Growth of Women Entrepreneurship in India!

Women in India constitute around half of the country’s population. Hence, they are regarded as the “better half of the society”. In the official proclamation, they are at par with men. But, in real life, the truth prevails otherwise. Our society is still male-dominated and women are not treated as equal partners both inside and outside four walls of the house.

In fact, they are treated as Ablaa, i.e., weak and dependent on men. As such, the Indian women enjoy a disadvantageous status in the society. Let us give some facts about it. The low literacy rate (40%), low work participation rate (28%) and low urban population share (10%) of women as compared to 60%, 52% and 18% respectively of their male counterparts well confirm their disadvantageous position in the Indian society.

Our age-old socio-cultural traditions and taboos arresting the women within four walls of their houses also make their conditions more disadvantageous. These factors together serve as non-conducive conditions for the emergence and development of women entrepreneurship in the country.

Given these unfavorable conditions, the development of women entrepreneurship is expectedly low in the country. This is well indicated by a dismally low level of women (5.2%) in total self- employed persons in the country (Gupta and Khanka 1996). Further, women entrepreneurs in India accounted for 9.01% of the total 1.70 million entrepreneurs in the country during 1988-89 (Desai 1992).

A cross-country comparison reveals that emergence and development of entrepreneurship is largely caused by the availability of supporting conditions in a country. To quote, with improving supporting conditions, the share of women owned enterprises in the United States has risen from 7.1% in 1977 to 32% in 1990. It is likely to reach to 50% by the turn of the 20^th century.

In India, women entry into business is a new phenomenon. Women entry into business, or say, entrepreneurship is traced out as an extension of their kitchen activities mainly to 3 Ps, viz., Pickles, Powder and Pappad. Women in India plugged into business for both pull and push factors.

Pull factors imply the factors which encourage women to start an occupation or venture with an urge to do something independently. Push factors refer to those factors which compel women to take up their own business to tide over their economic difficulties and responsibilities.

With growing awareness about business and spread of education among women over the period, women have started shifting from 3 Ps to engross to 3 modem Es, viz., Engineering, Electronics, and Energy and other industries under Integrated Rural Development Programmes (David 1992). They have excelled in these activities. Women entrepreneurs manufacturing solar cookers in Gujarat, small foundries in Maharashtra and T.V. capacitors in Odisha have proved beyond doubt that given the opportunities, they can excel their male counterparts (Moore and Buttner 1997).

Smt. Sumati Morarji (Shipping Corporation), Smt. Yamutai Kirloskar (Mahila Udyog Limited), Smt. Neena MaUiotra (Exports), Kiran Majumdar Shaw (Bio-technology) Naina Lai Kidwai (Banking), Jaswantiben Jamnadas Popat (Food), and Smt. Shahnaz Hussain (Beauty Clinic) are some exemplary names of successful and accomplished women entrepreneurs in our country.

Women have traditionally played an important role in the small business development as owners, managers, and workers. They dominate three important sub-sectors, constituting over 80 per cent of the employees in textile, clothing and leather production; 75 per cent in food, beverages and tobacco production; and over 60 per cent in wood and wood processing (quoted by Bhargav (2007). Besides, they also act as micro- entrepreneurs and traders in agri-business.

In India, Kerala is a state with highest literacy (including women literacy) reflecting a congenial atmosphere for the emergence and development of women entrepreneurship in the State. According to a study of the Government of Kerala (Government of Kerala 1984), the number of women’s industrial units in Kerala was 358 in 1981 which rose to 782 in March 1984.

These 782 units included 592 proprietary concerns, 43 partnership firms, 42 charitable institutions, 03 joint stock companies and 102 co-operative societies covering a wide-range of activities. On the whole, proper education of women in Kerala resulted in high motivation among them to enter into business.

The financial, marketing and training assistance provided by the State Government also helped motivate women to assume entrepreneurial career. Women’s desire to work at the place or residence, difficulty of getting jobs in the public and private sectors and the desire for social recognition also motivated women in Kerala for self- employment. Like Kerala, an increasing number of women are entering the business in the State of Maharashtra also.

 

Women Entrepreneurs in India – Importance

In modern days, women entrepreneurs are playing a very important role in business, trade or industry. Their entry into business is of recent origin. Women have already shown their vital role in other spheres like politics, administration, medical and engineering, technical and technological, social and educational services. This is true in advanced countries and now in recent years, they have been entering into these fields in our country. Their entry into business is a recent phenomenon in India.

