Women Business Owners Research Articles

How families shape women’s entrepreneurial success in Morocco: an intersectional study

PurposeStudies on women’s entrepreneurship in Morocco are scarce, despite the potential of women for the country’s economy. This research takes place in a socio-cultural environment searching for a compromise between tradition and modernity. Families occupy a prominent place in Morocco, directly influencing women’s activities. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of family in Moroccan women’s entrepreneurial success.Design/methodology/approachThe qualitative research is based on 60 interviews with women entrepreneurs in Morocco, including women business owners, women professionals and also women co-operators who have not been documented until now, due to data accessibility. It is diversified in terms of personal, family and professional characteristics. The analysis uses an intersectionality framework taking gender and social class into consideration.FindingsThe results highlight three categories of women entrepreneur: the “elite”, the “self-made women” and the “co-operators”. Each category is characterised by specific familial and professional realities, underpinned by differentiated dynamics in terms of gender and social class.Practical implicationsThe study, from a practical point of view, contributes to a better understanding of the differentiated realities encountered in terms of women’s entrepreneurship, in the Moroccan context.Originality/valueStudies in developing countries tend to consider women entrepreneurs as a homogeneous group. This research highlights the fact that family support, women entrepreneurs’ practices and their role in entrepreneurial success depend on the background situations in terms of gender and social class. It also contributes to the entrepreneurial success field, revealing different definitions and perceptions of success among women entrepreneurs.

Gender, race/ethnicity, and entrepreneurship: women entrepreneurs in a US south city

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine how gender, interacting with race and ethnicity, plays a role in women entrepreneurship process and how women entrepreneurs’ experiences shape and are shaped by their communities.Design/methodology/approachFirst, five-year 2010-2014 American Community Survey data are analyzed. Then, in-depth interview and focus groups discussion are conducted with 40 women business owners and the data are analyzed using the software package QSR Nvivo.FindingsWomen entrepreneurs face the challenges and the difficulties of managing both family roles and work. However, they have strategically negotiating with their multiple roles through entrepreneurship to gain independence and purpose, as well as the opportunity to contribute to society. In particular, their embeddedness within local communities provides meanings, opportunities, and functional strategies for their entrepreneurial activities.Research limitations/implicationsThe study is based on only one study area. A larger sample size with more cases from multiple study areas can provide further insights.Practical implicationsFindings from this study have profound implications for practices of equitable growth, community development, and urban planning under the rapid growth of immigration.Originality/valueFirst, extending focus on the social identity of “motherhood,” this study argues for considering multiple social identities of women entrepreneurs and the intersectionality of multiple identities. Second, it extends the traditional focus of entrepreneurship studies from a singular focus on economic growth to include additional dimensions of work-life balance and sense of community. Third, place is not only a context but also acts powerfully into the entrepreneurial process. It argues that women entrepreneurs and their businesses are deeply embedded in local communities as their multiple identities are shaped at both home and work.

L'entrepreneuriat féminin au niveau de la wilaya de Tipaza Female entrepreneurship in Tipaza province

The aim of this study is to draw up an inventory of women-owned businesses in theprovince of Tipaza. In fact, we collected data about women entrepreneurs from variouspublic bodies charged of management and business registration (Andi, Cnac, Angem,Ansej, Cnrc and Casnos) in Tipaza. The results show that the creation rate of womenownedbusinesses is very low at all public bodies. In addition, the women-ownedbusinesses are mostly activating in the service sector and also very small.

The financing of the Moroccan women-owned businesses: A survey results

The financing of the Moroccan women-owned businesses: A survey results

L'entrepreneuriat féminin au niveau de la wilaya de Tipaza Female entrepreneurship in Tipaza province

The aim of this study is to draw up an inventory of women-owned businesses in theprovince of Tipaza. In fact, we collected data about women entrepreneurs from variouspublic bodies charged of management and business registration (Andi, Cnac, Angem,Ansej, Cnrc and Casnos) in Tipaza. The results show that the creation rate of womenownedbusinesses is very low at all public bodies. In addition, the women-ownedbusinesses are mostly activating in the service sector and also very small.

