Nigerians when it comes to business. Generally, Nigerian people e based on their culture believe that when it comes to any form of interaction that involves money, it is very important to build trust by ‘going straight to the point’ as a way of leaving no room for doubt. This is based on the influence of the majority of traditional cultural values, which laces more importance on the honour of one’s name than on relationships. Therefore, Nigerian Business people tend to state their opinions more directly in business dealings whether it is in agreement or contrary to that of the other arty, as a way of not giving room for doubts.
Business Negotiation Team
The Chinese culture is a family oriented culture that places emphasis and importance on relationships. This reflects in their way of life, which is more collective than individualistic in nature. The influence of this aspect if Chinese culture is seen to be reflected in the number of people that are usually present on the Chinese side of a business negotiation team. Chinese business people often feel more comfortable in negotiating a business contract with a number of people from their offices on their teams, which are mostly staff members and more often than not these people are also family members, although it is always clear who the leader of the negotiation team is.
On the contrary, although the Nigerian culture also emphasises family relationship, when it comes to business negotiations, it is usually the western influence of individualism that holds sway. Nigerian business people often refer to enter into negotiation meetings alone or with specialized staffs that are absolutely needed in the negotiation proceedings like lawyers, accountants, engineers as the case may be. The reason for this can only be explained by understanding the influence of western culture on Nigerian people, whom are usually collective in nature on most occasions, with exception to business dealings.
Punctuality in Business
For the Chinese, when it comes to business, arriving early for a meeting or negotiation is often not an iron cast principle. This means that the Chinese are usually more flexible with time and thus more willing to forgive an act of lateness by the other party. This makes it easier to deal with the Chinese in business, as there are often a number of valid reasons why a party could arrive late for a meeting that do not necessarily have to hamper a business relationship.
For Nigerians however, it is almost a cultural thing to be late for an event, as it is believed that the important aspect of an event does not start until later in the event. However, when it comes to a business meeting, the arrival time usually depends on if the person has the upper hand in the negotiation or not. The arrival time for Nigerian people is more or less a show of status. This is the influence of traditional culture in which the ‘King’ only arrives after everyone else has settled down in the place. Consequently, if a Nigerian person has the upper hand in a negotiation, he or she tends to arrive late for the meeting, if the contrary is the situation, they tend to arrive early as a way of impressing the other party with punctuality.

Business Contacts
The business contacts of the average Chinese is usually inter connected and very wide. This is mainly because of the culture of collectivism and importance of relationships which makes referrals a very powerful way of creating business connections. This creates a very big circle of inter-related business contacts for the Chinese, where everybody knows everybody through somebody.
In the case of Nigerians and keeping business contacts, it is quite different. Business contacts are often smaller than and not as inter-related as the Chinese. This is because for Nigerians, it is sometimes important to keep one aspect of their business away from another aspect of their business, so they tend to avoid such complicated inter-relatedness of business contacts because of this.
Sundays and Business
For the Chinese, Sunday is regarded like any other day of the week. This means that business meetings can be set up at any time and still receive full attention of those involved, it also gives opportunity for more business to be conducted without unwelcomed breaks. This can be observed in the streets of China, where traffic is as hectic on a Sunday as it is on a Monday.
In the case of Nigeria it is quite the contrary. There are certain days of the week that are regarded as sacred and void of any serious activities and this is mostly based on religion, both western and traditional. Depending on the region of the country which a Nigerian originates from, Fridays or Sundays are usually considered to be sacred day, which ought to be void of any form of serious work. Therefore business for them are not conducted on such days. In the streets of Nigeria, depending on where you are, in the south or in the north, Fridays and Sundays are usually synonymous with less traffic on the streets and the roads because people observe their religious activities on these days and rest too. This is the consequence of the dee religious nature of Nigeria, a direct contrary to China.

CONCLUSION

From the above analysis, it is obvious that for both China and Nigeria, considering the influence of culture on business practices is very important in order to have a smooth business relation. For both countries, there is a strong influence of traditional culture on business, although it makes their business practices different, some similarities can be drawn from them. Even in this day and age of globalization, we cannot overlook the influence of culture on the ways of life of a group of people, if we intend to have smooth relations with them, especially in the business circle. The differences in cultural practices and its influence on business therefore should be of utmost importance to business entities, especially if they seek to conduct their business internationally, as overlooking this seemingly unimportant factor can be very costly.

References

Chinaculture.org (2015) Confucius philosophy. Available online at http://www.chinaculture.org/gb/en_madeinchina/2005-09/27/content_73480.htm. [Accessed on 2015/11/19].
Mandarin morning (2015) Chinese culture- the Chinese business culture. Available online at http://www.mandarinmorning.com/News/690.html. [Accessed on 2015/11/19].
Murphy, R. (1986) Culture and Social Anthropology: An Overture. 2nd ed. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall: 14
World business culture (2013) doing business in Nigeria. Available online at http://www.worldbusinessculture.com/Business-in-Nigeria.html. [Accessed on 2015/11/15].
Zimmerman, K. (2015) what is Culture? Available online at http//m.livescience.com/21478-what-is-culture-definition-of-culture.html. (Accessed on 2015/11/20).