The President, Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (CIPM), Mallam Ahmed Ladan Gobir, has attributed the fatalities of  of many small businesses in Nigeria, in their first five years, to inadequate network and collaborations.

 

 

The CIPM boss made this observation  at this year’s edition of the institute’s Corporate Membership Forum, held in Lagos.

 

 

He noted that, while the country boasts of abundant human and natural resources, for enterprises to leverage, lack of collaboration has continued to be the bane of such businesses.

 

 

Mallam Gobir stressed the need for Human Resource (HR) practitioners in the country, to collaborate, in forms of business to business, HR to strategy, and private sector to public policy, in order to enhance business growth.

 

 

Describing the nation’s business terrain as tough, but full of opportunities, Mallam Gobir noted that those opportunities would only be harnessed by collaboration, either through joint venture, supply chain integration or share talent pipeline.

 

 

“The Nigerian business terrain is tough, but also full of opportunities. Collaboration is the currency of the future, whether through joint venture, supply chain integration or shared talent pipeline, sustainability depends on how well we partner,” he added.

 

 

The event’s Keynote Speaker, Mrs. Lilian Oluchi Somiari, noted that collaborations have become imperative for individuals and organisations, desirous of remaining relevant

 

 

Somiari, who is the General Manager, HR, Strategy, Organisation and Performance, Total Energies EP Nigeria Ltd, added that sustainability is no more an option for organisations and businesses, but a key imperative for growth and survival.

 

 

She however argued that for an enterprise to be sustainable, such organisations must be ready to reach out to others of similar and shared vision.

 

 

Somiari noted that some countries no longer deal with organisations that contributed little or nothing to their sustainability goal as a country or regions.

 

 

“Collaboration therefore is a business imperative. But, for such collaboration to be strategic, it must be intentional. Besides, you should be able to collaborate internally, to effectively do that externally. It’s a skill that every organisation should master internally before you start to talk about external collaboration,” she stated.

 

 

While identifying non-availability of critical skills, complex regulatory environment and policy changes as some of the key challenges to business sustainability, Somiari argued that with effective collaboration, businesses, in this part of the globe, would be able to effectively scale such hurdles, that have continued to serve as impediments to their growths.