Women are capable of leading companies ...

One of my favorite sister bloggers, Jory Des Jardines of BlogHer, wrote this excellent commentary relating to postings made here on August 7 and 15. I know you will appreciate it.

Women in Technology or Entrepreneurship?

I could not help but think that these same skills (below) for a career in IT are applicable to women in entrepreneurship!

What skills would you look for in young people that want a career in IT (or entrepreneurship)?

CB: I'd look for someone prepared to keep an open mind about the possibilities and with passion to make a difference through information technology.

AB: Understanding what the technology can do. It isn't an end in itself.

CE: Successful business is all about teamwork. As a result, when building a team I look to hire people who combine intellect and passion for their chosen field. BlackBerry is successful because of our people's energy, enthusiasm and commitment.

AJ: Energy, curiosity, dynamism, self-starter, eager to stretch themselves, intellect, emotional intelligence.

Read this interesting dialog between women executives who are enthusiastic advocates of women in business in the Women in Technology: ITWales Interview.

Proof Is In the Stats: Women-owned Firms Increase Nearly 20 Percent

Women-owned firms increased nearly 20 percent, while all U.S. firms grew by seven percent over the latest period studied (1997 and 2002), based on a report released by the Office of Advocacy of the U.S. Small Business Administration.

The report uses newly released U.S. Census and other data to describe women's contributions to the economy. Statistics documented in the report include:

• Women owned 6.5 million or 28.2 percent of nonfarm U.S. firms in 2002. More than 14 percent of these women-owned firms were employers, with 7.1 million employees and $173.7 billion in annual payroll.

• Women-owned firms accounted for 6.5 percent of total employment in U.S. firms in 2002 and 4.2 percent of total receipts.

• Of all women business owners in 2002, 85.95 percent were White, 8.43 percent African American, 8.33 percent Hispanic, 5.25 percent Asian, 1.23 percent American Indian and Alaska Native, and 0.18 percent Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander (total does not add to 100 due to some double counting across ethnic groups).

The report Women in Business: A Demographic Review of Women's Business Ownership was written by Office of Advocacy senior economist Dr. Ying Lowrey.

For a copy of this study (PDF file), click here.

Should you need further information, please feel free to contact Ying Lowrey at: (202) 205-6533.

Escape to Corporate America!

Asian Woman Named CEO at Pepsi!

PepsiCo has promoted its chief financial officer, Indra Nooyi, to become chief executive of the drinks manufacturer, making her one of the most powerful women in corporate America.

Ms Nooyi, who was born in India, will take over immediately in a surprise reshuffle, cementing her position after several years in which the board has fought to keep her from leaving for a senior job elsewhere.

Go Indra!

Women are a blogging powerhouse

As the article states ...

"Some people ask me, 'Aren't you worried you won't get hired because of what's on your blog?' On the contrary, she said, "I get hired because of my blog. It's my way to idiot-proof my life. If you don't like my blog, don't hire me!"

How is your business or blog changing the world? Read: Women tap the power of the blog.

Tip for the day: Make blogging your business.

Cherchez La Femme (WSJ, Aug 4): Read it to believe it!

Cherchez la femme ... translation can be found here.

It took me until now to track the following opinion piece written by Judith H. Dobrzynski and published by The Wall Street Journal Thursday, August 4. WSJ, thus far, has decided to release it only online to their subscriber base. Since I get the print edition, I don't bother with the online version. Please take a moment to read this thoughtful piece and forward it to whoever you think might find it interesting:

Cherchez la Femme

Here is a subsequent correction to the article posted in WSJ's Saturday (8/5) edition:

Patricia A. Woertz was named CEO, in April, of Archer Daniels Midland, ranked No. 56 on the Fortune 500. An opinion article by Judith H. Dobrzynski on Aug. 4, "Cherchez La Femme," said there were no women CEOs in the Fortune 100. (The number of women CEOs in the Fortune 500, however, was stated correctly as 10, and did include Ms. Woertz.)

And here is my response to the WSJ Opinion editor sent by email on Saturday, August 5:

"Cherchez la Femme" (OPINION, August 4) is right on target. But there is one person Ms. Dobrzynski left out in her investigation: former Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter and publisher of The Wall Street Journal, Karen Elliott House. House was among those considered for CEO of the WSJ but was passed over for Richard F. Zannino, who was the first to break with a tradition of journalists presiding over the company.

So instead of taking a chance by promoting a woman from within the ranks of The Wall Street Journal -- and one who was largely responsible for the launch of the Weekend Edition -- they brought in a man from the outside with no journalism experience but lots of fashion house and retail knowledge. How's that for a calculated risk?

WSJ decided to go with a man with no experience at the paper instead of a woman who brought the paper success and accolades. After that, Karen Elliott House announced she would retire after 32 years with the newspaper.

