New Knowledge: The Soul of Business

Augustine Osegha Ebose, Entrepreneurial Leadership and Learning Orientation (ELLO).  Ibadan: Bookcraft, 2024, 212 pp.

Reuben Abati

Dr. Augustine Ebose has taken up in this book a subject that is eminently relatable to students, scholars, and stakeholders in the world of business and policy, and he adopts a theoretical, practical and anecdotal approach in pushing the proposition that new knowledge is critical to the growth, development and longevity of not just Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs), but life itself. It is difficult to fault the author’s argument that the businesses that thrive are those that have imbibed the culture of entrepreneurial leadership and learning orientation what he calls ELLO or a form of “creative destruction”, that is the capacity to learn, relearn and unlearn old and traditional business procedures and strategies. In a world that has gone digital, where change is the constant reality, businesses face a myriad of challenges, so much, confounding uncertainty, a problematic business landscape, stiffer competition, and in such a context, making profits is not enough, even competitiveness is not enough – leadership is required.

What kind of leadership? What kind of managers would be needed to build and position a business for future growth? And how? Are there examples of businesses that succeeded or those that failed? What is new knowledge in SME operations? Ebose argues that “unless things are done differently, there cannot be progress in the life of a business. Repeatedly doing the same thing through the same process and expecting a different progressive result is a fool’s paradise” (p. 21). It is, he says, quoting Albert Houston, “insanity.” (p.24).

The author backs up his claim with research, examples, theories and his own practical experience over a period of 25 years.  Businesses that display innovation, creativity, adaptability, goal-oriented learning, ethical leadership and prioritize long-term sustainability over short term gains succeed, those that do not fail., as did Enron Corporation, Theranos and Wells Fargo.  In Chapter 2 titled “Global Tunnel Data on SMEs” the author relying on data sourced from various parts of the world argues further that globally, SMEs make robust contributions to national development and promote value-addition, indeed they represent the backbone of the global economy, but it is the fact that after COVID-19, the pandemic that deepened global uncertainty, SME growth declined in both developed and developing economies in addition to other challenges that they face. How then do we return this critical engine of growth to the path of renewal?

The Nigerian situation is not an exception. SMEs in Nigeria contribute about 48% on average to the national GDP, about 17.4 million enterprises, nearly 90% of activities in the manufacturing sector and 84% of employment., in other words, “this bedrock of the Nigerian economy” (p. 80) faces more peculiar challenges than what is observed elsewhere. SMEs in Nigeria have shown a persistent decline. In 2023 alone, over 700 companies had to shut down, over 335 were in distress in 2024.  Data don’t lie.  “When data speaks, the truth becomes obvious”, (p. 67) the author says. In Chapter Three titled “SMEs Experience in Nigeria”, the author examines the challenges within the Nigerian environment and why small businesses in Nigeria find it difficult to survive beyond five years or generate and sustain employment.

The clarity of this book’s hypothesis makes the author’s arguments and prescriptions more compelling, and he sets out his case in Chapter 1 titled “Entrepreneurial Leadership” where he defines his concept of leadership at great  length and with specific examples– an entrepreneurial leader is the man with vision who can create opportunities like Bill Gates and Jack Ma,  a man who has a genuine capacity to inspire others, grow, change and learn from mistakes like Nelson Mandela, a man who is pro-active and climbs mountains  to see what the future holds like Aliko Dangote, and a bold risk-taker like Tony Elumelu. Individuals with vision build and grow organizations, but having acquired a life of their own, organizations must also learn to survive and adapt to changing circumstances. Dr Ebose provides a practical manual for organizational behaviour in the remaining pages of the first chapter.

I find particularly instructive his use of the “Icarus paradox” (p. 41) as a guide for businesses. Students of business management and organizational behaviour would find even more instructive his analysis of concepts such as “learning orientation, intra-organisational knowledge transfer, goal-oriented learning, and customer orientation”.  The life wire of every organization in a rapidly changing market space is the entrepreneurial manager who is saddled with managing the intellectual, economic and spiritual capital of a business. The concept of spiritual capital may sound somewhat arcane but it appears more understandable when it is realized that the task of the new entrepreneurial manager is “to build a team with the right spirit” (p. 92). As Ebose puts it: “it also involves harnessing the various quantities of spiritual capital in the manager and each worker since some have developed it more than others, and some have spiritual capital of higher quality. Managers and workers have spirits at work.” (p. 93).

