Albania, a small country located in the Southeastern Europe’s Balkan Peninsula with interior

crossed by the Alps in Albania (Albanian Alps) and Ionian and Adriatic Sea coastline is

officially named the Republic of Albania. With the Capital city being Tirana along with the

largest city as well.

Location:

Albania has a defined area of 11,100 square feet or 28,748 km2 and in this area there is varying

climate, geological and hydrological conditions. In this compact area, Albania has a distinct

landscape ranging from sunny coasts of the Ionian and Adriatic Sea to icy mountains of Korab,

Ceraunian and others, which is quite fascinating for a country of that size. The country is

neighbours to North Macedonia on the east, Kosovo on the North East, and Montenegro of the

North. Italy is also a neighbouring country to Albania across the Adriatic Sea at about 80 km

away.

Resources:

Albania in comparison to their size has a vast amount of resources, mostly natural resources

which are sufficient enough to be exported to generate a massive revenue and are also the factor

for the stability of the economy. The natural resources consist of copper, iron, cement, natural

gas, petroleum, bauxite, chromite and nickel. Although Albania has such unique resources and a

surplus amount of them as well, they lack the machinery and the technology required to mine

them and to process these ores. This is somewhat making these resources useless as well as

raising a question whether there are more sources of such resources. Albania has many Coal and

other fossil fuels such as Petroleum reserves and Tirana region consists of 86% of these reserves.

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Albania is also an agricultural country with most of their economy relying heavily on farming

and forestry. A substantial amount of resources that Albania generates is composed of

agricultural products however, there are many issues regarding the agriculture there as the

manpower working at the farms are not skilled and they also lack proper knowledge and

machinery to generate a surplus amount of crops which results in killing of crops by various

methods such as pests, less to no care or no proper resources to nourish its growth. In Albania,

almost half of the economically active people work in agriculture which contributes to one fifth

of Albania's GDP. Although only a quarter of the land is fertile, Albania still utilizes the fertile

land efficiently and completes all their needs of feed from domestic production. The major crops

of Albania are wheat, sugarcanes, maize (corn), apples, dry fruits such as walnuts, chestnuts and

almonds. Many citrus fruits are also grown where the conditions of productivity are matched.

One-third of Albania is also covered in forests and many products such as pasture, fuel wood and

wood for furniture and such are also found.

Albania is situated on the coastlines of Adriatic and Ionian seas, fishing is also a major way to

generate revenue however, due to the lack of human and human made resources makes it

somewhat difficult to utilize these potentials.

Recently, the Albanian government is trying to invest into the sectors of agriculture, mining, and

detection of these mines. Many heavy machinery and industries have been imported in order to

detect new mines and to make the already known more efficient. Many instruments and products

are also imported to increase the farming and to generate a greater revenue. Fishing equipment

and teaching to fishermen are also provided in order to utilize those potentials correctly. The

Albanian government understands the potential of their country’s resources and understands

what they require in order to move forward and stable their economy.

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History:

There have been many civilizations ruling this area such as, Romans, Ancient Greek, Ottomans

and Byzantines. The autonomous Principality of Arber was established by Albanians, in the

1100s. In the 13th and 14th century the Kingdom of Albania and Principality of Albania were

formed. In the early 15th century, an Albanian resistance to the Ottoman empire was led by

Gjergj Kastrioti which won them the rule over many parts of Europe. After the defeat of

Ottomans in the Balkan Wars, Albania declared independence in 1912 and reformed itself as the

current state of Albania.

People, Language, Culture:

The people of Albania call themselves “Shqiptarë” which means the “Sons of Eagles”. Albanians

are patriotic people who hold pride in their country’s name and nationality. They also consider

themselves as the descendants of the ancient Illyrians, who were brave warriors at the height of

their power to capture the Adriatic Sea coast and were in control of most of the land which is

now Albania. They originated from central Europe however migrated southwards towards

Albania. However, they stayed mostly in Albania due to the geography of Albania restraining

them from travel forward as well as causing hesitance in any other people to come to them.

