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What a profound statement! It is with the same fervor as Madeleine Albright that NAWRB supports other women. Like the first female U.S. Secretary of State, we believe that other women, organizations, companies in the public and private sectors and the government must follow suit. As the Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) movement continues working for equal access to resources, equal representation, equal pay—the list goes on—it is crucial to create unwavering unity among women to advance women’s culture. If this culture is not strengthened, with the many problems burdening women, women will remain too scattered to be truly heard in unison and inspire more commitment from the rest of the country. As we continue working to get this right, there must be adjustments within women’s culture and leadership mindsets to achieve greater growth.
Here’s an undeniable truth: women are on the rise despite several forms of suppression. As there is limited data on the startups of women’s groups and how they work together, we are here to advance the conversation.
In Force Multipliers: How three fundamental adaptations can help women entrepreneurs scale big, Ernst & Young (EY) and Babson College report that women in the U.S. are starting businesses at 1.5 times the rate of men, and according to the World Bank, the amount of American businesses owned fully or partially by women is expected to grow by seven percent by the end of this year. Equally inspiring, the U.S. Census Bureau confirms that women-owned firms have grown by 27.5 percent from 2007 to 2012.
These statistics affirm that regardless of prevalent disadvantages, female entrepreneurs are forging progress and driving real change in the business world. Even with these successes, however, women still struggle to reach the next level in business. The Census Bureau estimates that 88 percent of women-owned businesses don’t surpass the $100,000 revenue threshold. Furthermore, a 2014 Senate Committee report discloses that women receive only 16 percent of conventional small business loans, amounting to 4.4 percent of the total dollar value of all small business loans.
In their study, EY and Babson College also reveal that only two percent of women-owned businesses in the U.S. make $1 million in revenue, while businesses owned by men are 3.5 times more likely to break the $1 million ceiling. This financial disparity can be attributed to talent, ability, natural entrepreneurial spirit and fear, but not in every case. Everything from unequal access to capital, lack of consideration and an imbalanced federal contracting field is preventing women-owned enterprises from achieving their full potential.
Some of these obstacles have slowly faded, creating a stronger momentum in the women’s movement. In 2010, Section 342 of the Dodd-Frank Act created the Office(s) of Minority and Women Inclusion (OMWI) tasked with implementing diversity within regulated entities. More recently, the Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) program gained the power of sole source authority, permitting contracting officers to directly award contracts to women-owned small businesses.
The unprecedented equity crowd-funding movement has also given women a new source of capital, and according to the National Women’s Business Council (NWBC), more than 1,000 women-owned businesses are created daily. Women in executive positions have also made an impact. Women in Business: the Value of Diversity, a recent study from global advisory firm Grant Thornton reports that American companies without female executives missed out on $567 billion in revenue in 2014. As the NWBC articulates in their Reasons to Invest in Women Entrepreneurs fact sheet, investing in women-owned businesses goes beyond social responsibility; it has an immense effect on the U.S. economy.
Cultures have the ability to play important roles in the lives of their inhabitants. Whether it be through amenities, events or people, a person’s surroundings can be crucial to their growth and quality of life. It is time to strengthen women’s culture and allow the female voice to be heard as one.
When addressing the topic of community, the EY and Babson College report explains, “What’s the advantage of finding community? The first benefit is the removal of self-imposed limits on what you can accomplish,” and, “We’ve also seen how this community enables participants to shorten learning curves, gain insight into tough business problems, collaborate, and create valuable business partnerships.” The report describes this confidence in your ability to achieve as the most important benefit of being a member of a community, a culture. The study also delineates pragmatic benefits to communities, such as learning more efficiently and creating connections that will help your business in the future.
Desirée Patno, CEO of NAWRB, states, “Unlike their minority counterparts, women do not have geographical roots. As a result of this deficiency, women lack strong cultural support from one another. The absence of a strong women’s culture has rendered very slow sustainable growth for women on several fronts. Because women are spread thin, they must work hard to identify as a cohesive group and address their collective issues. In several cultures, women are not afforded the same opportunities as their male counterparts and once they break through the emblematic glass ceiling, they generally lack conviction and self-confidence to help other women.”
Geri Stengel provides further support for surrounding yourself with like-minded individuals with Forget the Glass Ceiling: Build Your Business Without One, in which she profiles 10 successful female entrepreneurs and deflates the idea that women cannot start or lead “high-potential companies.” Stengel outlines, “Knowing other entrepreneurs plays an important role in directly enhancing aspirations of women to start their own businesses, and supporting their growth by providing access to ideas, opportunities, and resources.” In relation to the businesswomen she profiles, Stengel describes, “Research finds that family dynamics impact entrepreneurial aspirations. We see it in the women profiled. Sixty percent came from homes in which one or both parents were longtime or serial small business owners.”
Stengel explains that being around other entrepreneurs not only motivates people to launch their own businesses, it also helps them succeed as they become part of an entrepreneurial environment. It is this unity of entrepreneurs that drives businesses towards success. A community is decisive for the success of its members, a truth compounded by the fact that six of the 10 women profiled came from homes with entrepreneurial parents, and what better group to support female entrepreneurs than a community of women?
Stengel also addresses women’s organizations, affirming, “Research finds that similarity breeds connection. Gender is certainly one of the ways people relate to each other. The greater challenges women face in the business world bond them to each other and make them want to help each other. Most of the women profiled are involved with women’s groups.”
As Stengel argues, the problems faced by women should create unity not separation. These problems can be overcome together, with a culture, community and a common voice. Unity among women is a necessity, not an option; coming together provides exponential resources and growth to depose obstacles on the path to success. Organizations where women unite to help one another have been crucial for creating a level business playing field. The fact that united women create advancement for other women is something we cannot ignore or underestimate; it must be recognized and endorsed.
Stengel encapsulates the importance of women’s unity in Stand Out In the Crowd: How Women (and Men) Benefit From Equity Crowdfunding, emphasizing, “Lots of people talk about how lonely it is being an entrepreneur. If I learned one thing from the 10 women I interviewed in Forget the Glass Ceiling, it is that highly successful women don’t do it alone. These women reach out and ask for help when they need it. They turn to cofounders, professional advisors, and their employees. They also turn to their peers, other entrepreneurs who have been there and done that. Many of the entrepreneurs they turn to are women.” As Stengel establishes, it is ideal to have a support base as an entrepreneur. Not even the most successful women build their enterprises alone.
Just as a group of women can help one entrepreneur surpass her problems, united women will strengthen the women’s culture to help eliminate the roadblocks impeding women from fully participating in and equally contributing to the professional world.
NAWRB wants to hear how you are contributing or learning to advance the women’s culture while bringing women’s diversity and inclusion to the forefront. Email media@www.nawrb.com for a chance to have your contributions discussed and featured in the next issue of NAWRB Magazine.