Across America, there is a prevalent viewpoint that women are inferior to men in the field of entrepreneurship. However, “The common perception that women primarily start small hobby-related enterprises that are less likely to grow is contradicted by substantial evidence showing that women own firms in all industrial sectors, and that many do want to grow them in size and scope,” (Brush, Carter, Gatewood, Greene, & Hart, 2001, p. 4). In the United States in 2007, nearly 7.8 million firms were women-owned (National Women’s Business Council, 2012). Some may believe that this viewpoint permeated society because men are more successful at starting businesses than women. Yet, women-led businesses are not more likely to fail than those led by men, (Rosa, Carter, & Hamilton, 1996) (Kalleberg & Leicht, 1991).
That being said, women would be even more successful as entrepreneurs if they had equal access to funding as that of their male counterparts. One way businesses receive funding is through angel investors. Angels provide financial backing and bring “industry experience and a network of potentially valuable contacts (i.e. the gold-plated rolodex) that can service as intangible assets to the firm…” (Amatucci & Sohl, 2004, p. 186). They are focused on the success of the business, rather than gaining profit or a majority share-hold. Women receive less funding from angel investors due to the realization of stereotype threat pertaining to three traits related to success in entrepreneurship: confidence, risk tolerance, and social capital. This causes a cycle that deters female entrepreneurial success; women-led firms lack necessary start-up funds, which hinder their success, and the ability to become angel investors themselves. This cy...
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... and women-owned as well as businesses in rural areas, have been among the hardest hit by the recent economic downturn
In particular, startups conform to a set of formalized, ritualistic practices in order to obtain venture capital (VC) funding during the “seed” phase. Almost paradoxically, new companies are regarded as a kernel of innovation and invention in the economy and yet they seem to emulate each others’ routines in the pursuit of early investment, decoupled from the actual products or services they plan to sell to the
In February 2015, Ellen Pao’s lawsuit against Kleiner Perkins, a venture capital firm, for gender discrimination went on trial. Pao alleged that she had been treated unfairly by her ex-bosses and passed on numerous times for promotion in favor of her male counterparts. While Pao did not win her lawsuit, the trial brought back to light the problem of gender discrimination and of the glass ceiling in corporate America. Since women started to enter the workforce, there always have been barriers and obstacles that prevented them from reaching the higher ranks on the corporate ladder. Public recognition that there was indeed a problem of discrimination helped giving women assurance
Schwartz, Felice N.”Management Women and the New Facts of Life.” Harvard Business Review Jan.-Feb. 1999: 3-14.
Since the first colonist stepped onto the shores of what would become the United States there has been a belief that life would be better, freer, and with boundless opportunity. The concept of the “American Dream” has changed over time, and means very different things members of different subgroups in the population. This is especially true for ethnic groups and for women. For the purposes of this paper, the “American Dream” is defined as, the ability for all individuals to have equal access to achieve success without restrictions. Specifically, this paper will look at whether women are able to achieve the “American Dream.” The paper will look at three key areas, 1. job types, 2. wages, and 3. entrepreneurship.
In the most successful businesses, all of the characteristics stated are attributed and make the business more efficient. Research by Stanford’s business school found that 1.5 more promotions were given to women who presented “masculine traits”, such as aggressiveness, confidence, and control, than men with the same traits. Businesses do not have to be split evenly between men and women to be successful, as long as the business has people that bring the qualities of both genders to the business.
Since women are naturally maternal and nurturing they obtained the role as the family’s primary caretaker, while the men became the providers for the home. For centuries these gender roles were strictly stuck too. Women stayed at home and did house work as their husbands went out and had a career. Thankfully, society is starting to shed this ideology on gender roles. More women are starting to work proactively in the “mans world”, but they are straining to advance to high executive positions throughout corporate companies. A lot of this is due to a women’s fertility. While the stereotype of women being strictly housewives has diminished, the mentality that women are too maternal is prevalent in business life. Due to this outlook women are perceived to be unable to take on the stressful pressures business prevails, giving reason to why for years women were only secretaries and clerks in business where they received little room for progression in their careers. A great deal of reasoning behind this struggle is due to the Great Man Theory. Author of “Inequality Between Genders in the Executive Suite in Corporate America: Moral and Ethical Issues” Dean Elmuti, describes this theory as society’s perception that men are the superior beings and should be the protectors and providers, while women are weak, helpless and should stay home to raise the family (1). Consequently, this view has led to an increased emergence of men as business managers and the leaders of the country, thus defending the male dominance in the corporate industry, but also preserving the discrimination against women entering the business domain. This theory and mentality that women can’t handle business life is infuriating. However, what is more distressing is due to...