It is an extension of kitchen activities. In certain businesses, women entrepreneurs are doing exceedingly well and even they have exceeded their male counterparts. Women are successful not only in law, science, medical, aeronautics and space exploration and even in police and military services, but now they are showing their might even in business and industry. They have proved that they are no less them men in the efficiency, hardwork, or intelligence, provided they are given proper scope.

The role or importance of women entrepreneurs may be ascertained from the study of the functions they perform.

These functions are as under:

a) Exploring the prospects of starting new enterprises.

b) Undertaking risks and handling economic uncertainties.

c) Introducing innovations.

d) Co-ordinating administration and control.

e) Routine supervision.

It may be observed that these functions are not always of equal importance. For example, risk-taking and innovation functions are of utmost importance for establishing, diversifying and running the business successfully co-ordination and supervision functions become important in improving the efficiency and attaining the goodwill for the business as well as in assuring the smooth balanced operation of the enterprise.

In the case of women enterprises, usually the same lady performs all these functions and some times, she may also take the assistance of other female staff members. In most of the cases, a woman is the owner of the business enterprise.

Generally, the following three types of business are suitable to the women entrepreneurs:

a) Manufacturing a product for direct sale in the market.

b) Manufacturing a product or a part of the product to meet the short term or long-term order of a large industrial company, and

c) Operating purely as a sub-contractor of raw materials supplied by the customers.

Generally, the last two types industry or business are known as ancillaries. The women entrepreneurs prefer to deal in consumer goods which have always a demand in the market. They prefer to deal in intermediate goods which are used in the production of other products and mostly they are manufactured to the orders of large companies.

Why Women Entrepreneurs

More and better access to finance/credit is mentioned very frequently. Give a woman 1000 rupees and she can start a business. Give her another 1000 rupees and she will be able to feed not only for her family, but for her employees as well.

From the Center for International Enterprise to the Harvard Business Review, business experts have agreed for several years that the world needs to support the development of women entrepreneurs. Studies are showing that when women gain access to their own financial freedom, they are lifted out of poverty, children begin to become healthier, and the overall economic status of a country improves.

Why is it that women are uniquely positioned to improve the condition of a country's economy? Is it something about women's inherent social abilities, their position in society, or something more obvious?

Let's take a look at many of the co-occurring factors that create an increasing need for more women entrepreneurs in the global marketplace.

Economic Growth

There are only seven countries in the world where men and women own businesses at an equal rate. In most countries, women own significantly fewer businesses than men. Even in countries where women own a substantial portion of firms, they tend to perform at a lower level than businesses owned by men. In the United States, for example, women own about 30 percent of the businesses currently operating, but only employ around 6 percent of the workforce.

Bringing more women entrepreneurs into the marketplace, therefore, simply offers a chance for more successful businesses. In general, business ownership is not a zero-sum game; one company being successful does not inherently drive another out of business.

Women may be able to open businesses that cater to a different clientele or niche than their male counterparts. Overall, this accounts for improved economic growth and stability within a country.

Dramatic Target for Poverty Reduction

Organizations like the Brookings Institute have pointed out that entrepreneurship may be a way to support women who live in extreme poverty around the world. By removing barriers to entrepreneurship (credit, training, legal restrictions on property), women are able to gain incomes, advocate for their own independence, and take on a more full societal role in their culture.

Because many women are also parents, breaking the hold of poverty on the lives of women also helps to support children in nations that struggle with youth poverty.

Since removing the barriers to entrepreneurship are often easier than targeting entrenched cultural barriers that are based on religion, supporting the economic growth of women entrepreneurs is often a more advocacy-friendly goal.

Improved Innovation

Businesses owned by women are often subjected to a particularly interesting double standard.  It is important to note that no studies have found that women-owned businesses are more likely to fail than businesses owned by men.

Why are women more innovative than their male counterparts? There are many different theories put forth, from women having access to different niches than men, to having a different societal role and therefore different needs than men, to simply having a different understanding of usefulness.

Whatever the ultimate reason, it is clear that women entrepreneurs have a valuable and diverse perspective that will support the overall development of a robust global economy as we proceed farther into the 21st century.

Field for Women Entrepreneurs

The modern world women has been able to overcome the hurdle of society’s perception of considering them to the confined to the four walls of the house or viewing them as weak entrepreneurs caught up in limited business area such as papad making, pickle preparation food items, paintings, handicrafts, etc.

