Abstract
Nurturing entrepreneurial activity in growing economies is vital as it leads to improved economic efficiencies. The role of women entrepreneurs in the economic development is very crucial. The major objective of the study is to understand issues and challenges being faced by micro level women entrepreneurs in the UAE region, including their educational and training requirements. A sample of 200 micro women entrepreneurs from all the Emirates were identified through convenient sampling method, but only 121 (60.5% response rate) micro women entrepreneurs have responded from five Emirates (e.g., Dubai, Fujairah, Sharjah, Ajman, and Abu Dhabi). There were no responses from the other two Emirates (e.g., Ras-Al-Khaimah and Umm Al Quwain), as the micro women entrepreneurs under the study were not interested to participate in the survey. It was found that the micro women entrepreneurs under the study from the UAE are facing majorly two major challenges, viz: (i) Cost of Operations and (ii) Competition. As far as the ‘Cost of Operations’ are concerned, the major component goes to cost of rentals and leased accommodations. From the study, it was also observed that they completely lack knowledge and awareness on competitive strategy. It was also found that the micro women entrepreneurs under the study have no formal education and training on business management (or) entrepreneurial process. The study was original and carried out in UAE region in all the Emirates. It has some implications on Government policies with regard to micro women entrepreneurs.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Al Turki N, Braswell R (2010) Businesswomen in Saudi Arabia: characteristics, challenges, and aspirations in a regional context. Monitor Group
Baud I, Mahgoub HK (1999, June) Towards increasing national female participation in the labour force: research report 2. Centre for Labour Market Research and Information, Tanmia
Baughn CC, Chua BL, Neupert KE (2006) The normative context for Women’s participation in entrepreneurship: a multicountry study. Entrep Theory Pract 30(5):687–708
Bird B (1988) Implementing entrepreneurial ideas: the case for intention. Acad Manag Rev 13(3):442–453
Bruni A, Gherardi S, Poggio B (2005) Gender and entrepreneurship: an ethnographical approach. Routledge, London
Brush C (2006) Women entrepreneurs: a research overview. In: Basu A, Casson MC, Wadeson N, Yeung B (eds) The Oxford handbook of entrepreneurship. Oxford University Press, Oxford
Brush C, Carter N, Gatewood E, Greene P, Hart M (2006) The Diana project international in growth-oriented women entrepreneurs and their businesses: a global perspective. Edward Elgar, London, pp 3–22
Capogrossi D (2007) Four keys for personalizing distance learning gender and informal economy: developing, developed and transition countries. ICEA and Prentice Consults, Lagos
Carree M, van Stel A, Thurik AR, Wennekers S (2002) Economic development and business ownership: an analysis using data of 23 OECD countries in the period 1976-1996. Small Bus Econ 19(3):271–290
Cope J, Watts G (2000) Learning by doing: an exploration of experience, critical incidents and reflection in entrepreneurial learning. Int J Entrep Behav Res 6(3):104–124
Cutting B, Kouzmin A (2000) The emerging patterns of power in corporate governance: back to the future in improving corporate decision making. J Manag Psychol 15(5):477–511
Dafha K (2008) Managerial performance and business success: gender differences in Canadian and Israeli entrepreneurs. J Enterp Commun People Places Glob Econ 2(4):300–331
DeTienne D, Chandler G (2004) Opportunity identification and its role in the entrepreneurial classroom: a pedagogical approach and empirical test. Acad Manag Learn Edu 3(3):242–257
Dickens L, Watkins K (1999) Action research: rethinking. Manag Learn 30(2):127–140
Haan HC (2002, March) Report on a survey of UAE nationals in micro, small and medium enterprises. policy research paper no.6. Centre for Labour Market Research and Information, Dubai
Haan HC (2004) Small enterprises: women entrepreneurs in the UAE. Labour market study no. 19. Centre for Labour Market Research and Information, Dubai
Hayton JC, Kelley DJ (2006) A competency-based framework for promoting corporate entrepreneurship. Hum Resour Manag 45(3):407–427
Hessels J, van Stel A (2011) Entrepreneurship, export orientation and economic growth. Small Bus Econ 37(2):255–268
Hodgetts RM, Kuratko DF (1992) Effective small business management, 4th edn. Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, San Diego
Hofstede G (1991) Cultures and organizations: software of the mind. McGraw-Hill, London
Jong JPJ, Hartog DND (2007) How leaders influence employees’ innovative behavior. Eur J Innov Manag 10(1):41–64
Katz J (2007) Education and training in entrepreneurship. In: Baum JR, Frese M, Baron R (eds) The psychology of entrepreneurship, SIOP organizational frontier series. Lawrence Erlbaum, New Jersey
Kyrö P (2001) The reality of women entrepreneurship—questioning Men’s criteria for success. Presented in Babson conference, Jönköping, Summer 2001
