Women’s entrepreneurship is vital for economic and social development, yet female entrepreneurs worldwide are consistently found to have weaker sales and employment growth, fewer jobs, and lower profitability. This book was written to address this reality, and focuses on the high-growth potential of women entrepreneurs.

Women's entrepreneurship is vital for economic and social development, yet female entrepreneurs worldwide are consistently found to have weaker sales and employment growth, fewer jobs, and lower profitability. This book was written to address this reality and focuses on the high-growth potential of women entrepreneurs. The scholars in this book conducted qualitative as well as quantitative research in contexts around the world, including Eswatini (Swaziland), Australia, China, Slovenia, Peru, and one global study of 43 countries. Chapters are organized according to three key themes: the practice of building networks, programs and the support environment, and policies and regulations. Topics addressed within these themes include the interconnected and mutually reinforcing features of a fruitful entrepreneurial culture, including financial and human capital advancement and readiness, new opportunities for expansion and an assortment of institutional and infrastructural provisions for innovation and business growth. High-growth Women's Entrepreneurship will appeal to public and private sector managers, policy makers and politicians who want to promote a culture and ecosystem that supports women's growth-oriented business potential. Educators and program designers who want to help women grow their businesses, and scholars who want to explore further research will find the information invaluable. Contributors include: N. Birdthistle, C.J. Boudreaux, Z. Brixiová, C.G. Brush, A. Bullough, D. Cetindamar, M. Córdova, L.F. Edelman, R. Eversole, B. Freser, V. Godinho, D. Hechavarría, F. Huamán, E. James, T. Kangoye, T. Lammers, Y. Li, S. Muhammad, B. Nikolaev, A. Pearce, K. Sirec, E. Sullivan, P. Tominc, M. Walo, J. Wu

High growth firms, often referred to as “gazelles,” are equated with entrepreneurial success and celebrated as the key to growing economies, and women's entrepreneurship is a vehicle of economic and social development. This special issue publishes papers that address the general lack of research on high growth women's entrepreneurship. In this introduction article, we offer an adapted framework for the factors driving high growth across multiple levels: individual (entrepreneur and entrepreneurial team characteristics), venture (strategy, organizational structures, and systems), resources, location, and environment. We also introduce the papers in this special issue, and present an overview of the contributions to this issue.

The female entrepreneurship researchers community has to thank these women for their brilliant work in reviewing, revising and selecting the best papers from the second Diana International Conference that were finally edited for this volume. . . the book is a good compendium of female entrepreneurship circumstances in different countries that focuses specifically on the explanation as to why gender plays a role in the number of ventures started by women and why they are in general smaller and less growth-oriented. Manuela Pardo-del-Val, International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal . . . this edited text draws upon a range of international contributors to present a comparative overview of challenges facing female entrepreneurs seeking to grow their firms. . . this is an interesting book that makes a welcome contribution to contemporary debate. Susan Marlow, International Small Business Journal The data and information presented in this work will be of particular interest to students and scholars of entrepreneurship or labor and women s studies. Recommended. General readers; upper-division undergraduate through professional collections. E.P. Hoffman, Choice Enterprising new firms drive economic growth, and women around the world are important contributors to that growth. As entrepreneurs, they seize opportunities, develop and deliver new goods and services and, in the process, create wealth for themselves, their families, communities, and countries. This volume explores the role women entrepreneurs play in this economic progress, highlighting the challenges they encounter in launching and growing their businesses, and providing detailed studies of how their experiences vary from country to country. Statistics show that businesses owned by women tend to remain smaller than those owned by men, whether measured by the number of employees or by the size of revenues. Because women-led firms fail to grow as robustly, the opportunities to innovate and expand are limited, as are the rewards. Based on recent studies that examine the links between entrepreneurial supply and demand issues, this volume provides insights into how women around the world are addressing the challenges of entrepreneurial growth. The first set of chapters consists of country overviews and provides discussions of the state of women growing businesses. The second set of chapters describes research projects under way in different countries and explores more focused topics under the umbrella of women business owners and business growth. The volume concludes with an agenda and projects for future research. Academics and policymakers will gain a greater understanding of women s entrepreneurial behaviors and outcomes through this path-breaking volume. Those who support women through education and training, policymaking, or providing entrepreneurial resources will also find the volume of great practical interest.

