women entrepreneurs
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Time to read 5 min
As in practically all areas of life, entrepreneurship has a very important gender gap. Without going any further, in Spain, not only 80% of entrepreneurs are men, but also only 4% of funding for startups is allocated to projects led by women.
Something that worries us, especially since 60% of the projects led by women survive longer than those led by men.
So what is going on? Why don't we find so many women entrepreneurs ? Among other things, the lack of references is not usually very encouraging for those women who dream of starting a business.
Why bet on female entrepreneurship?
Although we are still a long way from achieving 100% equality in managerial positions, it is true that we are witnessing notable progress in all sectors of entrepreneurship.
More and more women decide to bet on their talent and abilities and take the step of leading successful ventures and startups.
And it is that a report carried out by Unconventional Ventures revealed that startups that are led by women have 45% more development in terms of income than startups led by men.
As well as its success rate is higher compared to projects that lead men as leaders. And it all lies in the fact that, in general, the leaders of large companies and businesses bet 30% more for causes that are just, noble, or that have a significant impact on society.
In November, International Women's Entrepreneur Day is celebrated. According to the latest ´GEM Special Report on Female Entrepreneurship´, Spain has more than 650,000 women entrepreneurs. In the last ten years, the distance between male and female entrepreneurs has been reduced by 30%, according to data from the same document.
More women entrepreneurs but fewer opportunities
The Entrepreneurial Activity Rate (TEA) among women has increased by 7% in more than 60 countries around the world in the last two years. Currently, the global female TEA stands at 11%.
In this sense, it is important to highlight that the GEM report shows how female entrepreneurs in Spain have fewer opportunities to set up a business compared to those in other countries. Despite the fact that Spain has highly prepared and capable women to launch their project, the facilities and opportunities are insufficient and even more so when compared to the rest of Europe. In fact, according to data from IDC European Women in VC, startups founded by women only received 1.8% of all investment in Europe.
More and more women register in the Special Regime for Self-Employed Workers (RETA). Currently there is one autonomous for every two autonomous in our country. Especially in the service sector there has been a significant increase in recent years.
The female entrepreneur in Spain is between 25 and 34 years old and 70% start a business because they detect an opportunity or a need in the market. They are prepared women, and more than half have higher education. 20% trust the growth of the business and being able to generate employment and offer more than 6 positions in the coming years.
Closing the gender gap contributes to improving the global economy
However, the gender gap continues to weigh on both women and the economy in general.
ClosinGap, together with the CEOE Foundation, has prepared the report "Opportunity cost of the gender gap in SMEs and the self-employed", which shows how ending these gender inequalities in SMEs would mean 2.8 million of contracts.
In Spain there are currently 1.8 million unemployed women and closing this gap would end female unemployment, but it would also mean that more than a million women enter the labor market, since they are not part of the active population and would be needed to meet these needs.
All of this, in economic terms, as stated in the report, would contribute 131,100 million euros of Gross Value Added to the Spanish economy. That is, what is equivalent to 10.9% of the GDP registered in the year 2021.
Lack of leadership
These inequalities become more noticeable in positions of responsibility or in those with the highest salaries. Specifically, according to Gary Mullan, CEO of Prosperity Digital, "the number of startups led by female founders does not reach 10%." Despite the fact that the Women Business 2022 report states that 32% of leadership positions are headed by women worldwide. "There is still a lot to be done until we reach figures that denote equality within the leadership."
And the same goes for higher-paying positions. Programming is one of the professions with the highest demand today and also one of the best paid. Well, it is also one of the most prominent due to the gender gap within the digital sector. Specifically, there are only two women for every ten men in these positions in Spain. and only 5.7% of companies have women experts in technology or digitization.
Data from the European Commission ensure that in 2030 jobs related to technology and the digital sector will grow by 11%, and more than 300,000 jobs will be created.
What characteristics does the female entrepreneur have?
An enterprising woman is one who is capable of seeing a business opportunity, starting a project and making it last over time , assuming the risks that this may entail and adapting to the circumstances of each moment. Although each female entrepreneur has different motivations, it is possible to establish a series of common characteristics that define them:
- Entrepreneurial spirit: The GEM report highlights the need and opportunity as two fundamental elements of the entrepreneurial spirit. In this sense, on the one hand, the lack of job offers drives many women to create their own business . On the other, it is essential that all entrepreneurs detect opportunities in the market, that is, consumer needs that are not covered and take advantage of them by creating a company.
- Training: before starting a business, it is crucial to have knowledge in areas such as business management, marketing, sales, taxation or human resources.
- Passion: Sir Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group said that "entrepreneurship is making what you are passionate about in life the fundamental thing, so that you can get the most out of it and make it evolve." And it is that you have to feel passion for the business and thus wake up every morning with enthusiasm to work on what you really like .
- Leadership: every female entrepreneur must be a good leader with communication skills, the ability to make decisions and set an example for her team, as well as having knowledge of the market.
- Empathy: Empathy is a critical trait for tomorrow's leaders as it drives productivity and innovation . Based on the International Business Report, prepared by Grant Thornton International, 22% of world leaders in the middle market cite empathy as the most important thing.
- Proactivity and ability to adapt to change: Given the constant changes that are taking place in society, proactivity and the ability to adapt to change are essential skills for any woman entrepreneur. As Peter Drucker rightly points out: “the entrepreneur always looks for change, responds to it, and exploits it as an opportunity ”.
- Resilience: the Deloitte report The resilient organization. Thriving in the face of uncertainty highlights that companies that anticipated uncertainty and built resilience were better prepared to withstand the effects of the pandemic. Therefore, knowing how to adapt and see opportunities in times of crisis is a characteristic that women entrepreneurs must develop.
