Center Publication
Facts of the Week, December 30, 1996
Copyright Notice
Women Business Owners.
June - December 1996
The types of volunteer activities reported by women business owners include: community- related charities (65%); education-related (35%); religious (28%); health- or disease-related (21%); and the arts (19%).
From Giving Something Back: Volunteerism Among Women Business Owners in the U.S., NFWBO 1996.
Fact of the Week, December 23, 1996
Women business owners are more likely than the average business owner to volunteer in their community (see September 30, 1996). The presence of children in the home appears to spur greater than average volunteer activity. While half of women business owners volunteer for more than one charity, 58% of women business owners with children at home report more than one charitable activity.
Fact of the Week, December 16, 1996
The greatest challenge women business owners face is being taken seriously (see Fact of the Week, July 29, 1996). Other challenges faced by women business owners include maintaining business growth (21%); balancing work and family (12%); and keeping up with changes in the business environment (8%).
From Credibility, Creativity and Independence: The Greatest Challenges and Biggest Rewards of Business Ownership Among Women, NFWBO 1994.
Fact of the Week, December 9, 1996
Control and independence are the greatest rewards of business ownership for women (see Fact of the Week, August 5, 1996). Other rewarding aspects of business ownership include the satisfaction of building and growing the business (20%); helping people, including employees and customers (15%); being recognized for achievements (12%); building relationships (10%); and financial rewards (8%).
Fact of the Week, December 2, 1996
Growth among minority women-owned firms between 1987 and 1992 was highest among Hispanic women-owned firms (114%), followed by Asian/Pacific Islander/American Indian/Alaska Native women-owned firms (77%), and African American women-owned firms (75%). Growth in each of these groups exceeds that for women-owned firms as a whole over the period (43%).
From November 18 press release, Number of Minority-Owned Businesses and Revenues Increase Substantially Between 1987 and 1992, U.S. Census Bureau, Economics & Statistics Administration.
Fact of the Week, November 25, 1996
According to a report just released by the U.S. Census Bureau, the number of firms owned by women of color grew by 85% between 1987 and 1992, from 388,000 to 717,000. Minority- owned firms now comprise 12.5% of the business population; over 1 in 3 minority-owned firms (36.5%) is woman-owned.
Fact of the Week, November 18, 1996
The nearly 8 million women-owned firms in the U.S. have a current investment of $106 billion in their computer hardware and software, and plan to make $44.5 billion in computer- related purchases in the coming year.
From Entering the Information Age: Comparing the Role of Computers and Information Technology in Women- and Men-Owned Businesses, NFWBO 1996.
Fact of the Week, November 11, 1996
Although women- and men-owned businesses in the U.S. are using technology to the same extent and for similar tasks, women entrepreneurs differ from men entrepreneurs in how they make purchase decisions about technology. Women place higher importance on whether or not a technology supplier has a toll-free or 24-hour helpline , places higher value on ease of installation & use, vendor reputation, and a warranty. Women business owners are also more price sensitive than are men business owners.
Fact of the Week, November 4, 1996
Women-owned businesses in the U.S. are as likely as men-owned firms to invest in and use computers and information technology. Fully 85% of women-owned firms, and 89% of men- owned firms, have at least one computer in their business.
Fact of the Week, October 28, 1996
Despite the remarkable progress in access to capital for women business owners from 1992 to 1996 (see Fact of the Week, October 21), women business owners still operate with lower levels of credit, and were less likely to have sought credit in the past year than were men business owners (27% of women business owners sought credit, compared to 34% of men business owners).
From Capital, Credit and Financing: Comparing Women and Men Business Owners sources and Uses of Capital, NFWBO 1996.
Fact of the Week, October 21, 1996
There has been a significant improvement in access to capital for women business owners in the past four years. Their use of credit cards as a source of financing has plummeted from 52% to 23%, their use of business earnings has doubled (38% to 72%) and they are much less likely to cite difficulties in working with their financial institutions.
Fact of the Week, October 14, 1996
Women and men business owners have different styles of success. Women business owners value relationships as well as factual information and are more likely to seek the opinions of others.
From: Styles of Success: The Thinking and Management Style of Women and Men Entrepreneurs, NFWBO, 1994.
Fact of the Week, October 7, 1996
From 1991 to 1994, the number of Women-owned firms with 100 or more employees grew at over twice the rate of all U.S. firms (18.3% vs. 8.6%), and the employment in these firms expanded six times faster than all firms in the economy (32.5% vs. 5.3%).
From: Women-Owned Businesses: Breaking the Boundaries, The Progress and Achievement of Women-Owned Enterprises, NFWBO & DBIS, 1995.