There is a population of 7 to 10 million Albanians in the current world today, having their own

distinct culture and language living in different parts of the world, mostly in Europe, however.

The population of Albania however is 2.86 million in 2019 and has been getting a steady decline

due to the heavy migrations.

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The language of Albania is Albianian, coming from the Indo-European language family and is

majorly spoken by Balkans and Albanians, almost 6 million balkans speak this language natively

and 7.5 million people are able to speak globally. It is written in Latin system with Albanian

alphabets and is considered as an official language other than in Albania in Kosovo, North

Macedonia, and Montenegro.

The population of Albania is heavily consisted of Muslims with almost 56.7% of them being

Sunni Muslim, making it a predominantly Muslim country. This is mostly due to the five-century

rule of the Ottoman empire, however after being a part of communist regime many of the

population were converted to atheism, which now take up to almost about 24.4% of the

population along with other small minorities. Due to the rule of ancient Greeks, Romans and

other European powers, there are also Roman Catholic and Orthodox followers found composing

around 10 and 6.8 percent of the population. There are different churches, mosques and

Zawiyahs built. In the modern day most of the population of Albania do not follow the religions

correctly and are adherent of religious groups by name only. There is a heavy influence of

secular lifestyle in Albania, and it is mostly due to the communist regime creating a massive

number of atheists. The age demographic of Albania is mostly under 30-year-olds consisting of

41% of the population, and the death rate is also one of the lowest in Europe.

Economy:

In Europe, and specifically Western Europe Albania ranks as one of the lowest income countries

with one of the lowest GDP value as well as GDP per capita value. Albania ranked 119th in

nominal GDP rank having a nominal estimated GDP calculated to be $15.418 billion which has

increased since last year. The GDP per capita (nominal) was also calculated to be $5,373 in 2019

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which ranks 97th in the world. This low ranking is mostly due to Albania's lack of resources and

the quality and type of resources as well. Around 54% of Albania’s economy is based on service,

and around 24% on industrial sectors and lastly 22% on agriculture. All of these sectors are not

utilized properly due to the lack of proper resources and lack of skilled workers. This low

economy makes the overall condition of the country really poor forcing people to emigrate from

this company to developed European countries or North America where they can find better

quality of life and employment. This is the reason why the population of the country is declining

steadily. It is heavily concerning for a country where 54% of the economy is based on the

services provided by the people and to the people, as well as other sectors where agriculture and

industries are in heavy demand of skilled workers.

Hofstede Cultural Dimensions

Living in the global age where technology allows people from different culture and regions to

communicate and work together. As exciting it may seem initially it can also turn very

frustrating if the uncertainties are not dealt with properly. When companies consider expanding

their businesses abroad it is very important for the organization to understand the cultural norms

of the country as they play an integral part in the interpersonal relationship of the employees,

stakeholders, and the customer. Building connection and having proper communication is only

one aspect of the problem but developing strategies, structing projects and marketing schemes,

and managing & motivating people to their job by correctly incentivising them is also an issue.

One does not pay attention to it, but the culture and environment plays a vital role in our

reactions, feelings, and preferences, as soon as one steps into foreign culture away from the

comfort zone only then we start to get another perspective, and everything starts to seem

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different. It is not only about how to conversations with other but once an organization branches

to another country the management now has to learn to motivate the employees, deal with the

suppliers, and meet the needs of the customers. What might work for one location might

completely backfire on the other one. Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions will be the starting point

for the cultural evaluation of Albania, deciding what actions to take and understanding how the

society might react to those actions. The five dimensions are:

Power Distance

Individualism

Masculinity

Uncertainty Avoidance

Long Term Orientation

Power Distance

It is described by the level of acceptance the people have in regard to degree of inequality when

it comes to disbursement of power. Societies with higher scores of power distance are more

tolerable towards the unequal distribution of power, encourages bureaucracy, and having

knowledge about their standing in the society. In such societies only selected few have the power

to lead, while in organizational setting people have closed door meetings and everything need to

be reported to the top-level management. Albania is a country which has a very high-power

distance score which shows that the companies there are centralized with very strong hierarchy

in the organization. There is also a huge gap in the wages and compensation, authority, and

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respect. When dealing with such culture it is important to respect and acknowledge the

management’s power.

