Tuesday, April 25, 2006

Globally, Women Want to Own Businesses



Women business owners all over the world have much in common. They want to earn their own money and provide a better home for their family. They want to be creative, productive and self-sufficient. And they want to share their entrepreneurial victories with their closest women friends.

Read the article here: Inside Entrepreneurship: Globally, women want to own businesses

Wednesday, April 19, 2006

The importance of sex

Even today in the modern, developed world, surveys show that parents still prefer to have a boy rather than a girl. One longstanding reason why boys have been seen as a greater blessing has been that they are expected to become better economic providers for their parents' old age. Yet it is time for parents to think again.

Girls may now be a better investment.

Read the Economist article here.

Friday, April 14, 2006

Women Entrepreneur Expresses Herself Through Her Own Greeting Card Company

"This better be the only wedding card I ever give you."

That line is an example of the kind of biting humor you'll find in a Quiplip card. The greeting card company, founded in 2002 by Bridget Hobson (pictured), prides itself on being unconventional and unlike a lot of mass-market card lines.

Hobson's only experience in the greeting card-making business was handcrafting cards when she was 6 years old. The [entrepreneurial] bug hit her again when she was in her 20s and frustrated when she couldn't find cards she could relate to.

Read the story here: Quirky Card Company Pushes Envelope

Tuesday, April 11, 2006

Are Women Happy Under the Glass Ceiling?

Even before The Wall Street Journal coined the term "glass ceiling" 20 years ago, researchers debated why women seldom reach the highest ranks in business. Do women choose less stressful jobs so they can enjoy life more? Are they shut out of golf games and other informal networks that help men make crucial professional contacts?

Before we move on to answer those questions, I want to give you the powerful ending FIRST so you understand why we established the EFCA blog:

[But Susan Solovic, CEO of SBTV, a Web site that creates video programming aimed at small-business owners, offers another reason why women aren't complaining about the pay gap: They've decided to work for themselves. The number of women-owned firms grew 17% between 1997 and 2004, according to the Center for Women's Business Research, while the total number of firms rose only 9%. Says Solovic: "There is really no glass ceiling when it comes to owning your own business."]

Now read the article below to find out how and why it leads to Susan's concluding remarks and then let us know what you think!

Are Women Happy Under The Glass Ceiling?

Friday, April 07, 2006

Women Entrepreneurs Are Confident in Business Skills

Women Entrepreneurs Seek New Opportunities; Are Confident In Business Skills; Use Work Experience As Springboard; Yet, Gender Gap Persists

Women entrepreneurs use the same strategies as their male counterparts -- seeking opportunities, taking risks, mingling with other entrepreneurs, and sharpening their business skills -- according to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) 2005 on Women and Entrepreneurship.

Based upon survey data from more than 107,400 respondents in 35 countries, today’s GEM Women report, prepared by scholars at the Center for Women’s Leadership at Babson College, gives a clear indication that while women entrepreneurs often exhibit patterns of behavior similar to those of men, a gender gap nonetheless exists for entrepreneurial activity across the globe.

Women most likely to be entrepreneurs are those who hold jobs, have higher levels of household income and education, and have confidence in their level of skill and in the possibility of their success.

In case you missed it, read the Babson release and download the report here.

Monday, April 03, 2006

In Business, Women Can Handle More Than One Thing At A Time

At a time when some corporate executives are spending more time in court than in boardrooms and talk of a flagging economy is on everyone's lips, little appears certain in the world of business.

But for one particular demographic -- both locally and nationally -- business appears booming, and success has never been such a sure thing.

A recent Census Bureau report found that women-owned businesses grew at twice the national rate between 1997 and 2002 to an estimated 10.6 million.

Women Owning More Establishments