Kyro P, Carrier C (2005) Entrepreneurial learning in universities: bridges across borders. In: Kyro P, Carrier C (eds) The dynamics of learning entrepreneurship in a cross-cultural university context. University of Tampere, Research Centre for Vocational and Professional Education, Tampere, pp 14–43
Lau VP, Shaffer MA, Au K (2007) Entrepreneurial career success from a Chinese perspective: conceptualization, operationalization and validation. J Int Bus Stud 38(1):126–146
Lee DY, Tsang E (2001) The effects of entrepreneurial personality, background and network activities on venture growth. J Manag Stud 38(4):583–602
Lerner M, Brush C, Hisrich R (1997) Israeli women entrepreneurs: an examination of factors affecting performance. J Bus Ventur 12(4):315–339
Lewin K (1946) Action research and minority problems. J Soc Issues 2:34–46
Man TWY (2006) Exploring the behavioural patterns of entrepreneurial learning: a competency approach. Educ Train 48(5):309–321
Manev I, Manolova T (2010) Entrepreneurship in transitional economies: review and integration of two decades of research. J Dev Entrep 15(1):69–99
Manolova TS, Carter N, Manev I, Gyoshev B (2007) The differential effect of men and women entrepreneurs’ human capital and networking on growth expectancies in Bulgaria. Entrep Theory Pract 31(3):407–426
Markman GD (2007) Entrepreneurs’ competencies. In: Baum JR, Frese M, Baron R (eds) The psychology of entrepreneurship, SIOP organizational frontier series. Lawrence Erlbaum, New Jersey
McIntosh JC, Islam S (2010) Beyond the veil: the influence of Islam in female entrepreneurship in a conservative Muslim context. Int Manag Rev 6(1):102–108
McNiff J, Whitehead J (2003) Action research: principles and practice. Routledge, London
Minniti M, Lévesque M (2010) Entrepreneurial types and economic growth. J Bus Ventur 25(3):305–314
Mulder M, Lans T, Verstegen J, Biemans H, Meijer Y (2007) Competence development of entrepreneurs in innovative horticulture. J Work Learn 19(1):32–44
Nelson C (2004) UAE national women at work in the private sector: conditions and constraints. Centre for Labour Market Research and Information, Tanmia, Dubai
Nicholas A, Victoria P-E (2010) Incentives and female entrepreneurial activity: evidence from panel firm level data. Int Adv Econ Res 16(4):371–387
Pitelis C (2005) On globalization and governance: some issues. Contrib Polit Econ 24:1–12
Reijonen H (2008) Understanding the small business owner: what they really aim at and how this relates to firm performance. Manag Res News 31(8):616–629
Rhoudi-Fahimi F, Moghadam VM (2004) Empowering women, developing society: female education in the Middle East and North Africa, Population Reference Bureau. http://www.prb.org/pdf/EmpoweringWomeninMENA.pdf. Accessed 24 Feb 2007
Sandberg J (2000) Understanding human competence at work: an interpretative approach. Acad Manag J 43(1):9–25
Shane S, Venkataraman S (2000) The promise of entrepreneurship as a field of research. Acad Manag Rev 25:217–226
Swiercz PM, Lydon SR (2002) Entrepreneurial leadership in high-tech firms: a field study. Leadersh Org Dev J 23(7):380–389
Tan J (2008) Breaking the ‘bamboo curtain’ and the ‘glass ceiling’: the experience of women entrepreneurs in high-tech Industries in an Emerging Market. J Bus Ethics 80(3):547–564
Tan W, Tay R (1994) Factors contributing to the growth of SMEs: the Singapore case. In: Proceedings of 5th ENDEC world conference on entrepreneurship, pp 150–161
Terjesen S, Jolanda H, Li D (2013) Comparative international entrepreneurship: a review and research agenda. J Manag 20(10):1–46
Thompson JL (1999) A strategic perspective of entrepreneurship. Int J Entrep Behav Res 5(6):276–296
Trompenaars F (1994) Riding the waves of culture. Irwin, New York
United Arab Emirates Ministry of Information and Culture (2006) UAE yearbook 2006. Abu Dhabi, p 239
Wesselink R, Biemans HJA, Mulder M, van den Elsen ER (2007) Competence based VET as seen by Dutch researchers. Eur J Vocat Train 40:38–51
Wong PK, Ho YP, Autio E (2005) Entrepreneurship innovation and economic growth: evidence from GEM data. Small Bus Econ 24(3):336–350
Young JE, Sexton DL (1997) Entrepreneurial learning: a conceptual framework. J Enterpr Cult 5(3):223–248
Yusuf A (1995) Critical success factors for small business: perceptions of South Pacific entrepreneurs. J Small Bus Manag 33(2):68–73
Acknowledgement
I am highly thankful to my Ph.D. Scholar, Ms. Sheetal Desai and also MBA student, Ms. Fathima Fatiha for providing data support for my research paper
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2018 Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Srinivasa Rao, A. (2018). A Study on Micro Women Entrepreneurs in UAE. In: Faghih, N., Zali, M. (eds) Entrepreneurship Ecosystem in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Contributions to Management Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-75913-5_16
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-75913-5_16
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-75912-8
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-75913-5
eBook Packages: Business and ManagementBusiness and Management (R0)