The financing of the Moroccan women-owned businesses: A survey results

The financing of the Moroccan women-owned businesses: A survey results

The stakeholder ecosystem of women entrepreneurs in South African townships

ABSTRACT The literature on women entrepreneurs indicates that they have a positive influence on national economic growth and employment levels, yet the lived experience of women business owners in the highly constrained setting of South African townships has not been reported in academic literature. This study thus explored the role of the various stakeholders by conducting semi-structured interviews with 40 women entrepreneurs in eight townships, as well as leaders of five small business support organisations. The research provides a unique insight into the contextual complexities faced by these female business owners, offers a model of their stakeholder relationships, and identifies inhibiting and enabling factors in these relationships.

The role of export promotion programs in the internationalisation of female-owned enterprises

PurposeWhile the role of government-funded export promotion programs (EPPs) on the international activities of small ventures has been previously documented, they do not appear to have been hitherto studied in a gendered context. This is unfortunate given the evidence suggesting growing numbers of female entrepreneurs with strong international orientation. Thus, this study aims to provide a better understanding of the experiences and practices of women entrepreneurs with regard to EPPs.Design/methodology/approachThis study is based on personal interviews with eight female-owned international entrepreneurial ventures in the fashion design industry in Denmark. A qualitative research design was used to explore the experiences of the women entrepreneurs regarding different types of EPPs and their various providers, and the data were analysed and interpreted using the NVivo software program.FindingsThe results show that while the level of awareness of EPPs was generally high, the programs were overwhelmingly perceived to be overly expensive, excessively time-consuming, insufficiently specific and largely irrelevant. When the women business owners had availed themselves of their services, the usefulness of the EPPs was deemed to be largely imperceptible. Plausible explanations for these results may be found in the gendered entrepreneurial literature. The study’s findings provide important gendered insights to government support agencies charged with promoting the internationalisation of female-owned small businesses.Originality/valueThis study presents novel gendered findings of the experiences of female entrepreneurs regarding the role played by EPPs in the growth of their firms on international markets. It contributes to the literature on the growing phenomenon of female international entrepreneurs.

Regional income inequality: a link to women-owned businesses

We assess how women-owned and operated businesses relate to income inequality at the community level. Using U.S. county-level data within the framework of modeling uncertainty, we employ a spatial Bayesian model averaging approach to identify which specific control variables are most consistent with the underlying data generating process for inequality. We find that higher income inequality is linked to larger shares of women-owned and managed businesses. These results are consistent with women-owned businesses being more prevalent at the extremes of the household income distribution where some women are pulled into business ownership at the lower end of the income distribution spectrum and others are driven by opportunities at the higher end of the distribution. We also found meaningful differences in the underlying control variable across our three measures of income inequality. Only a handful of control variables, such as the unemployment rate, rates of college education, and housing costs, are consistent predictors of income inequality.

Innovation From the Perspective of Malaysian Women Entrepreneurs in Food-based Enterprise

While innovation is important for firms’ competitive advantage and economic development, knowledge about both innovation practices and models is based on large organizations, and the applicability of the findings of such research to women entrepreneurs who dominate the small businesses is limited. The aim of this study was to understand how innovation capability develops in women entrepreneurs in food-based enterprises.This study emphasized an interpretive approach in order to help deepen our understanding of the innovation capability among women entrepreneurs. A qualitative approach, grounded from a social constructionist theorizing was used. This study utilized the data from ten women entrepreneurs from the Northern States of Malaysia. Semi-structured interview was used to collect the data. The data were transcribed and categorized in order to find differences and similarities, and then analyzed using the thematic analysis. Based on ten women-owned businesses in this study the findings indicate that innovation was constructed in terms of the ability to capitalize on sophisticated machineries for innovation purposes. In addition, innovation was articulated in the form of new or improved products. Most women entrepreneurs develop their innovation capability from customer engagement, employee participation, networking, family members as well as from their owned experiences and expertise. From a policy perspective, innovation program specifically aimed at women entrepreneurs should be delivered effectively by the relevant agencies.