It's no wonder women are starting businesses at twice the rate of men. And they will continue to do so until parity is achieved in the corner CEO office.

Sincerely,
Laurel Delaney

Since then, I have been in touch with Dobrzynski. Let's see if the WSJ is gutsy enough to publish my letter. What's your take on this?

Get ready, get set and launch ladies

According to the 2005 Global Entrepreneurship Monitor Report more than 340 million people worldwide tried to launch businesses in 2004. This is a significant increase from 2003 and 2004.

The United States ranked seventh in the number of start-ups and California has more documented start-up business than any other state. Unfortunately, statistically only one-third of those start-ups will get off the ground and survive past two years.

Here are some -- eight to be exact -- strategies to encourage start-up success or at least limit start-up failure.

Action strategies to launch your business.

More Women Are Starting Their Own Companies

Three years ago, flight attendant Sandy Stein was so distraught about the prospects of her and her husband's jobs that she prayed to her deceased father for guidance.

"Dad, what am I going to do?"

That night, the 55-year-old Reseda woman said, she dreamed of a small metal flower with a curved stem that hooked onto the outside of her purse. A clip dangling on the inside kept her car keys quick at hand. When she awoke, a childhood taunt popped into her head: Finders keepers. But this time, Stein heard it as Finders Key Purse.

Like more and more women are doing these days, Stein found the courage to start her own business, Alexx Inc., a company that makes functional and fashionable key-finders.

Read the full story here.

SBA Could Help You Escape From Corporate America and Get Started Running a Business

Dear Professor Bruce: I feel stagnant in my current job. It's a road to nowhere. I am talented in my field and have some excellent background. Money is what I would need to really get going in my own business. Are there government programs available to help me?

SBA could help you escape form corporate America ...

He, Once a She, Talks About the Mysterious "Journey"

Because this article is so unbelievable, I read it four times to completely grasp its key points. The second time around I wanted to spot anything that contradicted "the Larry Summers Hypothesis" and it's there. The third and fourth time, I was just feeling good about myself, taking it in and wanting to personally thank Ben for sharing his/her experiences. There is a lot to learn from this piece. After all, here is a woman, now a man, telling us how she felt when she was a woman in the academic science and math areas. Fascinating stuff and -- now-- so transparent.

Ben Barres had just finished giving a seminar at the prestigious Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research 10 years ago, describing to scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard and other top institutions his discoveries about nerve cells called glia. As the applause died down, a friend later told him, one scientist turned to another and remarked what a great seminar it had been, adding, "Ben Barres's work is much better than his sister's."

There was only one problem. Prof. Barres, then as now a professor of neurobiology at Stanford University, doesn't have a sister in science. The Barbara Barres the man remembered was Ben.

Prof. Barres is transgendered, having completed the treatments that made him fully male 10 years ago. The Whitehead talk was his first as a man, so the research he was presenting was done as Barbara.

Being first a female scientist and then a male scientist has given Prof. Barres a unique perspective on the debate over why women are so rare at the highest levels of academic science and math: He has experienced personally how each is treated by colleagues, mentors and rivals.

I urge you to carefully read the entire article and weigh in with your comments. Not sure how long it's available for free through the WSJ -- better hurry up.

He, Once a She, Offers Own View On Science Spat

Escape From Marriage?

I scanned the following article and asked myself, what does it have to do with this blog and entrepreneurship? Plenty. All I had to do was catch the word "escape" and I knew you had to read it too. Is there a difference between escaping from a company and escaping from a bad marriage? Maybe not. Here's the passage that stood out for me:

"Laura has now "escaped", as she puts it, a 15-year marriage -- though cynics could well point out that she decided to flee the marriage only after the Enron scandal erupted and the man who had supported her for so long looked likely to be bankrupted."

What's the likelihood of Laura starting a business? You tell me.

Read the crazy article here: Ex-wife speaks out.

Accidental Entrepreneur

If you're at all dissatisfied with your job, you've got a long, hot summer ahead of you. Plenty of time to sit and daydream about telling the boss to take a hike and making money doing what you love.

Many of you have personal Web sites you work on in your spare time, either blogs or little e-businesses or software-as-a-service applications. Wouldn't it be great if you could just make a living on that stuff and leave the paycheck-to-paycheck grind behind?

The subjects of this article on accidental entrepreneurs did just that.

