Different Ways Of Doing Work At Home Business Essay - Free Essay Example

The term Entrepreneur is defined by many scholars. A common definition says Entrepreneur is a French term for any person who develops and undertakes a new enterprise at some risk (or failure or loss).  [1] WOMEN ENTREPRENEURSHIP DEFINED: Marlow (2002) gave an insight into the concept of Gender Entrepreneurship that it is not restricted to only one gender now, somewhat due to many pressures faced by women; they have found the sight of their own and of their familys economic survival by working alongside men (Kalim, n.d.). In the words of Moore and Buttner (1997) and Brunetto (2009), women entrepreneurs are defined as those who avail their knowledge and possessions to initiate a new venture, who are vigorously involved in organizing their undertaking, and are the owner of at least 50 percent of the business (Rashid Anwar, n.d). INTRODUCTION/BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY: The concept of Women Entrepreneurship is gaining importance among various classes of societies across nations. Female entrepreneurship is creating magic capacity to craft huge miracles all over the world and bring out potentially privileged women in the business environment and providing females with the ultimate joy of her decisions. Despite the importance of late, but well recognized women entrepreneurship; business is still regarded as a sphere of influence amongst men in any society due to various social aspects and prejudices against the women business phenomenon. Academic circles and government of developing countries have not properly highlighted female business owners, in spite of their momentous mark in entrepreneurial junctions. The business world has implanted gender gap and this incongruity is abundant in developing nations, which are socially and culturally towards the back and is characterized by societal discriminations. Wennekers (1999) discusses that worldwid e, females are believed to be having a feeble gender in both physical and an emotional sense. Hence, the panoramas to expand into business experts still needs to be discovered and requires more concentration (Kalim, n.d.). Hisrich (1999) believes that women stay hesitant in startups merely because of the trends and pressures of the community and society. In developing countries, particularly, there are more of other aspects which influence a woman to stay at a distance in becoming a potential entrepreneur (Kalim, n.d.). Pakistan, being a developing country in the Asia pacific region has more number of women than men. Adhering to the patriarchal roles of both sexes in the country, a females position is believed to be fit in the home and not in the place of work, where a man is the sole income earner of the family. Thus, investment in women business or education is by far very less as compared to that of men. Pakistani women undergo a dearth of opportunities.  [2]  According to the Pakistan Economic Census, 2005 by the Federal Bureau of Statistics, there are 70,658 women business owners operating in Pakistan. It represents 3 % of all ventures in Pakistan, It is estimated that the majority of women fall into the category of firms belonging to SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises). The level of women participating in the development of the business currently is around 16%.  [3]  According to GEM, 2011 report, women in Pakistan, represents as only one-tenth of entrepreneurs.  [4] In Pakistan, the number of individuals having a positive attitude towards entrepreneurship is less than the average of its factor driven peer economies. Moreover, the female population has a less positive attitude towards entrepreneurship in Pakistan as compared to the male population (A.Mian Qureishi, 2010). The Pakistani women venture growth is meager, but still, there are gradual signs of progressions. Roomi Parrot (2008) discusses that there are different socio-ec onomic factors which obstruct the promising escalation of female self-employment opportunities and calls for the spotlight given by the government and academicians. These factors create barriers to fold many of the dimensions that can be related not only to motivational factors, but also to the operational issues associated for running a female owned undertaking. Due to these factors, in spite of having a greater and productive number of women, the nation is deprived of proper utilization of their unleashed potential which is essential for its economic development and prosperity. Even, the capable women of Pakistan do not enjoy the luxury of self-owned business. This particular study has a specific aim of establishing the fact that there exists an alliance among various important aspects acting as antecedents to the business related performance which is at the disposal of Women Entrepreneurs in Pakistan. EVOLUTION: The entrepreneurial study traces back to the work of Richard Cantillon and Adam Smith in the late 17th and early 18th centuries, but was overlooked until the late 19th and early 20th centuries until a radical upswing in the business and economics in the last 40 years. In the 20th century, the insight of entrepreneurship is to be indebted to the efforts of economist Joseph Schumpeter in the 1930s and other Austrian economists such as Friedrich Von Hayek, Carl Menger and