PROBLEMS OF WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS
IN INDIA
A woman working as entrepreneur
is not a new concept. They have been running enterprises at an individual level
or with their spouses, successfully, since ages, though they have never got the
credit or appreciation for the same. With time they have learn’t the tricks of
the trade and with experience have improved in terms of managerial and
leadership skills. Unlike male counterparts, women entrepreneurs have different
objectives behind starting an enterprise. It is the sense of achievement and
not of earning only profit that motivates them to be entrepreneurs. The
objective is different, and so are the problems faced by they and they should
have a fair idea of the same so that they can deal with them tactfully.
The
foremost problem faced by women entrepreneurs is that of financing and they
usually come across gender discrimination when it comes to convincing and
obtaining of financial aid from the financial institutions. Also at times there
is resistance from the government institutions for the purchase of goods and
services from the women entrepreneurs, though this attitude is changing now.
Another issue faced by women entrepreneurs is that of balancing time that they
have to execute between their venture and the family. They have to take care of
the needs of their children and also execute the managerial functions of their
business.
So,
it can be said that the work load of a women entrepreneur is comparatively more
than that of their male counterpart. Absence of strong infrastructure, lack of
educational or training programs so as to improve their technical skills with
respect to the enterprise, inefficient system, casual approach of the employees
towards their authority and non supportive cultural & social obstacles that
view women entrepreneurship negatively can also be some of the problems faced
by women entrepreneurs.
Push-Pull factors and Women in
business
Women
in business are a recent phenomenon in India. By and large they had confined
themselves to petty business and tiny cottage industries. Women entrepreneurs
engaged in business due to push and pull factors. Which encourage women to have
an independent occupation and stand on their own legs? A sense towards
independent decision-making on their life and career is the motivational factor
behind this urge. Saddled with household chores and domestic responsibilities women
want to get independence under the influence of these factors the women
entrepreneurs choose a profession as a challenge and as an urge to do something
new. Such situation is described as pull factors. While in push factors women
engaged in business activities due to family compulsion and the responsibility
is thrust upon them.
Women in India are faced many
problems to get ahead their life in business. A few problems can be detailed
as;
1.
The greatest deterrent to women entrepreneurs is that they are women. A kind of patriarchal – male dominant social
order is the building block to them in their way towards business success. Male
members think it a big risk financing the ventures run by women.
2.
The financial institutions are skeptical about the entrepreneurial abilities of
women. The bankers put unrealistic and unreasonable securities to get loan to
women entrepreneurs. According to a report by the United Nations Industrial
Development Organization UNIDO, "despite evidence those women’s loan repayment
rates are higher than men's, women still face more difficulties in obtaining
credit," often due to discriminatory attitudes of banks and informal
lending groups.
3.
Entrepreneurs usually require financial assistance of some kind to launch their
ventures - be it a formal bank loan or money from a savings account. Women in
developing nations have little access to funds, due to the fact that they are
concentrated in poor rural communities with few opportunities to borrow money.
4.
Women's family obligations also bar them from becoming successful entrepreneurs
in both developed and developing nations. "Having primary responsibility
for children, home and older dependent family members, few women can devote all
their time and energies to their business".
5.
Indian women give more emphasis to family ties and relationships. Married women
have to make a fine balance between business and home. More over the business
success is depends on the support the family members extended to women in the
business process and management.
6.
Another argument is that women entrepreneurs have low-level management skills.
They have to depend on office staffs and intermediaries, to get things done,
especially, the marketing and sales side of business. Here there is more probability
for business fallacies like the intermediaries take major part of the surplus
or profit.
7.
The male - female competition is another factor, which develop hurdles to women
entrepreneurs in the business management process. Despite the fact that women
entrepreneurs are good in keeping their service prompt and delivery in time,
due to lack of organizational skills compared to male entrepreneurs women have
to face constraints from competition.
8.
Knowledge of alternative source of raw materials availability and high
negotiation skills are the basic requirement to run a business. Getting the raw materials from different
sources with discount prices is the factor that determines the profit margin.
Lack of knowledge of availability of the raw materials and low-level
negotiation and bargaining skills are the factors, which affect women
entrepreneur's business adventures.
9.
Knowledge of latest technological changes, know how, and education level of the
person are significant factor that affect business. The literacy rate of women
in India is found at low level compared to male population. Many women in
developing nations lack the education needed to spur successful
entrepreneurship. They are ignorant of new technologies or unskilled in their
use, and often unable to do research and gain the necessary training.
