THE DILEMMA OF GROWTH

The Dilemma of Growth

The Dilemma of Growth

Introduction

In recent years the number of women-owned ?rms with employees has expanded at three times the rate of all employer ?rms. Yet women remain underrepresented in their proportion of high-growth ?rms. A number of plausible explanations exist. To develop richer insights, a two-stage research project was undertaken (Freidan, 1995). A mail survey was sent to a sample of female entrepreneurs to assess motives, obstacles, goals and aspirations, needs, and business identity. Based on the survey results, follow-up, indepth interviews were conducted with entrepreneurs, selecting equally from modestgrowth and high-growth ventures. In terms of quantitative ?ndings, growth orientation was associated with whether a woman was “pushed” or “pulled” into entrepreneurship, was motivated by wealth or achievement factors, had a strong women's identity in the venture, had equity partners, and believed women faced unique selling obstacles. The qualitative research made clear that modest- and highgrowth entrepreneurs differ in how they view themselves, their families, their ventures, and the larger environment. The results of both stages suggest that growth is a deliberate choice and that women have a clear sense of the costs and bene?ts of growth and make careful trade-off decisions (Baines, Wheelock & Abrams, 1997).

Discussion

Various researchers have noted fundamental similarities between male and female entrepreneurs, most notably in terms of key motives, such as the desire for independence or self-achievement, or the tendency to have an internal locus of control (Sarri and Trihopoulou 2005; Orhan 2001; Littunen 2000; Birley 1989; Scott 1986). However, key differences exist as well, and these may have important growth implications (Freidan, 1995).

Arguably, woman-owned ventures are especially affected by con?icts between home and family demands, and these con- ?icts may have deliberate or inadvertent implications for growth (Stoner, Hartman, and Arora 1990). Although both sexes must deal with con?icting demands that include marriage and family concerns, the fact that women often maintain traditional duties in the household and rear children while also managing their ventures has signi?cant implications regarding choices, priorities, and aspirations (Stevenson 1986). As explained by Still and Timms (2000), there is a gender-based circumstance of “domestic division of labor and time poverty” that women must effectively deal with, in order to maintain balance between conducting a business and maintaining a family. Thresholds where growth is suspended or capped may well represent maintenance of control (Still and Timms 2000; Cliff 1998), especially in situations where a woman's life cycle is closely associated with childcare and family responsibilities. Baines, Wheelock, and Abrams (1997) note that employment growth is not greatly valued at key life-cycle stages. Nongrowth becomes a deliberate and legitimate choice of these women (see also Mitra 2002).

Hisrich 1986). However, women entrepreneurs also value the ability to pursue career goals in tandem with family obligations. Studies have shown that for female entrepreneurs, time with family is primary and ventures were sometimes speci?cally founded to allow for more quality time with family (Gundry and Welsch 2001; Starr and Yudkin ...