Posts Tagged ‘women business owners’

Small Biz Resource Tip: NAWBO

December 9th, 2010 :: Maria Valdez Haubrich

NAWBO.org

There are more than 10 million women business owners across the nation, and NAWBO (National Association of Women Business Owners) acts as a voice for these entrepreneurs by celebrating and advocating for women in leadership roles. NAWBO has over 70 chapters across the country and more than 7,000 members. Its mission is to create innovative change, build strategic alliances and transform public policy, among other things. The organization hosts a number of events, seminars and conferences at the local level, and an annual national conference for all members. The 2011 Women’s Business Conference will be held August 31-September 1, 2011, in San Diego.

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Tags: Resources, women business owners, women entrepreneurs
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Why Are Women-Owned Businesses’ Sales Slumping?

November 3rd, 2010 :: Rieva Lesonsky

For years, we have heard how women are starting more small businesses than men are. But a recent report from the U.S. Women’s Chamber of Commerce has some not-so-positive news: Although the number of women-owned businesses is growing in number, those businesses’ sales are actually declining.

Women’s Businesses Struggle for Market Share looked at data from the Census Bureau’s 2007 Survey of Business Owners. The report shows that, while the number of women-owned businesses increased 44 percent between 1997 and 2007, those companies’ share of total business revenue shrunk from 4.4 percent to 3.95 percent.

Why aren’t the companies growing? (Note that the data used were pre-recession, so that’s not a factor.) According to the report, continuing lack of access to capital and difficulties claiming their share of government contracts are key reasons for the dwindling sales. In addition, the report noted, competition from big business is pushing many women-owned firms out of private-sector contracting.

“The media hype about the growth of women’s businesses continues to emphasize the number of women-owned firms, rather than our grossly stunted financial success,” Chamber CEO Margot Dorfman said. “This report highlights the growth challenges women business owners face and the opportunity loss our country experiences as we fail to support women as entrepreneurs and business leaders.”

The recent release of the official Women Owned Small Business (WOSB) rule, which I’ve blogged about previously on Grow Smart Business, should help address some of the contracting issues. But with the country’s 7.8 million women-owned businesses accounting for almost 29 percent of all businesses in the U.S., it’s crucially important their sales rise so they can create new jobs and opportunities. As the report warns, “If women-owned firms do not achieve strong revenue growth, women’s financial condition may continue to falter impacting families, communities, the vitality and competitiveness of our marketplace, and society as a whole.”

Image by Flickr user Kevin Dooley (Creative Commons)

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Tags: women business owners, women entrepreneurs
Posted in Business Development | 3 Comments »

New WOSB Rule Expands Women’s Access to Federal Contracts

October 22nd, 2010 :: Rieva Lesonsky

By Rieva Lesonsky

Women-owned small businesses have long been struggling to get their share of federal government contracting opportunities. With the recent finalization of the SBA’s Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) rule, they will get a much-needed boost.

It has long been a goal, but never achieved, that 5 percent of federal contracting dollars should go to women-owned small businesses. To help reach that goal, a rule to help women get greater access to federal contracts was first authorized by Congress back in 2000. The SBA proposed various draft rules over the years, but many met with controversy and outrage on the part of women entrepreneurs.

When President Obama took office, his administration started fresh and the SBA drafted a brand-new rule that took into account all the studies, public comments and research that had gone before.

The final rule identifies 83 industries where WOSBs are underrepresented or substantially underrepresented in federal procurement. It also eliminates a requirement included in a prior proposed rule that would have prevented federal agencies from participating unless each agency certified it had formerly discriminated against women-owned small businesses. Finally, it established a $5 million ceiling for manufacturing-related contracts and a $3 million ceiling for other products and services. (You can read more details of the final rule at the SBA’s website.)

According to SBA Administrator Karen Mills, “Women-owned businesses are one of the fastest growing sectors of our nation’s economy, and even during the economic downturn of the last few years, have been one of the key job creation engines in communities across the country. Despite their growth and the fact that women lead some of the strongest and most innovative companies, women-owned firms continue to be under-represented in the federal contracting marketplace. This rule will be a platform for changing that by providing greater opportunities for women-owned small businesses to compete for and win federal contracts.”

The next stage in the process is implementation. The SBA and the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council have 120 days to create the technology and program infrastructure needed. The SBA estimates contracts will become available to WOSBs early next year.

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Tags: government contracting, small business, women business owners
Posted in small business | 2 Comments »