10. Low-level risk taking attitude is another
factor affecting women folk decision to get into business. Low-level education
provides low-level self-confidence and self-reliance to the women folk to
engage in business, which is continuous risk taking and strategic cession
making profession. Investing money, maintaining the operations and ploughing
back money for surplus generation requires high risk taking attitude, courage
and confidence.
11. Achievement motivation of the women folk
found less compared to male members. The
low level of education and confidence leads to low level achievement and
advancement motivation among women folk to engage in business operations and
running a business concern.
12. Finally high production cost of some business
operations adversely affects the development of women entrepreneurs. The
installation of new machineries during expansion of the productive capacity and
like similar factors dissuades the women entrepreneurs from venturing into new
areas.
Development Of Women
Entrepreneurs.
Right
efforts on from all areas are required in the development of women
entrepreneurs and their greater participation in the entrepreneurial
activities. Following efforts can be taken into account for effective
development of women entrepreneurs.
1.
Consider women as specific target group for all developmental programmes.
2.
Better educational facilities and schemes should be extended to women folk from
government part.
3.
Adequate training programme on management skills to be provided to women
community.
4.
Encourage women's participation in decision-making.
5.
Vocational training to be extended to women community that enables them to
Understand the production process and production management.
6.
Skill development to be done in women's polytechnics and industrial training
institutes. Skills are put to work in training-cum-production workshops.
7.
Training on professional competence and leadership skill to be extended to
women entrepreneurs.
8.
Training and counseling on a large scale of existing women entrepreneurs to
remove Psychological causes like lack of
self-confidence and fear of success.
9.
Counseling through the aid of committed NGOs, psychologists, managerial experts
and technical personnel should be provided to existing and emerging women Entrepreneurs.
10.Continuous
monitoring and improvement of training programmes.
11.
Activities in which women are trained should focus on their Marketability and Profitability.
12.
Making provision of marketing and sales assistance from government part.
13.
To encourage more passive women entrepreneurs the Women training programme Should be organized that taught to recognize
her own psychological needs and express them.
14.
State finance corporations and financing institutions should permit by statute
to extend purely trade related finance to women entrepreneurs.
15.Women's
development corporations have to gain access to open-ended financing.
16.The
financial institutions should provide more working capital assistance both for
small scale venture and large scale ventures.
17.
Making provision of micro credit system and enterprise credit system to the
women entrepreneurs at local level.
18.
Repeated gender sensitization programmes should be held to train financiers to
treat Women with dignity and respect as persons in their own right.
19.
Infrastructure, in the form of industrial plots and sheds, to set up industries
is to be provided by state run agencies.
20.
Industrial estates could also provide marketing outlets for the display and
sale of products made by women.
21.
A Women Entrepreneur's Guidance Cell set up to handle the various problems of
Women entrepreneurs all over the state .
22.
District Industries Centers and Single Window Agencies should make use of
assisting Women in their trade and business guidance.
23.
Programmes for encouraging entrepreneurship among women are to be extended
at local level.
24.
Training in entrepreneurial attitudes should start at the high school level
through well- designed courses, which build confidence through behavioral
games.
25.
More governmental schemes to motivate women entrepreneurs to engage in small
scale and large-scale business ventures.
26.
Involvement of Non Governmental Organizations in women entrepreneurial
training programmes and counseling.
CONCLUSION
Independence
brought promise of equality of opportunity in all sphere to the Indian women
and laws guaranteeing for their equal rights of participation in political
process and equal opportunities and rights in education and employment were
enacted. But unfortunately, the government sponsored development activities
have benefited only a small section of women. The large majority of them are
still unaffected by change and development activities have benefited only a
small section of women i.e. the urban middle class women. The large majority of
them are still unaffected by change and development. The reasons are well
sighted in the discussion part of this article. It is hoped that the
suggestions forwarded in the article will help the entrepreneurs in particular
and policy-planners in general to look into this problem and develop better
schemes, developmental programmes and opportunities to the women folk to enter
into more entrepreneurial ventures. This article here tries to recollect some
of the successful women entrepreneurs like Ekta Kapoor, Creative Director,
Balaji Telefilms, Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Biocon, Shahnaz Husain and Vimalben
M Pawale, Ex President, Sri Mahila Griha Udyog Lijjat Papad (SMGULP).
REFERENCES
Renuka V. (2001) Opportunities
and challenges for women in business, India Together, Online Report, Civil
Society Information Exchange Pvt. Ltd.
Dhameja S K (2002), Women
Entrepreneurs: Opportunities, performance, problems, Deep publications (p) Ltd,
New Delhi, p 11.
Rashmi.B
Research
Scholar (Ph.D),
Bangalore
University,
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