For many decades, women have faced inequalities in the workforce. At one point, they were not allowed to work at all. Although women's rights have improved and are now able to work alongside men, they are still treated unfairly. According to the 2012 U.S. Census, women’s earnings were “76.5 percent of men’s” (1). In 2012, men, on average, earned $47,398 and women earned only $35,791. This is when comparing employees where both gender spend the same amount of time working. Not only do women encounter unfairness in work pay, they also face a “glass ceiling” on a promotional basis. This glass ceiling is a “promotion barrier that prevents woman’s upward ability” (2). For example, if a woman is able to enter a job traditionally for men, she will still not receive the same pay or experience the same increase in occupational ability. Gender typing plays a huge role in the workplace. It is the idea that women tend to hold jobs that are low paid with low status. Women are not highly considered in leadership positions because of social construction of gender. Society has given women the role of “caretakers” and sensitive individuals. Therefore, women are not depicted as authoritative figures, which is apparent with the absence of women in leadership roles in companies. Furthermore, sex segregation leads to occupations with either the emphasis of women in a certain job or men in a certain job. In 2009, occupations with the highest proportion of women included “secretary, child care worker, hair dresser, cashier, bookkeeper, etc.” (3). Male workers typically held job positions as construction workers, truck drivers, taxi drivers, etc. (3). Sex segregation represents inequality because the gender composition for these jobs depends on what ...
There are only a paltry number of female CEOs leading major corporations. “Women currently hold 22 (4.4%) of CEO positions at those S&P 500 companies” (CEOs). While positive change has occurred, a glass ceiling still exists. Moreover, women are still treated as sex objects. “Other research has found that merely focusing on a woman's appearance (fully dressed) is enough for people (men and women) to dehumanize a woman” (Heflick). The study spotlights that women are still seen as sex objects. Even though today’s women have achieved additional rights and better jobs, they are still
Zachary, R., & Mishra, C. S. (2013). Research on Angel Investments: The Intersection of Equity Investments and Entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship Research Journal, 3(2), 160-170. doi:10.1515/erj-2013-0044
Gender inequality is present in all aspects of human society, from culture, politics, and economic stand point to personal relationships. Gender inequality can be viewed as a major problem especially within the business world (Corporation, 2016). In the past, men are seen as leaders in all aspects. For example, men could work without any criticisms, they could participate in political issues and were given higher education. Women on the other hand, were given no political participation, criticized for working outside the household as they were responsible for chores such as takes care of their children, cooking or cleaning and given limited education compared to men. Although there are claims rights equality of women in 21st century and much has been written about it in the field of business (Player, 2013), but there is still a gap between male and female. This essay aims to explore the impact of gender inequality in business and will analyze the details in terms of the men are given high pay and specific jobs over women.
IONESCU, C. (2012). BUSINESS WOMEN ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN THE NEW ECONOMY. Hyperion International Journal Of Econophysics & New Economy, 5(1), 177-186.
Women leaders have the crucial soft skills of empathy, innovation, facilitation, and active listening (Masaoka, 2006). They also have first-hand life experiences that bring technical skills and experiences from the street level to the workplace (Masoka, 2006). Women often build stronger relationships with clients and outside contacts than their male counterparts. This relationship building skill, provides a key aspect which helps to move businesses forward (Giber et al., 2009). Fortune 500 companies with a high percentage of women significantly outperformed those with fewer women. Companies with the highest representation of women showed higher returns on equity than those with fewer women employees (Giber et al., 2009). Thus, future organizations may have a higher percentage of female leaders than we have experienced in the past. Future leaders must ensure that there is equality among the workforce and that women are accurately represented among the
It is an equity source of finance, so they usually demand to own part of the firm in exchange for their money. Angel investors as they are sometimes called, invest in firms they believe will be profitable. They are also long-term investors and expect to make profits long after investment. (Vivek, 2010). In addition to their financial support they sometimes advise and assist the entrepreneur in the running of the business. They usually invest less money and in a less formal manner than venture capitalist. . (Burns, 2001, P.