Women make up almost half of all entrepreneurs globally and during November, the world and the United Nations celebrate Women’s Entrepreneurship Day in an effort to accelerate and educate the world on the importance empowering women in business.

According to a BDC study, women entrepreneurs now account for 28% of all entrepreneurs in Canada and are growing 3.1 times faster than the number of male entrepreneurs. In fact, over the past 40 years, the number of female entrepreneurs has quadrupled.

“Definitions matter: only 15% of small and medium enterprises or SMEs are majority owned by women, about 110,000 companies. But almost 40% of self employed Canadians are women (more than 1 million) Women entrepreneurs are less likely to incorporate their business and are more likely to be in services.” Wendy Cukier, founder of the Diversity Institute

This is important because a new study by the Boston Consulting Group found if women and men participated equally as entrepreneurs the GDP could rise by $5 trillion globally and $80 billion in Canada.

Having worked with predominantly women entrepreneurs for the majority of my career, challenges that have been identified many years ago are still a challenge today. While there are many, I have found these three to be at the top of the list.

Accessible funding: This is a common challenge for a lot of entrepreneurs not just women. While progress has been made by certain financial institutions and organizations such as WeBC here in British Columbia, Canada to make funds available, female entrepreneurs are the most affected. Compared to their male counterparts, women face greater challenges in accessing funding.

Coralus, formerly SheEO and organization that supports women in business globally, is collecting data that shows researched investments in women entrepreneurs produce higher returns and lower risks.

Mentors and Champions: Many women in male dominated industries feel isolated due to lack of mentorship. A Forbes article by Maryann Bruce outlines the importance and the impact mentorship can have for women entrepreneurs. We’ve made headway in encouraging not only successful women but men as well to take up the mentoring mantle. Where more effort is needed is in the championing of women entrepreneurs. Yes, there is a difference.

An analogy: A mentor might tell you to learn to network because the skill will advance your career. A champion will invite you to an event when they know there are people there you should meet. A champion is also your voice when you are not around.

Owning our accomplishments. (also known as the Imposter Sydrome): Despite overwhelming evidence of skills, talents, and achievements, a large percentage of women still feel they don’t deserve recognition. Cultural ‘norms’ both past and present, and qualities ‘expected’ in women have made it seem that when discussing their company or talking about their successes, it may appear to be bragging and as a result, women will take a back seat. Here’s a great article regarding Imposter Syndrome for Female Entrepreneurs.

But it’s not all bad news. There are great skills sets that women bring to the table when it comes to business both as an entrepreneur and in a leadership position. These are three areas that come to the top

1. Resilience: I’ve seen this first hand as we have all navigated the pandemic theses past couple of year and the impact it has had and is still having on our economy. Women have been shifting, adapting and reimagining their businesses and their personal lives.

2. Collaboration Skills: Working with others and building long-lasting relationships is a skill set that many women possess. Creating partnerships and strategic alliances with like businesses has long been an asset for women in business. Along with collaboration is a willingness to ask for help when needed.

3. Solution Oriented: Women have social experiences that help them connect better with others and hence come up with long-lasting solutions. This contributes to women being good leaders and better negotiators as well.  Women are known to be better at conflict solving too. Women try to understand the reason behind the conflict and when you combine that with our amazing emotional quotient, it’s a win-win.

Despite the challenges and hurdles that women in business have to navigate every day, they continue to create, build, grow and succeed in business.

It takes guts to step out of our comfort zones with the belief that we have a service or product that can help make the world a better place and while we’re far from world domination, *smile* studies, reports and trends are all indicating that we’re ‘moving the dial’ in a forward direction.

Cheers to the women entrepreneurs!

Now Go Get  Connected!

An award-winning Leader, Entrepreneur and Business Development Consultant, Cathy teaches entrepreneurs how to increase their influence; build their business and stay sane while doing it. She helps you to let go of limiting beliefs to “Stand Up, Stand Out & Step Forward” for business success. Named one of the Top Ten Mentors by StartUp Canada, Cathy is recognized across the country for her expertise on “All Things Small Biz”. She is the Founder of The Connected Woman Association, is a Director on the Board of WeBC (formerly the Women’s Enterprise Centre), author of numerous books and articles specifically the internationally known “Daily Espressos- Your Read it and Delete it Kickstart to Your Day”, and is a networking maven. (whew!)

For information on upcoming workshops, business coaching or to engage Cathy as a Keynote speaker at your next event, visit www.cathykuzel.com