INNOVATION AND BUSINESS SUCCESS IN NIGERIA: FROM INTUITION TO PROCESS MANAGEMENT

Many businesses fail in Nigeria due largely to the inability of the owners to innovate and to shift from intuitive ways of operating a business to process management and business process orientation. That is where the problem of this paper lies. Therefore, the objective of the paper is to give a theoretical exposition of the issues involved in innovation and to determine whether innovation and creativity influence business success, process management and business process orientation. Based on Kline-Linked model, Abrams and Hippel’s research findings, relevant literature was reviewed on innovation, business success, intuition, process management and business process orientation. Literature findings indicate that innovation and creativity has the capacity to influence business performance and success especially in a developing economy like Nigeria. The paper recommends improved quality of education at all levels, training in innovation and creativity, adequate funding of research and development programs, conducive environment for innovation, encouraging a culture of innovation and creativity, benchmarking countries that ranked high on Global Innovation Index, building of a strong institutional structure for innovation and so on. By drawing a theoretical causal relationship between innovation, process management and success in the Nigerian business environment, the paper contributes to knowledge