Impact of Credit and Training on Enterprise Performance: Evidence from Urban Ethiopia

This study evaluates the impact of business-development-support programs (credit, training, and a combination of both) on the performance of micro- and small enterprises (MSEs) in Ethiopia. Using 2015 Ethiopian urban survey data and employing endogenous-switching regressions for multiple treatments, we document a positive and significant effect of credit, training, and a combination of training and credit on MSEs. Our results highlight the heterogeneity in treatment effects between women- and men-owned MSEs: women-owned businesses do not benefit from access to treatments. Our results suggest that improving the performance of MSEs requires fine-tuned interventions that meet the specific needs of men and women who own small businesses rather than one-size-fits-all programs.

Start-up motives and challenges facing female entrepreneurs in Tanzania

Purpose Research on women-owned business is more extensive in developed countries than in developing countries and such one cannot compare the results. This paper aims to examine the motives of women in Tanzania (a less developed country) to start their own businesses and the challenges they faced in running their businesses. Design/methodology/approach Based on 400 response to a semi-structured questionnaire and in-depth interview with 20 female entrepreneurs. Subsequently, descriptive and factors analysis were performed to analyze the data Findings Based on survey responses, the primary reason for starting a business was to create employment for the woman herself. Other motives include supplementing income and enabling women to be able to do the kind of work they wanted to do. According to the factor analysis, female entrepreneurs are driven more by push factors than pull factors. The most serious problems faced by female entrepreneurs are lack of access to finance, gender-related problems and social and cultural commitments. Research limitations/implications The sample was selected from urban areas of only three regions, out of 26 regions in Tanzania. Researchers may extend the study to other regions; also, the non-probability sampling method used in this study essentially means that there is a limitation to the extent to which the research findings can be generalized to the rest of the population of female entrepreneurs in Tanzania. Practical implications Policy makers, financial institutions and all organization that have a stake on development on female entrepreneurs in Tanzania should design policies and programs that encourage and promote the creation and growth of businesses. Collective efforts from the government, public and private institutions and NGOs are needed to eliminate the challenges, especially gender-related problems. Practical implications By studying female owner-managers’ motivations and constraints, the author suggests that to a greater extent, gender-related problems, social and cultural commitments and access to finance and networks are the constraints faced by female entrepreneurs. Originality/value The research on female entrepreneurs in the context of Tanzania is scarce, this study responds to a need of better understanding women motivations and constraints. By studying these factors, this study shows that startup motives and constraints faced by female entrepreneurs are unique to different contexts.

Family enrichment and women entrepreneurial success: the mediating effect of family interference

Managing work and family is a topic of continual interest. Drawing on work-family interface (WFI) literatures, we test a model linking family-to-business enrichment and family-to-business interference, directly and indirectly, to the entrepreneurial success of women-owned businesses. We consider two types of enrichment: family instrumental (financial) support and family affective (moral) support. The interference aspect of WFI is depicted by women entrepreneurs’ gender-related personal problems. Due to the non-linear nature of our model (logit), we apply for the first time in the entrepreneurship literature, the Karlson-Holm-Breen (KHB) method, which has recently been developed for testing mediation in such models. In a sample of female entrepreneurs in a stable economic environment, Austria, we found that the interference dimension mediates the relationship between the enrichment components and entrepreneurial success. Specifically, personal problems have a negative effect when family financial support is present and a positive effect when family moral support is experienced. Implications and future research are discussed.