Individualism

This dimension refers to as the degree to which the societies are integrated into groups. The

strength of the relationship and ties people have within their communities. High individualism

indicates that greater importance is given to personal achievements and the people have loosely

held ties showing lack to interpersonal connections while low scores denote the strong cohesion

within the family and groups with having strong respect and loyalty towards the members of the

family and/or the group. Albania is a country with low individualism score meaning that the

perceived dependence and obligation towards the group is high. People place a lot of

significance on the wellbeing and collective goals as a group rather than personal goals. In such

settings people pay importance to the harmony of the group while working for intrinsic rewards.

People would be great team player and management should try to use this for their advantage.

Showing respect to wisdom and age is very important along with going an extra mile to maintain

the harmony within the group. For anyone to introduce change keep in mind to do it gradually

while respecting the traditions.

Masculinity

This refers as to how strictly does a society complies with the gender norms. It is society’s

preferences attitudes when it comes to achievements, equality, behaviour, and sexuality.

Countries with high masculinity scores indicate that the men are expected to be the providers,

they should be assertive, tough, and not show emotions while women do not particularly have

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the burden of providing for the family but even if they work their professions will be different

from that of men denoting strong gender roles. Albania is a country with high masculinity score

that means if offices are to be opened there it should be noted that males should be employed as

team leads for greater success as men have problems taking instructions from their female

counterparts or team leads.

Uncertainty Avoidance

It is the degree of tolerance that the people of society have towards ambiguity and uncertainty. It

is the extent of anxiety the members of society feel when in unknown or uncertain situation.

Societies with high uncertainty avoidance scores stipulates low leniency towards risk taking and

uncertainty. The risks are minimized by strict regulations and laws. Albania being a country with

high uncertainty avoidance score means the country is govern by rules which allows them avoid

risks. When discussing a project with the team in office setting one should always investigate all

options and present limited choices with detailed information and risk and contingency plans.

The business conducts will be very formal with many policies and rules with a need of an exact

structure. It is important to be concise and clear regarding the parameters and expectations of the

project having a focus on the tactical aspect of the project.

Long Term Orientation

Societies which value their traditions and success with respect to horizon of time can measured

through this concentrate work for gratifications or success. Albania is a society with high long-

term orientation which shows that the people focus of the long-term achievements and their core

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values are based on perseverance, persistence, and long-term growth. The society is pragmatic in

nature showing traits of adaptability and inclination towards investing and saving for future.

There is a pattern noticed in most situations countries with higher masculinity scores often have

high power distance, lower individuality scores, and lower short-term orientation as such

societies are highly rigid when it comes to traditions, but it is not always the case as witnessed

above. For some countries having multiple cultures or subcultures the score change, and one

score can not determine the indications of the whole country. Hofstede Dimensions allows one to

be culturally sensitive while also giving room to make strategies to deal with people from

different regions according to their mindsets. For companies to launch products or services

which go against the cultural, religious, or moral values will cause a resent and negatively affect

the consumer market.

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Citation

Albania*. Hofstede Insights. (n.d.). https://www.hofstede-insights.com/country/albania/.

Biberaj, E., & Prifti, P. R. (2019, October 4). Albania. Encyclopædia Britannica.
https://www.britannica.com/place/Albania.

Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. (2019). Land of Albania. Encyclopædia Britannica.

https://www.britannica.com/place/Albania/Land.

Hofstede's Cultural Dimensions Theory - Overview and Categories. Corporate Finance Institute.
(2020, June 1). https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/knowledge/other/hofstedes-
cultural-dimensions-theory/.

Insights, H. (n.d.). National Culture. https://hi.hofstede-insights.com/national-culture.

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