WOMEN’S ENTREPRENEURSHIP | 4 strategies women use to tackle inequality

The white man is the norm in entrepreneurship in Sweden. This creates major challenges for many women entrepreneurs, according to new research at Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) – which also found four strategies women use to deal with inequality.

Twice as many men as women run businesses in Sweden – a ratio that has remained unchanged for the past 20 years. And the consequences of being in the minority in the entrepreneurial context are significant.

– The women in my study feel that they are treated differently from men who are entrepreneurs. For example, they indicate that they are excluded from contexts, belittled and generally treated as less valuable by actors in the entrepreneurial ecosystem,” says Aziza Al Ghafri, KTH.

Lack of support

In her doctoral thesis, she interviewed 21 entrepreneurial women in Sweden with different ethnic backgrounds and skin colors (ethnic Swedish white women are also included in the study). All have similar experiences of being a woman and an entrepreneur. But the more ‘foreign’ you look, the more resistance women experience in their entrepreneurship.

– A common theme among women entrepreneurs is that they feel, for example, that they lack financial support, networks and knowledge on how to run or grow their business. They also feel that they have to work harder than men who are entrepreneurs and constantly struggle to deal with discrimination.

– Women entrepreneurs with darker skin also experience racism. It’s something they have to deal with all the time,” explains Aziza Al Ghafri.

Adapting to the norm

Exclusion creates feelings of disappointment, sadness and anger. And women have different ways of creating a positive image of themselves as entrepreneurs. In the study, the researchers found four different strategies that women use to deal with the challenges and conditions of being a minority in the entrepreneurial world: the assimilation strategy, the positive strategy, the ambiguity strategy and the change strategy.

– The assimilation strategy involves adapting to the dominant masculine, white and Swedish norm. She does this by describing herself as strong and courageous, displaying characteristics mainly associated with masculinity and entrepreneurship.

Seeing disadvantages as advantages

Women who use the positive strategy to deal with inequality emphasize the positive aspects of being different and see disadvantages as advantages.

– The women describe how they, as a women or a women with foreign background, have different skills and perspectives that are valuable for their entrepreneurship,” says Aziza Al Ghafri.

Sometimes a Swede – sometimes an immigrant

The ambiguity strategy involves switching between different identities when the woman describes herself as an entrepreneur, depending on the context in which she finds herself.

– It is particularly the group of women of color with a foreign background who use this strategy. Being able to choose whether to describe oneself as Swedish, immigrant or both makes it easier to distance oneself from stigmatized categories.

Acting for change

Some women’s strategy is to see themselves as agents of change regarding the prevailing norm. They use the strategy of change, which means disrupting homogeneous spaces with their mere presence, thus contributing to change.

– Other ways women disrupt the homogenous group of white male entrepreneurs include supporting other women entrepreneurs through mentoring and collaboration.

For the women in the study, entrepreneurship is largely about empowerment and liberation.

– Despite the exclusion experienced by the women in the study, entrepreneurship is an active choice that creates a sense of empowerment and liberation. They became entrepreneurs in order to take more responsibility, feel more freedom and flexibility, and for a better work-life balance.

What advice do you have for women entrepreneurs?

– The women of color in my study expressed that there are tensions between them and white women. Therefore, I believe that all groups of entrepreneurial women can benefit from networking more and learning from each other. But also to share their approaches to the common challenges of being a woman and an entrepreneur in Sweden.

And what is your message to politicians and other decision-makers?

– They need to acknowledge the inequality between women and men entrepreneurs and open their eyes to the racism that exists in entrepreneurship. Gender and ethnicity are part of all entrepreneurial processes and contexts. Support organizations around entrepreneurs have a responsibility to create a more equal and equitable ecosystem,” says Aziza Al Ghafri.

Contact azizaalghafri@gmail.com

More about the thesis
Aziza Al Ghafri will defend her thesis “I Wanna Be Free”: On the Challenges and Coping Strategies of Women Entrepreneurs in Sweden at KTH, Department of Industrial Engineering and Management, 12 March 2024.

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