Stakeholders Conflicting Interest and Approach for Harmonization for Business Sustainability: Evidence from Limited Liability Companies in Nigeria.

Abstract

Agitations for businesses to have respect for issues other than economic gains for their owners requires the alignment and maintaining equilibrium between the social and economic activities of business organization and its multiple stakeholders who have different interests. Thus, stakeholders’ management is considered critical to creating sustainable business. Therefore, this study examined impacts of the strategic approaches of stakeholders’ analysis, stakeholders’ integration and stakeholders’ engagement in achieving business sustainability. The study adopted survey research design and structured questionnaire was used to collect primary data from top management staff of twenty selected limited liability companies in Lagos and Ogun states, Nigeria. The research instrument was validated using Cronbach – Alpha to test the reliability of the instrument which showed a coefficient of 0.706 for stakeholders’ management approaches and 0.803 for business sustainability. Data collected were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The results of ordinary least square regression of analysis of Hypothesis 1 showed that stakeholders analysis significantly contributes to business sustainability in Nigeria where F=7.8717; p – value = 0.038 < 0.05, the result of Hypothesis 11showed that stakeholders integration significantly leads to business sustainability in Nigeria where F= 3.456; p – value= 0.001< 0.05 while the result of hypothesis 3 indicated that stakeholders engagement significantly leads to business sustainability with F = 11. 530 p – value =0.019 < 0.05. The study concluded that stakeholders analysis, stakeholders integration and stakeholders engagement are useful approaches for identification and harmonization of the varying interests of a business many stakeholders. The study recommended that business organizations should include in to their organizational culture, useful approaches necessary to establish positive collaborative relationships with their stakeholders.