Enhancing women entrepreneurship through resource orchestration and digital technologies

Women entrepreneurs in developing countries like India often encounter socioeconomic barriers, such as limited accessibility and affordability, which confine their businesses within a closed system. According to the Credit Rating Information Services of India Limited (CRISIL), digital penetration has significantly increased, specifically post-COVID, suggesting that technology-driven entrepreneurship could overcome these challenges. This study explores the “process dynamics” of how digital reliance impacts entrepreneurial success measured by sales growth, market expansion, and product offerings through the lens of resource orchestration theory. Using purposive sampling, data were collected from 213 digital women entrepreneurs and analyzed using SEM with SmartPLS4 software. The findings revealed that women entrepreneurs relying on basic technologies like mobile/web applications and advanced internet technologies like IoT and AR do not directly lead to entrepreneurial success. Instead, these technologies facilitate “resource acquisition” by providing access to business information, strategic advice, and other valuable assets. However, these acquired resources do not directly lead to entrepreneurial success. Further, basic technologies, being transactional, remain isolated tools if not strategically orchestrated, limiting their overall impact on business performance both directly and indirectly through experimentation. In contrast, advanced technologies like IoT, AR, etc., which are transformational, demonstrate both direct and indirect impacts on performance via business experimentation. This study emphasizes women entrepreneurs to integrate their digital tools and differentiate between the impact caused due to reliance on basic versus advanced technologies. It urges policymakers to shift focus from digital adoptions to digital effectiveness through capacity-building programs and promote resource orchestration often overlooked in entrepreneurship discussions.