Marketing management and optimism of Afghan female entrepreneurs

PurposeFor the present generation of entrepreneurs, the operating environment in Afghanistan has been among the most tenuous in the world. Numerous regime changes, civil unrest and war have created tremendous uncertainty, making civilian business planning difficult. These challenges incrementally impact female entrepreneurs. This paper aims to investigate the relationship between one aspect of entrepreneurial psychological capital – optimism regarding enterprise success of Afghan female entrepreneurs – and aspects of the marketing function.Design/methodology/approachPrimary data collection was used for this study. A total of 248 women business owners were surveyed via telephone from five provinces of Afghanistan. Over half (133) of respondents were from the Afghan capital, Kabul. A total of 49 respondents were obtained from Herat, 44 from Mazar, 12 from Nangarhar and ten were obtained from Kandahar.FindingsWe find that a focus on marketing positively and significantly impacts reported optimism by female Afghan entrepreneurs, as do marketing planning efforts. However, self-reliance and orientation toward the outside world do not impact the perceived success of the entrepreneurial venture.Research limitations/implicationsLike other empirical studies, this research has its own limitation. First, we would have liked a larger sample size, but date collection in a war-torn country and from female business women in a male-dominated society is proofed very challenging task. Also, some cities had less representation due to security concerns especially Kandahar province.Practical implicationsOur results have significant relevance for economic development policymakers, non-governmental organizations and entrepreneurs throughout the developing world. What drives the psychological capital of these entrepreneurs under these extreme conditions should be of interest not only from the perspective of the entrepreneurship literature, but also for policymakers who are often uninformed regarding on the ground conditions under which individuals in the environment function.Social implicationsIt is our hope that our results inform those in a position of power so that they support the development of human capital of Afghan women who are or who seek to be entrepreneurs. We also hope to raise questions for other researchers related to the importance of human capital investment and the business functions for entrepreneurs in other less developed, conflict-prone environments with low mean educational levels.Originality/valueThis paper is the first to use proprietary, hand collected survey data from Afghani female entrepreneurs to collect, analyze and draw conclusions and recommendations from a sample of 248 women-owned businesses regarding the relationship between the marketing function and one aspect of psychological capital – perceived optimism – in five Afghan cities.

Barriers to Woman Entrepreneurship in Vietnam

Women entrepreneurs can contribute significantly to economic development in Vietnam. But women face unique challenges in self-employment. These challenges have not been adequately studied. The objective of this study was to identify barriers to women entrepreneurship in Vietnam and propose recommendations to enhance this endeavor in the country. A survey that included nearly 200 women-owned businesses was conducted. This study found that women entrepreneurs are running businesses well. They are currently facing barriers, such as obtaining finance, work-home conflicts, lack of education and training in business and management skills. They furthermore indicated as their main support need the need for financial support, for business training and advice, and a need to network with other business owners and for marketing support. Practical recommendations are suggested for Government and women entrepreneurs to overcome these obstacles and to ensure that women entrepreneurs can sufficiently contribute to the economy and empower themselves economically.

Unpacking a servant leadership style in women business owners

Purpose This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach This study is prepared by an independent writer who adds his/her own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings This research paper concentrates on whether 12 surveyed female business founders in the USA possessed the traits of a gender-congruent servant leadership style, such as authenticity, stewardship, and providing direction to people in their team. Collectively, these traits are rooted in a source of compassionate love that has become lacking in many modern business settings. Originality/value The paper saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

Accessing finance among women-owned small businesses: evidence from lower Manya Krobo municipality, Ghana