If you're a woman entrepreneur, think big-and get funded! Clearing the Hurdles shows how to overcome the obstacles that face every entrepreneur, and the unique challenges women face in finding investors. Five experts on women entrepreneurship guide you every step of the way, through concept development, planning, strategy, resource acquisition, deployment, and growth. Discover how to align your business around your personal goals, fill "gaps " in your expertise-and access the money and networks you need to grow fast.

Women entrepreneurs in India, represent a dynamic group of women who have broken away from the tradition track and are exploring new vistas and of economic participation. Women face a variety of traditional views and perception of clients, demands at home and other family oppositions leading to lack of support. Great many of them have chosen the entrepreneur's world because of a compelling urge to do something positive. They form the pacesetters for women in their quest for economic independence. Women's entrepreneurship needs to be studied separately for two main reasons. The first reason is that women's entrepreneurship has been recognized during the last decade as an important untapped source of economic growth. Women entrepreneurs create new jobs for themselves and others and by being different also provide society with different solutions to management, organisation and business problems as well as to the exploitation of entrepreneurial opportunities.The industries (primarily retail, education and other service industries) chosen by women are often perceived as being less important to economic development and growth than high-technology and manufacturing. Furthermore, mainstream research, policies and programmes tend to be “men streamed” and too often do not take into account the specific needs of women entrepreneurs and would-be women entrepreneurs. As a consequence, equal opportunity between men and women from the perspective of entrepreneurship is still not a reality.

Sandra Fielden and Marilyn Davidson, already well known for their contributions to gender issues in management, have brought together an absorbing collection of articles that serve to enhance our understanding of a complex area within organisation studies. . . this particular Handbook is not a mere glossary. The editors provide a forum for scholarly works in a specialised area of small business and entrepreneurship research. And the International Handbook of Women and Small Business Entrepreneurship provides a rich resource collectively, the papers serve to summarise and re-examine much of the relevant research to date. . . an accessible book that follows a logical and coherent pattern. . . the range of this book is significant, and the accomplishment considerable. . . the International Handbook of Women and Small Business Entrepreneurship is a serious contribution to a niche area of entrepreneurship scholarship. The editors and authors have established a place for women in the literature, confirming that gender issues cannot be dismissed as a mere adjunct to the broader field of entrepreneurship study. This collection offers the reader intelligent engagement with the range of research and ways of knowing about women and entrepreneurship. Established scholars will find much of interest, and we would also confidently recommend the Handbook to interested newcomers. Robyn Walker and Kate Lewis, Women in Management Review Sandra L. Fielden and Marilyn J. Davidson have put a great deal of work into producing this compilation of scientific studies on women and small business entrepreneurship. In this book, the editors have managed to put together an excellent compilation of studies that look at topics that have aroused the highest interest in this field in recent years. . . It offers a good balance between theory and practice-oriented studies and presents an academic viewpoint that comes extremely close to the real, current situation of this phenomenon. This book therefore provides a useful tool both for the academic community in general and for students, particularly at a postgraduate or doctorate level, who wish to gain a state-of-the-art overview of this business phenomenon. It may also be put to good use by women in management and entrepreneurship as well as policymakers and small service providers, given its high empirical content, supported by a sound empirical framework, which deals with real-life issues for women who wish to start up and manage their own businesses. María Ángeles Escribá Moreno, Entrepreneurship Management . . . a truly international, unique and impressive contribution to our knowledge and understanding of issues for females starting, running and growing businesses. . . an important read for anyone with an interest in female entrepreneurship, including researchers, support agents and policymakers. Moreover, this book may be of interest to those concerned with the theoretical development of the study of entrepreneurship. Laura Galloway, International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Innovation . . . this book can be recommended as an insightful and interesting work on women s entrepreneurship from a broad perspective. Wing Lam, International Small Business Journal This truly international Handbook makes a significant contribution to the field of women s entrepreneurship by broadening the scope of the conversation, hearing voices that are often unheard, and providing a framework that organizes the current body of knowledge but also presents pathways for future research and practice. Patricia G. Greene, Babson College, US This Handbook is a breakthrough collection. Women worldwide are now starting small businesses and entrepreneurial ventures at a faster rate than men. Though small in size, these initiatives represent a significant factor in economic growth, highlighting their importance. This collection sheds light on the motivations, personality and behaviors of women entrepreneurs, the constrai