  

They have been able for show a remarkable shift from these small entrepreneurs at ventures to modern technology-based business ventures such as-

1. Computer services and information dissemination
2. Trading in computer stationary
3. Computer maintenance
4. Travel and tourism
5. Quality testing, quality control laboratories
6. Sub-assemblies of electronic products
7. Nutrition clubs in schools and offices
8. Poster and indoor plant library
9. Recreation centers for old people
10. Culture centers
11. Screen printing, photograph and video shooting
12. Stuffed soft toys, wooden toys
13. Mini laundry, community eating centers
14. Community kitchens
15. Distributing and trading of house hold provision as well as saris, dress materials, etc.
16. Job contracts for packaging of goods
17. Photocopying, typing centers
18. Beauty parlors
19. Communications centers like STD booths, cyber cafes, etc.

Traits Entrepreneurial of Women Entrepreneurs

Following are main entrepreneurial traits of women entrepreneurs:

(i) Imagination:

It refers to the imaginative approach or original ideas with competitive market. Well planned approach is needed to examine the existing situation and to identify the entrepreneurial opportunities. It further implies that women entrepreneurs have association with knowledgeable people and contracting the right organisations offering support and services.

(ii) Attribute to Work Hard:

Enterprising women have further ability to work hard. The imaginative ideas have to come to a fair play. Hard work is needed to build up an enterprise.

(iii) Persistence:

Women entrepreneurs must have an intention to fulfil their dreams. They have to make a dream translated into an enterprise. Studies show that successful women have worked hard. They persisted in getting loan from financial institutions and other inputs. They have persisted in adverse circumstances and in adversity.

(iv) Ability and Desire to Take Risk:

The desire refers to the willingness to take risk and ability to the proficiency in planning, making forecast, estimates and calculations. Profits are the reward of risk. Enterprising women take risk but the risk is well calculated. It offers challenges where chances of survival and failure are on equal footing.

Functions of Women Entrepreneur in Entrepreneurship Development

Women Entrepreneur is not different from the concept of Entrepreneur, all the concept characteristics  & functions are applicable to Women Entrepreneur. The role of women in family & society is changing very fast. Those days are gone where typically women are expected to look after household activities change in various social aspect like equal treatment to women, no discrimination among male & females availability of equal opportunities to work in any field slowly these changes have forced her to become more competitive & also encouraged into business operations.

After the II  world war, there was a phenomenal increase in the number of self-employed women around the world. The women entrepreneur is defined as a group of women who organize & operate a business enterprise. Women entrepreneur are expected to innovate imitate to adopt economic activities. The government of India has defined “An enterprise run by entrepreneur which is owned & controlled by women having a minimum financial interest of 51% of capital& given at least 51% of employment to the women.

1. Planning

Planning is the basic managerial function of a woman entrepreneur. It helps in determining the course of action for achieving various entrepreneurial objectives like what to do when to do, how to do and who will do a particular task.

2. Organizing

Every woman entrepreneur needs personnel to look at the different aspects of the enterprise. She sets up the objectives, goals to be achieved by its personnel. The function of organizing is to arrange, guide, coordinate, direct and control the activities of other factors of production i.e. men, materials, money, and machines so as to accomplish the objectives of the enterprise.

3. Staffing:

Every woman entrepreneur has to perform the function of staffing which includes manpower planning, recruitment, selection, and training, placement of manpower, development, promotion, transfer and appraisal and determination of employee remuneration.

4. Directing

Directing is concerned with carrying out the desired plans. It initiates organized and planned activities and ensures effective performance by subordinates towards the accomplishment of group activities.

5. Leadership

A woman entrepreneur has to issue various orders, instructions and guide her subordinates in their work to improve their performance and achieve enterprise objectives. It is the ability to build up confidence and zeal among people and to create an urge in them to be a successful leader, she must possess the qualities of foresight, drive, initiative, self-confidence, and personal integrity.

6. Motivation

A woman entrepreneur has to provide some personal incentive to the subordinates to motivate, persuade and inspire them for contributing their best towards the achievement of enterprise objectives.

7. Supervision:

After giving instructions, the woman entrepreneur has to see that the given instructions are carried by subordinates at work to get the required and directed work done and to correct the subordinates whenever they go wrong.

8. Coordination

Coordination is one of the most important functions. It creates a team sprite and helps in achieving goals through collective efforts to provide unity of action in the pursuit of common objectives.

9. Controlling

Controlling is the process which enables to get its policies implemented and take corrective actions if the performance is not according to the pre-determined standards.

Women Entrepreneurs in India – Role of Women Entrepreneurs in Society

According to Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, “When women moves forward, the family moves, the village moves, and the nation moves.”

Women entrepreneurship has been recognized as an important, untapped source of economic growth during the last decade. With the spread of education and awareness, Indian women have shifted from the extended kitchen, handicrafts, and traditional cottage industries to non-traditional, higher level of activities.