The study examined the constraints to accessing finance among women-owned small businesses in the Lower Manya Krobo Municipality in the Eastern Region, Ghana. We employed largely qualitative methods using the case study approach. The purposive and simple random sampling techniques were used to select 50 respondents. In-depth interview guide and focused group discussion were used to gather data from participants. The data were thematically analysed. The study revealed that there are constraints of poor market demand and lack of capital and credit. In furtherance, although collaterals exist for small businesses, they are being discriminated against women micro-entrepreneurs due to the patrilineal inheritance system of the area. Again, it was found that the financial institutions generally considered giving loans as risky as a result of lack of codified business strategy and plan, proper costing of business and informational asymmetries about business owners and their businesses. The study, therefore, recommends that the activities of women micro businesses in the private sector of the economy should be urgently recognised within the lending models and structures as they constitute a valuable area of economic growth. The National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI) through the Business Advisory Centre (BAC) should organise educational and training seminars regularly to educate women micro-entrepreneurs on business management to be able to negotiate effectively on the various landed properties in such a patriarchal system to reduce high start-up mortality of women micro businesses. The study further recommends to the National Identification Authority to take cogent action to fast-track the identification system of citizens as it remains one of the major factors to reduce loan risks and interest rates.

Exploring firm performance and growth among own-account and micro enterprises in Ghana

Using micro-level data from the 2013 nationally-representative GENDA survey on approximately 1,200 own-account and micro enterprises, we examine firm performance and business growth between men and women entrepreneurs in Ghana. Using OLS and multinomial logit (MNL) regression techniques, we find differential effects and constraints for men and women-owned businesses: men generally perform better than women, controlling for a host of characteristics. We find that among women-operated firms, locating a business at home has negative performance implications. Additionally, women-operated firms report more positive growth experiences when their businesses are formally-registered. While credit constraint has negative effects for both male and female-operated firms, the effects are felt stronger among men. We also find some evidence of ICT use-age on performance of firms, with differential effects for men and women. These findings provide significant scope for policy targeting in order to enhance business performance and growth among own-account and micro enterprises in Ghana.

Uticaj digitalne transformacije na poslovne performanse - iskustvo iz firmi u ženskom vlasništvu

Taking into account that female-owned companies are an emerging economic force, this paper is discussing the phenomena of digital transformation from the gender perspective. In the first part, we present the definition of digital transformation and overview of literature that was used. In addition to this, the stages of the digital transformation process are highlighted, as well as potential biases which companies could face, but also the benefits arising from the process of digital transformation and the tools used to identify the existing digital gap in companies. Furthermore, certain key characteristics of women-led businesses that we consider, at the same time, to be factors that enable faster digitization are presented. The third part is a discussion of the results obtained by statistical analysis. The paper uses a simple OLS regression analysis to test the impact of digital transformation on women-owned companies' performance, as well as a T-test of independent samples to identify potential differences in business indicators, depending on the number of years a company has been undergoing digital transformation. Research indicates that there is a positive impact of digital transformation on the performance of women-owned businesses. Also, it was confirmed that there is a significant difference in the level of product and service quality, product and service development capacity, productivity, and overall performance levels between enterprises undergoing digital transformation for less than two years and those who have been in the process for more than two years in favor of the latter. Finally, we summarize the findings of the research, concluding that digital transformation is a chance to improve the business performance of a group of businesses that are considered to have limited access to markets and sources of funding, such as women-owned businesses.

Performance implications of the interrelationship between risk-taking and family support for women-owned businesses: evidence from South Africa

Extant entrepreneurship literature has often accentuated the importance of understanding entrepreneurial risk preferences, as excessive or averse behaviours towards risk could significantly affect entrepreneurial outcomes. Women entrepreneurs, in particular, have been noted to be more risk averse than their male counterparts, however, little is known about how the risk-taking propensity of women entrepreneurs influences the performance of their businesses, especially in developing countries. This study made a contribution in this domain by examining the association between risk-taking propensity and the performance of women-owned businesses in a developing world context. Also, given the increasing evidence of a strong interlink between the business and family context for women entrepreneurs, this study postulated that the risk-taking to performance nexus could be moderated by family support. The findings indicated a positive association between risk-taking propensity and the performance of women-owned businesses. Moreover, this association was positively moderated by financial and emotional family support. The study makes a contribution to the current knowledge base by illustrating the interrelation between the trait approach and the family embeddedness approach on entrepreneurial outcomes for women entrepreneurs. Furthermore, the policy and practical implications of the findings are discussed.