BUSINESS ETHICS REQUIRED FOR SUCCESSFUL ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN ANAMBRA STATE

Abstract

The study was carried out to determine the business ethics required for successful entrepreneurship in Nigeria. Two research questions guided the study and two null hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance. A descriptive survey research method was adopted. The population of the study consisted of
2319 small and medium scale business managers in Anambra State, and a sample size of 232 managers was taken. A structured questionnaire was used for data collection. The instrument was validated by three experts in Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka. The reliability of the instrument was ensured using
test re-test technique. Data collected were analyzed using Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient formula which yielded reliability co-efficient of 0.84. Data related to the research questions were analyzed using mean and standard deviation while, z-test analysis was used to test the null hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. Findings arising from the study revealed that aspects of business ethics listed were agreed to be required by managers of SMEs for successful entrepreneurship in Anambra State. It was concluded that business ethics enable entrepreneurs to maintain high ethical standards in the following ways: create a company credo, develop a code of ethics, enforce the code
fairly and consistently, hire the right people, conduct ethical training, perform periodic ethical audits, establish high standards of behavior, not just rules, set an impeccable ethical example at all times. It was also recommended among others that practitioners in government and stakeholders that have an interest
in SME growth should be able to enhance performance through increased provision of training courses and educational opportunities. This will help in stimulating SME performance, contribute to employment creation.

Keywords: Ethical orientation, entrepreneurs, business ethics and entrepreneurship.