This book offers a critical perspective on the issues related to women’s empowerment, microfinance, and entrepreneurship in India. Written by distinguishing experts in this field, this book highlights women’s empowerment, which is a process of entrusting power to an individual on the control over resources and decisions. However, these two factors are less effective in a society where religion and cultural dominance is high. The book sheds light on the social security measures undertaken by the government aiming to the right to work helped women who are bounded by social restrictions. Over time there is a shift in rural occupational structure towards non-farm activities, which is largely distress driven self-employment. Access to credit is a great source to provide self-employment that develops self-esteem among women and uplift their position. The book highlights the discrimination against women entrepreneurs in access to credit led to gender biased entrepreneurial society. Association with self-help groups (SHGs) has made women more socially empowered. SHG members help them to change their life in a positive manner through micro-entrepreneurial activities. The book has emphasized on the role of microfinance, which has served the poor to become financially self-reliant. It is observed that for second generation borrowers, the impact of microfinance seems to fizzle out, where MFIs who are gaining efficiency are diverting their objective of servicing poor, signalling a sign of mission drift.

How do female entrepreneurs overcome hurdles, redress power imbalances and create a business with coveted unicorn status? High-growth enterprises on a rocket ship growth trajectory and tech unicorns with a value of more than £1billion have the potential to transform the economy. But building a unicorn is not an easy task. And it's even more difficult for female-led enterprises than it is for male-led start-ups. Female Founders' Playbook brings together the experiences of the leading women entrepreneurs and VC investors. These successful businesswomen share their thoughts on every aspect of launching a high-growth business, from coming up with a unicorn-worthy idea, through to building a multi-talented team to winning investment. Their tales of success and failure are drawn together by commentary and insightful analysis by award-winning technology founder and architect of Starling Bank, Anne Boden, creating an easy-to-follow guide for any female leader. Rather than talking about who might be the next Bezos, Gates or Jobs, Female Founders' Playbook tells the true stories of those women who are guaranteed to inspire and help the next generation of female entrepreneurs.

For women entrepreneurs (and anyone sick of the status quo), this smart, unapologetic collection delivers fifty proven hacks to leapfrog over obstacles and succeed in business. "A must-read for any woman who has a great idea and the nagging thought that doors are closed to her; Molina Niño helps to blow them open."--Publishers Weekly Think the most critical factor for becoming a great entrepreneur is grit, risk-taking, or technical skills? Think again. Despite what every other business book might say, historical data show the real secret ingredients to getting ahead in business are being rich, white, and male. Until now. Leapfrog is the decades-overdue startup bible for the rest of us. It's filled with uncompromising guidance for winning at business, your way. Leapfrog is for entrepreneurs of all stripes who are fed up with status quo advice--the kind that assumes you have rich friends and family and a public relations team. Refreshingly frank and witty, author Nathalie Molina Niño is a serial tech entrepreneur, the founder and CEO of BRAVA Investments, and a proud daughter of Latinx immigrants. While teaching budding entrepreneurs at Barnard College at Columbia University and searching the globe for investment-worthy startups, she has met or advised thousands of entrepreneurs who've gone from zero to scalable business. Here she shares their best secrets in the form of fifty "leapfrogs"--clever loopholes and shortcuts to outsmart, jump over, or straight up annihilate the seemingly intractable hurdles facing entrepreneurs who don't have family money, cultural capital, or connections.