Ludwing Von Mises. The evolution of women entrepreneurship was started by Marxists bloc who came up with the idea that supports women liberation and empowerment. Pakistani women were involved in the production for centuries. In 1988, Benazir Bhutto (daughter of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto) turned out to be the first female Prime Minister of Pakistan, and the first women elected to head a Muslim country. She proclaimed plans to set up females courts, police stations and womens development banks. Womens Studies Center s at five universities were created in Islamabad, Karachi, Quetta, Peshawar and Lahore in the year 1989 by the Ministry of Women Development (MWD). Conversely, due to lack of administrative and financial support, four of these centers became non-functional. Womens financial needs were dealt by launching the First Women Bank Ltd. (FWBL) in 1989. By 1990, women made up in making up only 19 percent of the labor force. The United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) held a national study in 1992 on womens contribution in the economy and set forth for the policy planners and donor agencies to realize and cut the parables of womens participation in labor force. Information from this study was also incorporated into the 8th Five-Year Plan (1993-98). At that time, there were assorted groups supporting small-scale projects all through the state incorporating the All-Pakistan Womens Association, Womens Action Forum, Business and Professional Womens Association, and the Pakistan Women Lawyers Association. Protection against stalking of women at the workplace Bill 2009 was signed by President Asif Ali Zardari on 29th January, 2010, which the parliament espouse on 21st January, 2010. Business women in the formal sense, is still a new concept. The entrepreneurial atmosphere for females in Pakistan reflects complex interplay of many factors, which consists of the social, cultural, religious and traditional. For ages, they are embedded in the patriarchal system and are clearly reflected in the form of lower status of women. CURRENT STATUS: Females involvement in the current society extends beyond agricultural economy. They are majorly migrating to metropolitan areas in search of employment in a variety of cottage industries. Many women are coming under the horizon of entrepreneurial world. Women representing 51% of total population in Pakistan has shown that they have been playing a highly anticipated and a challenging task fuelling the economic growth of the country in the past decade. What is interesting in this context is 3.7% increase in 2008-09 for the people, of which the growth rate of women in the labor market is higher than their counterparts. (Economic Survey of Pakistan, 2009-10). The opportunities are to a great extent much more open now. More role models and encouragement is being provided with much more women coming out in the entrepreneurial world. Yet, there is still a strong scarcity of considerate initiatives that is required by existing business facilitation institutions and government. Th e new scenario is raising woman as an entrepreneur as there is own chamber of commerce. The women bank is in place and there are other institutes providing support to female business owners. Moreover, there are lots of females entering the entrepreneurial junctions as in services sector, apparel, education and likewise in many such horizons. 1.2 PROBLEM STATEMENT Over all Objectives: To explore and identify the factors that affects the performance of women entrepreneurs. Specific aims: To identify the factors that limits women mobility, economic participation and business activity. Reviewing the operating environment under which women are constraint. Identifying what supports are given to women entrepreneurs (by institutes/organizations) to solve problems they face. Acknowledge womens worth and work and their contribution in all spheres of life which in major circumstances is being ignored plus their role as equal partners in development and for making economic, social and political progresses. 1.3 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY The importance of conducting this study is that it will be beneficial to all those information seekers and many more. The imperativeness of this study is as under: The study would help me better understand the realistic factors that lead to confining the performance of women entrepreneurs in Pakistan and this thesis will serve as a strong basis for my future educational and professional life. It can provide as a source of valuable information to anyone specially women undertaking entrepreneurial junction. It can be a valuable source of information for government and institutes with the purpose of providing support to women entrepreneurs. Moreover, information exchanges between these institutes and different organizations will be increased. The study conducted can be a reliable source to the research based organizations. Linkages with the international women organizations and other international bodies would be made. The study can be an impulsive reference material for teachers and students. 1.4 SCOPE OF THE STUDY This study is curbed to the premises of Karachi. The research information will be collected from women entrepreneurs engaged in various businesses in multi unit industry, and organizations which are working for the expansion of women capabilities in different fields of work and taking care of their interests. 