Competencies of women entrepreneurs utilizing information marketing businesses
Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development
ISSN: 1462-6004
Article publication date: 15 August 2016
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to report the entrepreneurial competencies of women entrepreneurs who used information marketing businesses for their business-related education.
Design/methodology/approach
A questionnaire-based survey of female entrepreneurs who engaged with one information marketing business was conducted. This study utilized Mitchelmore and Rowley’s (2013) survey instrument, Female Entrepreneurial Competencies (FEC), to analyse the four main entrepreneurial competency clusters: personal and relationship, business and management, entrepreneurial, and human relations competencies. Numeric data were collected via survey from women who engaged with a single information marketing company through e-mail and social media. Using descriptive analysis, the participants’ responses were assessed for the purpose of analysing the self-perceptions of their entrepreneurial competency abilities.
Findings
The research found women ranked their competencies in the following order, from highest to lowest: personal and relationship, entrepreneurial, business and management, and human relations. The majority of women who engaged in this research’s information marketing business were middle-aged or slightly younger (between ages 26 and 44), highly educated, and owned a relatively new business.
Originality/value
This study is the first to offer analysis of the entrepreneurial competencies of women entrepreneurs who utilize information marketing businesses for their business-related education. By identifying the entrepreneurial competencies of this subset of women, information marketing businesses could better focus their educational tools to meet the women’s competency needs.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
This research was supported by Dr Siwan Mitchelmore and Dr Jennifer Rowley who graciously allowed the authors to utilize their Female Entrepreneurial Competencies (FEC) assessment to further the research in this field.
Citation
Revell-Love, C. and Revell-Love, T. (2016), "Competencies of women entrepreneurs utilizing information marketing businesses", Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, Vol. 23 No. 3, pp. 831-853. https://doi.org/10.1108/JSBED-02-2016-0027
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2016, Emerald Group Publishing Limited