In the new industrial policy, the government has laid special emphasis on the need of conducting special entrepreneurial training programs for women to enable them to start their own ventures. Financial banks and institutions have also set up special cells to assist women entrepreneurs. This has helped the women a lot in taking up the entrepreneurial activity in India.

Estimates in Europe (both European Union countries and other), indicate that there exist more than 10 million self-employed women and in the United States 6.4 million self-employed women providing employment for 9.2 million people and creating significant sales. Women entrepreneurs not only create new jobs for themselves, but also provide jobs to others. However, the participation of women entrepreneurs is less than male entrepreneurs.

The role of women entrepreneurs is explained in the following points:

i. Employment Generation: It implies that women entrepreneurs not only establish their enterprise, but provide job to others. Women entrepreneurship is about women’s position in the society and their role as entrepreneurs in the same society. It can be understood in two ways, namely, at the individual level (number of self-employed) and at the firm level (number of firms owned by women and their economic impact). In this way, woman entrepreneurs have an important impact on the economy in terms of their ability to create jobs for themselves as well as for others.

ii. Economic Development: It signifies that women entrepreneurs contribute to the gross domestic product of the country by establishing enterprises and producing goods and services. Due to their entrepreneurial activity, women entrepreneurs bring dynamism in market. In this way, they also help in increasing the national income of the country.

iii. Better Utilization of Resources: It implies that the involvement of women in industrial development ensure the effective utilization of all available resources (labor, raw materials, capital). The issue of women in the industrialization process has been emphasized only in the last decade when the ‘Declaration of Mexico in July 1975’, the equality of womanhood and their contribution to individual development became the center of attention.

iv. Improved Quality of Life: It implies that women entrepreneurs are now economically independent and take decisions independently. They are now capable of upbringing their children according to their wish. They are providing quality education to their children and a better living standard to their family members. They not only improve their living standards, but also the living standards of others by providing them the means of earning.

What are the types of Women Entrepreneur in India ?

Women entrepreneurs in India are broadly divided into the following categories: 

• Affluent Entrepreneurs :
• Pull Factor 
• Push Factor
• Self - Employed Entrepreneurs
• Rural Entrepreneurs 

1. Affluent Entrepreneurs:

Affluent women entrepreneurs are those women entrepreneurs who hails from rich business families. They are the daughters, daughter-in laws, sisters, sister-in-laws and wives of affluent people in the society. Many of them are engaged in beauty parlour, interior decoration, book publishing, film distribution and the like. The family supports the above type of entrepreneur in carrying out their responsibilities

2. Pull Factors:

Women in towns and cities take up entrepreneurship as a challenge to do something new and to be economically independent. These are coming under the category of pull factors. They belong to educated women who generally lake up small and medium industries where risk is low. Under this category, women usually start service centres schools, food catering centres, restaurants, grocery shops etc.

3. Push Factors:

There are some women entrepreneurs who accepts entrepreneurial activities to overcome financial difficulties. The family situation forces them either to develop the existing family business or to start new ventures to improve the economic conditions of the family. Such categories of entrepreneurs are termed as push factors.

4. Self-employed Entrepreneur:

Poor and very poor women in villages and town rely heavily on their own efforts for sustenance. They start tiny and Small enterprises like brooms making, wax candle making, providing tea and coffee to offices, ironing of clothes knitting work, tailoring firm etc. Such women are called self-employed entrepreneurs.

5. Rural Entrepreneurs:

Women in rural areas/villages start enterprises which needs least organising skill and less risk. Dairy products, pickles, fruit juices, pappads and jagger making are coming under this category of Rural entrepreneur.

How Government is helping Women entrepreneurs

India continuous to see immensely successful women entrepreneurs like Indra Nooyi, Chanda Kochar, Ekta Kapoor and many more. Such women encourage other budding women entrepreneurs to turn their dreams into a reality. However, a big part of chasing your dreams of starting a business, no matter how small, is capital. And as a way of encouraging such businesses, the Indian Government offers a financial boost specially designed for women entrepreneurs.

