Report On Women Business Owners

Women are starting businesses at three times the rate of men. This discussion paper is based on interviews with over 200 women who own small businesses. It includes a profile of the women entrepreneurs, explores barriers for these women, and suggests directions for public policy that would support the efforts of women entrepreneurs to escape the isolation they find themselves experiencing that prevents them from reaching out to seize the opportunities that surround them.

As women overtake men in education, they are running one-third of the world's businesses. However, women business-owners are concentrated in small and microbusinesses; fewer than 5 percent of CEOs of the largest global corporations are women. "Women in Business and Management" brings together available data and ILO statistics to provide a comprehensive, up-to-date, and global picture of women in the business world and in management positions. The report highlights the business case for gender diversity, the obstacles that women still face, and ways to move ahead. It advocates a greater role for national business organizations, which can assist their member companies in implementing policies and measures to recruit and retain talented women.

Based on interviews with 60 women entrepreneurs and 10 former entrepreneurs conducted in 1987.

Women-owned businesses are the fastest growing segment of new business start-ups, and black women’s businesses are a larger share of black-owned businesses than white women’s businesses are of all white firms. Most studies compare men’s and women’s businesses, but few examine differences among women. This book, first published in 2000, makes a significant contribution not only to the literature on entrepreneurial business, but also to the experiences of African American women.

ÔThis nine-country study draws on government reports, books and journal articles to underpin unique empirical data that helps highlight the economic impact of women entrepreneurs. The book aims to improve womenÕs position as entrepreneurs globally and, in this regard, draws attention to the need to alleviate womenÕs poverty levels in some of the less developed economies. Women Entrepreneurs in the Global Marketplace should be of value to both scholars and policy makers by not only enhancing their understanding of womenÕs entrepreneurship, but also by helping them realise that a complex support matrix is required to ensure womenÕs future advancement.Õ Ð Colette Henry, Tromso University Business School, Norway This groundbreaking book examines the status of female entrepreneurs across the world, analyzing the social, political, cultural and economic factors that affect their positions in society and their contributions to entrepreneurship and innovation within their respective countries. Using a combination of original data and detailed statistics drawn from reports by government agencies and international organizations, Andrea E. Smith-Hunter discusses the accomplishments and challenges of women entrepreneurs in nine countries: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Ghana, Iceland, India, Jamaica, Sweden and the United States. This geographic diversity provides a complete and comprehensive picture of women entrepreneurs worldwide Ð both their shared experiences and the specific conditions they face on a regional level. Following a detailed discussion of the current status of female entrepreneurs, the author offers a number of thoughtful recommendations for improving their opportunities and positions across the world. This innovative volume will prove highly useful for international organizations that assist women, as well as for professors and students of entrepreneurship studies and anyone else interested in the unique conditions faced by women entrepreneurs of the world.