1.5 DELIMITATIONS The project is limited to the views of the Women Entrepreneurs and the Women support Organizations in Karachi. There is a possibility that the respondents can be biased and are not willing to express their true feelings. Moreover, due to changing economic conditions, or any change in the structure or services of the women support organizations after the submission of the report will not be taken into account. 1.6 DEFINITIONS OF TERMS BUSINESS VENTURE: A start-up enterprise developed with the purpose of financially profiting. It may also be taken as a small business. COMMUNITY: A community is a group of interacting organisms sharing an environment. In human communities, intent, beliefs, needs, preferences, resources, risks and a number of other conditions may be present and common, affecting the identity of the participants and their degree of cohesiveness. SOCIETY: Generally, people living collectively with laws and conventions in arranged communities, directing the way that they act towards one another. It can also be a club or organization of people who holds a special interest or who indulges in a particular activity. PATRIARCHY: It is a form of social institute, where a male is the prime head of the family. Kinship and title are traced through the male line. Any such society or role governed by such a belief is known to be a patriarchal society/role. SMEs: Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are autonomous, non-subsidiary firms employing less than a given number of employees. This number varies across countries. EMPOWERMENT: It is giving the authority or command to someone to carry out something. In other words, it may also be termed as making someone certain and more confident, particularly, in controlling their lives and claiming their rights. DISCRIMINATION: It is the unfair or ill-treatment of a person, racial, group, minority, etc, i.e., the actions based on prejudices. STALKING: It is a criminal activity consisting of the repeated followings and harassing of another person. GEM : Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) is the worlds largest research association of entrepreneurship. It is the yearly assessment of the entrepreneurial activity, ambitions and attitudes of people across various nations. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: It is the progress in an economy, or the qualitative measure of this. Adoption of new technologies, transition from agriculture-based to industry-based economy and general improvement in living is referred as economic development. COUNSELING: Counseling refers to one individual (the counselor) assisting another individual (the client) to work on some painful or complex emotional relationship or behavioral dilemma or difficulty. A form of guidance or advice by an educated person is known as Counseling. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE: A form of business network, e.g. a local organization of business with the aim of promoting the business interests. FACTOR-DRIVEN ECONOMIES: The countries that live on for basic requirements. From subsistence agriculture to extraction of natural resources is the dominant basis or key development focus of factor-driven economies. EFFICIENCY-DRIVEN ECONOMIES: These countries key development focus is on increased industrialization and producing more advanced products and services highly efficiently. INNOVATION-DRIVEN ECONOMIES: Research and development, growing services sector and knowledge intensity is the central source of the advantage of Innovation-driven nations. These economies have i ncreased potential for innovative entrepreneurial activity. 1.7 DIFFERENT WAYS OF STARTING OWN WORK SITTING AT HOME In our patriarchal system, most women, especially after marriage becomes too busy that they do not prefer a 9 -5 job as a feasible option with kids and family, but that is not the end of the roads. According to a famous proverb When there is a will, there is a way, holds true for such women who may start their own work and be able to earn money by sitting at home too! Various opportunities are stated as under: Tuition: There are many students who want to be assisted and tutored in one or many subjects, if any women at home can handle any subject; the option is open for her/them. Organizing Children Parties: Most of the children celebrate their birthdays and their parents often offer such event organizing to various event managers or other people interested in the work. So, this is a very good opportunity for women to knock. They may start off with a little painting, making birthday decoration banners, cards or goodie bags for the party. Food and Catering This is an excellent means for those who have a good hand in cooking. Those women who have an expertise in this arena may provide excellent hygienic homemade food to the working people. After setting contacts with offices, bakery, homes or any other spot, they can offer their catering to these junctions by sitting at home. Moreover, if these women have well teaching skills, they may also conduct cooking classes too. Resume Making Impressive resumes are the gateways for getting good jobs. So, women seeking home based work may