The overall purpose of an organization is efficiency, quality and effectiveness but this would require new knowledge because old knowledge is constantly giving way, and so businesses must transform and the worker must be a knowledge worker who in a digital era must acquire and master new tools, shed old habits and a fixed mindset.  In Chapter Six, the author provides a theoretical basis for his submissions, selecting, from the literature, what he considers “best suited” (p. 122) for the Nigerian context namely “Fiedler’s Contingency Leadership Style”, and “the Human capital Theory” on the basis of which he constructs “a theoretical model” (pp. 126 – 129). This chapter is certainly not meant for the general reader. Whereas this section of the book may sound overly academic, the very next chapter is a practical application of the author’s hypotheses as he reports the findings of a diagnostic study of SMEs that he conducted in the South West states of Nigeria (Lagos, Ogun, Ekiti, Osun, Oyo and Ondo). The South West is Nigeria’s commercial hub with the highest number of SMEs in the country. The findings duly reported, reaffirm the book’s major arguments.

In the remaining chapters, Dr. Ebose draws conclusions and offers guidelines when he asks: “What Next?” The guidelines are for those business leaders who wish to leverage insights from the book to develop strategies that align with the unique needs and challenges of their organisations, academic researchers and commentators who can collaborate with industry stakeholders to provide more knowledge and training, government agencies responsible for SME development and support, industry regulators, and SME owners and managers. Thus, the author identifies his own target audience in addition to the general reader for whom this book provides a trove of carefully researched information about the value of entrepreneurial leadership, foresight and learning orientation. But perhaps what is more important are the five possible policy options that can boost SMEs’ outcomes globally. It seems to me that for the Nigeria context, a primary option should be the deepening of formal entrepreneurial training in the school curriculum at the secondary and tertiary levels. The Nigerian educational curriculum requires a re-thinking away from rote learning and the objective of passing examinations and grading to instill entrepreneurial behaviour. This would probably address the challenge of a disconnected school to work transition that the country faces. The job-seeking fixed mindset of the average Nigerian graduate requires entrepreneurial leadership even at the personal level. Ebose’s concepts may be targeted at business growth and survival but they are also concepts that are applicable to the realities of practical living.  Beyond the provision of an enabling environment, and the creation of a favourable legal environment for entrepreneurship, there may also be a need for a rigorous audit system, especially as many SMEs, given the deprivation in the country, are at best special purpose vehicles for other targets outside of business.

What this reviewer finds even more inescapable is the practical logicality of his central argument. In a world that is in a permanent state of flux, the future has become unpredictable; it is unknown, and those who can survive and adapt to what Alvin Toffler refers to as Future Shock (1970) are those who are prepared for the inevitability of “too much change”, which becomes the new way of life. Before the 19th Century for example, all written materials had to be produced by hand. Samuel Clemens – Mark twain – a child of the Industrial Revolution and author of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and Life on the Mississippi was the first author to write a book using a typewriter. Mark Twain had a love-hate relationship with the typewriter, but by the 20th Century, the computer had replaced the typewriter. Many companies had to lay off those old school secretaries who typed for the author and had expertise in shorthand. Their skills became obsolete as everyone who had something to write used the computer. Once upon a time, businesses also employed persons who managed the telephone exchange for external communication purposes. Such skills have since become obsolete with the digitalization of processes. Technology has transformed how businesses are processed and actualized. What is required is the awakening that this book projects. With Artificial Intelligence (AI) entering the market space, with the transition to electric vehicles (EVs) and new technologies, the only manager of the future is the manager with the capacity to adapt to the new age.

Does this book create new knowledge? Yes, it does, for those who need to learn, those who know already and need to re-learn and those who think that they know but who need to unlearn old knowledge that limits their entrepreneurial ability. “New knowledge” as the author concludes, “is the soul of SME outcomes.” (p.194). This is a well-researched, well-presented book, written in elegant prose.  Dr Ebose demonstrates a masterly familiarity with the literature in the subject area, making this a useful book for both researchers and other readers as well.  The word “compelling” is misspelt as “compiling” at page 29; and the phrase “corporate organisations” is presented twice as “cooperate organisations” and “cooperate world” at page 40, otherwise the editing is clean, the presentation is reader-friendly. It is without any reservations whatsoever that I enthusiastically recommend this book for your attention and reading pleasure.