Career choice, growth and well-being of women entrepreneurs’ community: insights on driving factors in India
Journal of Enterprising Communities: People and Places in the Global Economy
ISSN: 1750-6204
Article publication date: 14 July 2021
Issue publication date: 14 September 2022
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore the entrepreneurial journey of select women entrepreneurs from South India to provide qualitative insights into the factors influencing their career choice (to become and continue as an entrepreneur) and to identify the drivers of their growth and well-being.
Design/methodology/approach
Semi-structured interviews were conducted to gather data from 35 women entrepreneurs in the micro, small and medium enterprises sectors of Tamil Nadu, India. Data were content analyzed using NVivo 12.
Findings
Qualitative content analysis identified three broad themes and several sub-themes to suggest a conceptual framework reflecting the possible relationships among them. Women entrepreneurs’ career choice, the growth of their ventures and their well-being were found to be significantly driven by a blend of personal attributes, strong family support and institutional support.
Practical implications
The findings will help the government to provide appropriate institutional support with customized initiatives and incentives to encourage women-owned tiny and small businesses to grow faster. Appropriate personality development programs and skills training will aid their growth.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the entrepreneurship literature by providing real-life insights from women entrepreneurs from an emerging economy context, especially from Tamil Nadu, which has the highest number of women entrepreneurs in India.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank the Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR) for funding this research (Project No. IMPRESS/P1424/81/18-19/ICSSR). The authors would like to thank the anonymous reviewers and the editors for their valuable feedback.
Citation
Banu, J. and Baral, R. (2022), "Career choice, growth and well-being of women entrepreneurs’ community: insights on driving factors in India", Journal of Enterprising Communities: People and Places in the Global Economy, Vol. 16 No. 5, pp. 781-807. https://doi.org/10.1108/JEC-12-2020-0206
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2021, Emerald Publishing Limited