start their careers with pitched and designed resume making business. A resume writer is in great demand, so the women with this skill and interest might enter this area with a deep understanding of how different industries appoints employees, the qualification they look in for the candidate and the manner in which recruitments are carried out. Graphic Designer A graphic designer also requires animation, logos and graphic for websites. Women can design the jobs of their dreams by creating brochures, menus, invitation and more for clients in need of their graphic skills. Equipped with good illustrated talents, imaginative skills and aesthetic senses, anyone can take the plugs into this much in demand occupation. Women need to have the latest knowledge about design software, such as Photoshop, illustrator, GIF animator and QuarkXPress. Women adopting this occupation should be ready to take criticisms and rejections in their stride and be open for suggestions coming in from their respective clients. Editorial Services If a woman has an excellent command over the language, good grammar, spelling skills and an ability to translate ideas into words in an interesting and lucid way with a good imagination, then she is just the right person to run an editorial service. Managing an editorial service essentially involves writing copy texts, slogans and articles for publications, at firms or at a public relations organization. If suitably skilled, women can add the news letters of legal, medical or technical organizations as well. As an unspecialized editor, they may also render services to ad agencies, PR houses and general publication. Computer Instructor Women should have a complete command over the machine and be able to explain complicated jargons in simple terms, good communication skills and effective interpersonal rapport will make them a favored instructor. They can teach basic computer skills to adults, children, senior citizens, new employees, students and to the people in their own locality. Internet Researcher With a few clicks and keywords, a woman can surf her own way into profit with an internet research business. All they know is the way around Alta Vista, Lycos, Hotspot, Yahoo, Google and other search engines. The essential qualities to be a successful internet researcher are sharp research skills, a thorough familiarity with the net and leading websites/journals on various topics and flair of sorting out important fact from the content. Image Consultant The job basically stands for offering service on personality enhancement, ranging from how to dress, speak and significantly advice on body language. Women can consult individual clients or organize community workshops to make people be more confident of their looks and disposition. Counseling If any woman has the desired qualification or practical experience, they may council people for marital, teenage, depression-related problems with the help of proper mental and emotional healing. Writing blogs A large number of women are engaged in writing blogs and they have been able to earn lots of money. Apart of just making money, women develop networking as well, where people acknowledge them. This is one of the most flexible jobs women can undertake. In Pakistan, this concept is gaining awareness and women are engaging in this own home-based working. Madrassa A large number of religious families find it difficult to send their women outside of their homes. Opening up of a madrassa for teaching of kids and ladies is a very effective way of working at home at own-set schedule. Starting a business on social media The most demanding and hype creating arena for a woman to work sitting at home is by starting a business on social media. The business may be ranged from offering candles to designing of dresses is done. This is the most common and the latest trend of doing business. 1.8 LAYOUT OF THE PROJECT CHAPTER NO.2 RESEARCH METHODS AND PROCEDURES 2.0 INTRODUCTION 2.1 RESEARCH PHILOSOPHY 2.2 RESEARCH STRATEGY 2.3 RESEARCH DESIGN 2.4 UNIT OF ANALYSIS 2.5 TIME HORIZON 2.6 RESEARCH INSTRUMENT 2.7 DATA COLLECTION 2.8 DATA ANALYSIS 2.9 CONCLUSION 2.0 INTRODUCTION This chapter identifies and explains the conceptual framework and tools used in conducting the study. 2.1 RESEARCH PHILOSOPHY According to Easterby-Smith et al (1997), the research philosophy is important to be explored because it assists the researcher to specify the research methods and to clarify the overall research strategy to be used in the study. Likewise, there are two major types of research philosophies, namely positivism and interpretivism (Fisher, 2004). Davies (2007) also identified research philosophies as positivism and interpretivism. In the words of Collis and Hussey (2003, pg:52), Positivism relies on the fact that human behavioral studies should be conducted the same way as the studies conducted in natural sciences. The fundamental assumption in this philosophy is that there exists an objective reality which is independent of human behavior. Furthermore, Easterby-Smith, Thorpe and Law (2002) states that positivist approach relies on statistical studies and it gathers those observations that can be quantified. Whereas, the other philosophy, namely interpretivism assists in better u nderstanding of intentions and goals behind peoples actions and reactions (Saunders et al, 2003). In the words of Saunders (2007, p:107), this philosophy is suitable for business and management research as they are concerned with the social world in which we live. This philosophy favors qualitative data. The researcher is open to new ideas throughout the study. Moreover, unlike positivism, interpretivist philosophy is not confined to what can be physically observed. According to Web (1989), the disparity between the philosophies is overstated to some scholars. Polit (2001) also state that triangulation of methods in current day research is common. Moreover, in the words of Scheurich (2007) management and business research is often a mixture of both philosophies. Therefore, adhering to all this, the research would mainly incorporate interpretivist approach but some elements of positivist philosophy are also included as the research mainly examines human beings, their behavior and experiences in an in-depth way and also it will study the realities that have an effect on humans. 2.2 RESEARCH STRATEGY Research strategy is a roadmap for a researcher to further his study. Yin (2003) and Saunders et al (2009) recognized different variety of research strategies with underlying consideration to identify the advantages and disadvantages of all these and to select the most appropriate one(s). Collis and Hussey (2009) identified some common research strategies as: experiment, survey, case study, action research, grounded theory, archival research and ethnography. Feminist perspective is another research strategy  [5]  . Multiple research strategies are adopted for this research project keeping in line with its objectives. The survey method is also taken into account of this research. In this method, the researcher adopts two techniques (i.e. by spreading questionnaire and conducting semi-structured interviews) to collect relevant data for my research work. The researcher will develop a personally administered questionnaire inquiring the view points of women entrepreneurs in accor dance with research problem. The other technique that I will employ is by conducting a semi-structured interview with organizations supporting women entrepreneurial junctions by asking relevant questions. Feminist perspective is the third strategy adopted in this research. This strategy focuses on knowledge grounded in female experiences and is beneficial to everyone, especially women. In the business sense, study revolves around womens role in a business or organization and on their views, roles, influences and concerns. 2.3 RESEARCH DESIGN To conduct this research, both exploratory and descriptive study will be considered. As exploratory study will help the researcher in aiming to explore factors that affects the performance of women entrepreneurs and descriptive study will help the researcher in describing the characteristics of people, organizations and environments surrounding these women entrepreneurs as essential for the research. Moreover, both qualitative and quantitative data would comprise the study. 2.4 UNIT OF ANALYSIS The units of analysis are the respondents of this research report, which would be: The women entrepreneurs of Karachi with a sample size of 35 to provide greater heterogeneity. The questionnaires were filled out by face to face meetings, using social networking websites and also via email correspondence. Organizations/Institutes supporting women entrepreneurs. 2.5 TIME HORIZON 2.6 RESEARCH INSTRUMENT: Interview Questionnaire Observation 2.7 DATA COLLECTION For the data collection process, it is very necessary to identify and select the appropriate data collection method for the research. Saunders et al (2007) identified five methods of gathering data: Interviews, Sampling, secondary data, questionnaires and observation. Additionally, there are two main types of data collection sources as primary and secondary. Primary data sources for the research include: Questionnaire to women entrepreneurs in multi-unit capacities across Karachi Semi-structured Interview from Organizations supporting women entrepreneurs Observation would be used in order to get authentic and pertinent acquaintance to note down the gestures and behaviors of the respondents involved in the study. Secondary data sources for the research include: Internet Articles/Journals and Websites Magazines Newspaper Information/Articles Dissertations Blogs Conference Proceedings 2.8 DATA ANALYSIS The ultimate objective of the analysis is to identify the factors that are affecting the performance of women entrepreneurs in Pakistan. So, for this purpose, the data will be analyzed using both the qualitative and quantitative forms. The presentation would be done as: Questionnaires will be analyzed using excel and simple mathematical techniques. Charts and graphs will also be used to present the data collected. Verbal interpretation will be utilized to explain the findings of the research. Thus, the data analysis in this course of action would fetch valuable conclusions for the dissertation. 2.9 CONCLUSION The methodology adopted for the research was the underlying focus in this chapter. In-depth understanding of the research process and design were presented. The next chapter will highlight the reviews of the literature for women in business, their issues and factors that affects their performance.