NOTAS EXPLICATIVAS Y FUENTES

After highlighting the traits and work experience of the female business owner this section looks into her motivations for starting up a business. This is particularly important as there is a strong belief in the literature that women’s motivations have a negative impact on their long-term performance (Cliff, 1998; Carter and Shaw, 2006).

5.3.2.1 Motivations for starting up a business

In line with the previous strand, the investigation of women’s motivations for starting up their own businesses has been carried out mainly through comparative studies that lacked in-depth analysis (Fenwick, 2008). As illustrated in chapter 2, this field of research highlights the presence of common start-up motives between women and men as they are both looking for a sense of autonomy, independence and control over their working lives (Carter et al., 2001; Fenwick, 2008). The findings regarding similarities are, however, overshadowed in the literature by the extensive focus on “flexibility” and an escape from the job market constraints. Both motives are re-visited in the following sections.

Flexibility

Flexibility as a “woman’s issue” fits well with the underperformance hypothesis as it means a deviation from the successful male entrepreneur. Hence it is portrayed as a barrier. In this sense, flexibility has shifted from being a start-up motivation to an explanation for female entrepreneurs’ low profitability as it meant increased responsibility for the family (Longstreth et al., 1987), less energy for the business, less time (Rouse, 2005) and more conflict (Greer and Greene, 2003). Given its important influence on female entrepreneurs’ performance, a lack of it, as argued by Williams (2004) may lead women to exit their businesses. Moreover, flexibility has opened the door for the investigation of more “women-related” barriers including pregnancy, maternity and child and other care.

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An escape from the job market constraints

Despite the overemphasis on the glass ceiling (discussed in details in chapter 2), Carter et al. (2001) conclude that: “there is plenty of anecdotal evidence of this (the glass ceiling phenomenon) as yet there is insufficient research evidence

quantifying the importance of this factor and clarifying the exact processes involved” (p.5). In the light of Carter et al.’s (2001) comment, I argue that the

overemphasis on the glass ceiling has been inspired by the underperformance hypothesis rather than by the findings of various studies. As a gendered construct (Cotter et al., 2001) the glass ceiling provides a clear explanation for women’s problematic performance. Carter and Shaw (2006) for instance argue that the pay gap may be linked to female entrepreneurs limited access to financial resources and potentially poor performance.

The analysis also substantiates the argument made in this review that under the influence of the metanarrative of economic growth, women’s underperformance is the thread which links together the various research strands on female entrepreneurs. Vertical segregation, for instance, in terms of limited access to high paid jobs and senior management positions, was linked to female entrepreneurs’ irrelevant work experience mentioned earlier. This link was then used to confirm women’s underperformance (Carter and Shaw, 2006).

After examining the motivations for starting up a business, the next stop in this journey is the writing and formulation of the business plan.

5.3.2.2 Business planning

Writing a business plan is a well-established practice in business management especially at the inception phase as it is usually a bank’s requirement when applying for a business loan. Its formulation also enhances business credibility as it indicates good organisation and planning including the identification of clear goals and growth objectives (Fenwick, 2008).

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The absence of a business plan can therefore imply the opposite; less credibility, poor planning and ultimately poor performance. Drawing attention to female entrepreneurs’ lack of “skills” or “will” in relation to writing a business plans fits well with the underperformance hypothesis and the best way to check it out is by comparing her against men. This trend emerges strongly in Fenwick’s (2008) study as she allocates a considerable part of her review to the relationship between the female entrepreneur and business planning. Authors such as Buttner and Rosen (1992) as well as Alsos and Ljunggren (1998) confirm that the female entrepreneur lags behind her male counterpart in terms of business plan writing. As this review argues, studies of the female entrepreneur are linked by the underperformance hypothesis, the difficulties in the business planning elements are mirrored in other research areas. Buttner and Rosen (1992), for instance, linked the problem with the business plan to women’s difficulties in accessing start-up capital. Fenwick (2008) also pointed out that the lack of work experience and education reported in the early studies provided a good explanation of the poor skills in terms of preparing a business plan.

These findings and relationships are not without contradictions. Despite promoting the lack of writing a business plan as problematic, Alsos and Ljunggren (1998) did not find - after interviewing over 9,000 female entrepreneurs - that such a shortage had any impact on business success. Moreover, Buttner and Rosen (1989) stated that loan officers did not perceive any differences between male and female entrepreneurs in relation to the quality of business plans presented. It is also worth mentioning that the whole notion of writing a business plan has been condemned for being counterproductive and for excluding alternative approaches by featuring it as the only right way of doing business (Fenwick, 2008).

Another research area that emerged strongly in the studies on female business start-up, is the barriers facing female entrepreneurs; notably financial ones. These barriers are therefore the focus of the next stop in the journey of women business owners.

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5.3.2.3 Financial barrier to start-up a business

The exploration of financial barriers and their impact on long-term economic success is a strong theme in female entrepreneurship studies (Stevenson, 1986; Brush, 1992; Carter et al., 2001; Fenwick, 2008). The influence of the metanarrative of economic growth on this research area is quite eminent which explains the emphasis on the problematic female entrepreneur as Brush (1992) rightly noted that “financial difficulties are seen to be exacerbated for women” (p.14). This influence has led to the belief that the financial barrier is a feminine barrier that is not experienced by the male entrepreneur (Carter et al., 2001). Their research offers four reasons to explain this feminine phenomenon.

The first reason refers to women’s lack of skills and expertise in raising start-up finance (Schwartz, 1976; Carter and Cannon, 1988; Carter and Rosa, 1998). The second reason is that female entrepreneurs lack personal assets and credit records

(Hisrich and Brush, 1984; Riding and Swift, 1990). The third reason is poor financial networking (Greene et al., 1999). Under the umbrella of the underperformance hypothesis, the first two reasons mentioned above are consistent with what the analysis reported earlier in terms of female entrepreneurs’ perceived inferiority due to irrelevant work experience and poor practice in relation to the formulation of a proper business plan. The third reason is also consistent with the problematic female networking which will be discussed later.

While the first three reasons are attributed to female entrepreneurs’ characteristics, the fourth one is caused by external factors; namely discriminatory practices within the banking institutions (Buttner and Rosen, 1989). However, given the influence of the metanarrative of economic growth in reinforcing a taken for granted assumption about the problematic female, any problem somehow ended up being “essentially feminine”. This is reflected in the interpretation of the findings of a study carried out in New Zealand by Fay and Williams (1993). In this study, the authors confirm the discriminatory practices of loan officers against the female entrepreneur and yet blamed her for having

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irrelevant work experience and education in relation to her venture as this makes her too risky for the banks to lend her money.

Moreover, Stevenson (1986) pointed out that beyond the start-up phase, both male and female entrepreneurs face the same financial problems and that as the organisation grows these problems are overtaken by others including marketing and human resource issues (Hisrich and Brush, 1984). It is worth mentioning here that research outside the start-up stage is limited as this review discusses later on.

In summary, there is a strong and unquestioned assumption in the literature that starting up a business is more difficult for female entrepreneurs as they face more obstacles (Stevenson, 1986; Carter et al., 2001; Ahl, 2006). The prevalence of this assumption endorses the argument presented by this review that because of the influence of the metanarrative of economic growth, the underperformance hypothesis is the departure point for studies on female entrepreneurs. This influence is also reflected in Carter et al.’s (2001) concluding comment that: “A

key debate, however, is whether the barriers encountered by women at start-up have a long-term effect on business performance or whether these constraints dissipate after start-up has been successfully negotiated” (p.29).

After starting up a company, the next event is managing it. The next stop will therefore focus on management.