Introduction: programs, policies and practices: fostering high-growth womens entrepreneurship

Abstract

Women’s entrepreneurship is widely recognized as a source of economic and social development (Hechavarría et al., 2019). The 2016 Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) Women’s Report in 74 economies noted 274 million women had new or established businesses contributing jobs and innovations (Kelley et al., 2017). Despite their participation and contributions, there is a persistent storyline that women entrepreneurs do not perform as well as their male counterparts, in terms of sales, employment growth, or profitability (Orser et al., 2006; Fairlie and Robb, 2009). While there is some research examining performance and growth, the results are inconclusive as to whether there are differences, and what the causes of these might be (Robb and Watson, 2012). Growth-oriented businesses are essential for all economies to succeed because they are more likely to create jobs, support communities, and achieve higher productivity, innovation and exports. Interest in programs, policies and practices around fostering high-growth entrepreneurship has increased significantly over the past decade. Let us start by explaining what we mean by each of these terms: programs, policies and practices. Programs include entrepreneurial training and curriculum that are focused on facilitating entrepreneurial activity (e.g., university programming, accelerators, incubators, National Science Foundation I-Corps, etc.). Policies refer to measures undertaken to establish entrepreneur-friendly legal and regulatory frameworks that are intended to foster growth-oriented new businesses and the process of innovation. Examples include initiatives that incentivize entrepreneurial activity, thus minimizing the risk and uncertainty associated with the process, as well as activities that ensure access to finance for innovation and growth. Practices are what is—common behaviors and institutional conventions in a particular society or context (e.g., encouraging cultural actions that promote and reward entrepreneurship).