Here are some of the available Government schemes for developing women entrepreneurship :

1. Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) :- This commission was established under the Khadi and Village Industries Commission Act 1956. It is a statutory body that encourages the development of Khadi and Village industries in India. It not only promotes the rural industries but also creates employment opportunities for the poor of the country. The development of rural industries also stops migration of rural population to cities which prevents over population of cities.
2. Mahatma Gandhi Institute for Rural Industrialisation (MGIRI) :- It was established under the Societies (Registration) Act, 1860. The society is established at Wardha, Maharashtra for Research and Development Activities. The main objectives of the Institute are quality control, training and dissemination of technology related information. 
3. COIR Board :- The statutory body was established under the Coir Industry Act, 1953 with the objective of sustainable development of coir industry and improvement of living conditions of the workers engaged in coir industry. The objectives of the board include scientific, technological and economic research and activities related to development of the industry, development and improvisation of new and old products produced, and marketing of coir products.
4. Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) :- SEWA a trade union registered in the year 1972. This union supports poor, self-employed women workers. SEWA supports its members in capacity building and in establishment of their own economic organization. Since 1972, SEWA is both an organization of poor women workers and a movement for them – to create better alternatives. Committed to strengthening the movement of women workers, SEWA Delhi highlights their issues at the national level and also builds their skills. SEWA Delhi organizes women workers and connects them to development programs, so they can achieve full employment and self-reliance. Full employment means jobs that provide economic security, food security, and social security. Self-reliance refers to economic self–sufficiency and equitable roles in the decision-making process.
5. The Stand up India scheme :- This scheme was launched on April 5. This scheme assists the women and SC/ST entrepreneurs financially so that they have a fair chance at setting up their own businesses. The scheme support by providing loans from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 1 crore for the weaker sector of population. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had launched the Start-Up India scheme in January 2016, to help new entrepreneurs to set up their own business. Under this scheme, entrepreneurs can issue loans from banks to start their enterprises. Launched on April 5, this scheme will focus only on SC/ST and women entrepreneurs, to promote the weaker section of the population. The Stand-Up India scheme grants loans to entrepreneurs of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes, as well as women. The loan which is granted ranges from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 1 crore. The scheme is only for non-farm sector entrepreneurship.
6. The Ministry of Small Scale Industries :- The Ministry enhances productivity and competitiveness as well as capacity building of small women enterprises and their collectives in India.
7. National Small Industries Corporation (NSICS) :-Facilitating growth of small industries since 1955, NSIC’s has developed an incubation programme which is an integrated support scheme. It provides extensive training on working projects. It imparts necessary facilities for prospective entrepreneurs and start-ups to enable them to learn about product manufacturing processes, technology development and business development. It also provides information on bank credit facilities, raw material assistance, tender marketing, exhibitions and so on.

Challenges which women entrepreneurs face

The entrepreneurial journey is full of challenges in itself. But women entrepreneurs not just have to face the problems of entrepreneurship but also of being a women entrepreneur. In the recent 5-10 years, the country has witnessed an impressive increase in women participation across many frontiers like an increased number of women in sports, army, managerial positions in corporate organizations, politics, etc.

Women working in a corporate world get financial independence and growth, but entrepreneurship takes her into an altogether different world where not only does she get an opportunity to carve a notch for herself but can also make a substantial difference. However, many women nip their interests in the bud or give up their dream of becoming a businesswoman midway.

Obstacles in the Women Entrepreneurial Journey

Traditional Mindset

While a lot of women are breaking the shackles and moving out of their homes to work, setting up a business is still perceived to be a man’s domain. In the male-dominated society, women are not treated equally to men, which serves as a barrier to women’s entry into the business.

Networking

If you want to run a successful business, it’s essential for you to socialize within the entrepreneurial network so that you can build contacts and win customers. However, very few women can step out of their comfort zone. If they do socialize, it is restricted to their work, and they are not able to build relationships. This has a significant impact on the extent of visibility they have in the market and on the perception they make.

Finance Problems

Finance is regarded as the ‘life-line’ for any business – be it big or small. However, women entrepreneurs suffer from a shortage of finance, mainly due to two significant reasons. Firstly, women generally do not have a property in their names, which they can pledge as collateral to obtain funds from external sources. Secondly, the banks also consider women less creditworthy and discourage women borrowers on the belief that they can leave their business at any time.

Lack Of Education

In India, around 30% of women are still illiterate. Due to a lack of qualitative education, women lack business, technology, and market knowledge. Also, the lack of training can lead to low achievement and demotivation among women. Thus, education is vital to set up the business and run it successfully.

Safety And Security

In today’s times, safety is probably the biggest hurdle for women in India. Due to the rise of social crime, women hesitate to take on roles that demand long hours and interactions with a world of strangers. However, a smiling face and a calm mind can quickly turn strangers into friends.

However, despite these obstacles that most women face in India, many have built successful businesses. Communicating with the family and thinking the business idea out with a long term sustainable plan can act as the key to success. Problems are part of the journey where you are continually pushing towards growth. So, it is crucial not to get discouraged by the number of challenges on the path but continue to take one step at a time and keep moving forward.

Remember that not all people will ever stand beside you, communicate well within the family to bring any friction from home to a minimal. Most important of all, developing a positive attitude goes a long way in being successful.