The Entrepreneurship Bug Done Bit Me

When I read the title of this article -- Entrepreneurial bug bites more college students -- I immediately thought of the lyrics from Diana Ross and The Supremes's song "Love Is Here and Now You're Gone." Here's why. All I did was substitute entrepreneurship for love:

The entrepreneurship bug done bit me
Didn't mean for him (her!) to get me
Woo, get up in the morning
And I'm filled with desire
No, no, I can't stop the fire
Entrepreneurship is a real life wire
Ooh, it's a burning sensation
Far behind imagination

Entrepreneurship is like an itching in my heart
Tearing it all apart
Just an itching in my heart
And baby, I can't scratch it
Keeps me sighing, ooh
Keeps me yearning

No, mama can't help me
No, daddy can't help me
I've been bitten by the entrepreneurship bug
And I need some information
To help me out this situation

Now, when you're ill
You take a pill
When your thirsty
Drink your fill
What you gonna do
When entrepreneurship gets a hold
A hold on you
Entrepreneurship is like an itching in my heart
And baby, I can't scratch it

Entrepreneurship is a nagging irritation
Causing my heart complication
Entrepreneurship is a growing infection
And I don't know the correction
Got me rockin' and areelin'
And I can't shake the feelin'

Entrepreneurship is like an itching in my heart
Tearing it all apart
Just an itching in my heart
And baby, I can't scratch it
Keeps me sighing, ooh
Keeps me yearning

Keeps me burning
Keeps me tossing
Keeps me turning
Keeps me yearning

I've been bitten by the entrepreneurship bug
And I need some information
To help me out this situation
Entrepreneurship is a nagging irritation
Causing my heart complication

I've been bitten by the entrepreneurship bug...

Sew ...

what do Sting, Elton John and Madonna all have in common besides being great entertainers? They each hired tech savvy female entrepreneur Megan Duckett who just earned her business -- Sew What? Inc. -- the 2006 Dell/National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) Small-Business Excellance Award.

Read more about the program here and visit Sew What? Inc. here.

(Note: From backdrops for Sting, Elton John and Madonna to red velvet curtains for the cover of Rolling Stone, custom theatrical drape maker Sew What? marries new technology with a centuries-old craft. "I never dreamed that the tiny business I started on my kitchen table would grow into the global business we have today," said Megan.)

On behalf of women entrepreneurs across the planet, we congratulate Megan and wish her continued success!

Happy Birthday to America and Escape From Corporate America!

Happy Birthday America -- celebrating 230 years of FREEDOM -- and reminding us that the words engraved at the base of the Statue of Liberty bear witness to a noble truth: "For the tired, the poor, the world's huddled masses yearning to breathe free, America remains a powerful beacon of hope."


In addition to America's birthday, please join me in celebrating Escape From Corporate America's birthday No. 2. We started this blog on July 4, 2004 and had no idea that there would be such a proliferation of blogs created in blogosphere. It goes to show you that if you have passion, are tenacious and have something important to say, you can achieve great things.

I want to take this opportunity to thank all of you for your readership and support along the way because without it, this blog would not be possible. So I look forward to many more vibrant and insightful conversations with you in the future.

Now let me sprinkle some stardust of "hope" on you. Today, may you escape and start that business you've been dreaming about. Anything is possible!

Best wishes,
Laurel

Are Women Entrepreneurs Better?

"As the economy heats up, it’s sobering to think that the real competition for talent isn’t other firms -- it's the business and ideas incubating inside women’s minds." -- Margaret Heffernan



This is a fantastic commentary published in Forbes by Margaret Heffernan that supports this blog on every front as to why women are leaving corporate America in droves for entrepreneurship. Read it here and get ready to kick ... or I should say ... change how the world does business.

Meet Martha Burk, author of Cult of Power

Dr. Martha Burk is a political psychologist and women's equity expert who is co-founder and President of the Center for Advancement of Public Policy, a research and policy analysis organization in Washington, D.C.

Dr. Burk's book, Cult of Power: Sex Discrimination in Corporate America and What Can Be Done About It, unmasks how corporate America conspires to keep women down, and offers solid solutions.

I haven't read it yet but it sounds intriguing. For more information, please visit National Council of Women's Organizations.

Breaking the glass ceiling once and for all

New publication launched June 2006

From America to Oman, Escape Is the Common Ground

The Big Business Idea Competition 2006, the only one of its kind in Oman, was launched yesterday under the auspices of Ahmed Hassan Al Dheeb, undersecretary of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, at the Knowledge Oasis Muscat (KOM) yesterday.

The Knowledge Mine (TKM) -- Ernst & Young Big Business Idea Competition 2006 -- as it is known, is an initiative to spot ‘would-be’ entrepreneurs who want to turn their ideas into a successful business.

The competition is designed to encourage Omani students, researchers and entrepreneurs to act on their talent, ideas and energy to produce tomorrow’s leading businesses, which hopefully will generate enough employment opportunities for other young Omanis.

Read the article here: Chance to Turn Big Ideas Into Big Business.

Certification helps women-owned firms compete

Shoving aside an oversized spool of electrical cable and casually grabbing a pair of wire cutters to pose for a picture, there's little doubt that Mercedes LaPorta feels at ease in her sprawling warehouse in Medley, surrounded by more than $3 million in electrical supplies.

But there was a time it wasn't so comfortable being a woman in a man's world.

Read the article here.