Fact of the Week, September 30
Women business owners participate in volunteer activities at a significantly higher rate than the average adult and the average business owner in the U.S. Fully 78% of women business owners spend time volunteering, compared to 48% of all adults in the U.S., 51% of all women, and 56% of all business owners.
Fact of the Week, September 23
Sales and employment have grown even more strongly over the past nine years. Between 1987 and 1996, employment among women-owned firms has increased by 183%, and sales have grown by 236%.
From Women-Owned Businesses in the United States: 1996 Fact Sheets, NFWBO 1996.
Fact of the Week, September 16
Between 1987 and 1996, the number of women-owned firms increased by 78%, nearly twice the rate of increase of all U.S. firms (47%).
Fact From The Week of September 9, 1996
Women-owned businesses are just as likely to be involved in international trade as the average U.S. firm. Just over one in ten (13%) of women-owned businesses are involved in the global marketplace. Goods-producing and distribution firms are much more likely than service businesses to be involved in international trade.
From Going Global: Women-Owned Businesses in the International Marketplace, NFWBO 1995.
Fact of the Week, September 3
Women-led firms in Canada provide jobs for 1.7 million Canadians, more than the Canadian Business Top 100 companies, and are creating new jobs at four times the rate of the average firm.
From Myths & Realities: The Economic Power of Women-Led Firms in Canada, Bank of Montreal Institute for Small Business 1996, with consulting assistance from NFWBO.
Fact of the Week, August 26
There are more than 700,000 women-led firms in Canada, nearly one-third (30.3%) of all firms in Canada.
Fact From The Week of August 19, 1996
Women business owners are more likely than the average U.S. firm to offer their employees flex-time options (40% vs. 30%), and tuition reimbursement programs (21% vs. 8%).
From Employee Benefits Offered by Women-Owned Businesses: A Framework for Compassion, NFWBO 1994.
Fact From The Week of August 12, 1996
Women business owners offer basic benefits to their employees -- health insurance, paid vacation, personal leave -- at the same rate as the average U.S. firm. Fully 84% of women-owned firms offer at least one of these basic benefits to their employees.
Fact From The Week of August 5, 1996
The greatest reward of business ownership for women is being the mistress of their own fate. Nearly half (45%) of women business owners say that control and independence are their greatest reward as business owners.
Fact From The Week of July 29, 1996
The greatest challenge women business owners say they face is being taken seriously. Four in ten women business owners say this is their greatest challenge.
Fact From The Week of July 22, 1996
Women business owners use technology. Nearly all (92%) women-owned firms use computers, two-thirds (66%) have more than one computer in their business.
From The Use of Computer Technology in Women-Owned Businesses, NFWBO 1994.
Fact From The Week of July 15, 1996
Women-owned firms are more likely to have remained in business over the past few years. While two-thirds of the firms in the U.S. in business in 1991 were still in business 3 years later, nearly three-quarters of women-owned firms remained in business.
From Breaking the Boundaries: The Progress and Achievement of Women-Owned Enterprises, NFWBO & DBIS 1995.
Fact From The Week of The Week of July 8, 1996
Despite the fast growth of women in non-traditional industries, two out of three women-owned firms remain in the services or retail trade sectors. Just over half (52%) of women-owned firms are in services, 19% are in retail trade.
From Women-Owned Businesses in the U. S.: A Fact Sheet, NFWBO 1996.
Fact From The Week of July 1, 1996
The fastest growing areas for women-owned businesses are in “non-traditional” industries. The growth in the number of women-owned firms in these industries -- construction, wholesale trade, manufacturing, agri-business -- exceed the overall growth rate for women-owned firms by wide margins.
From Women-Owned Businesses in the U.S.: A Fact Sheet, NFWBO 1996.
Fact From The Week of June 24, 1996
Women-owned firms are just as financially strong and creditworthy as the average U.S. firm -- they have a similar record of bill payment and are at no greater risk of financial stress.
Fact From The Week of June 17, 1996
There are an estimated 3.5 million home-based women-owned firms in the U.S., and these firms provide full- or part-time employment for an estimated 14 million people.
From The Characteristics and Contributions of Home-Based Women-Owned Businesses in the U.S., NFWBO 1995.
Fact From The Week of June 10, 1996
As of 1996, there are 7.95 million women-owned businesses in the U.S., employing 18.5 million people and generating nearly $2.3 trillion in sales.
From Women-Owned Businesses in the U.S.: A Fact Sheet, NFWBO 1996
Citation
Center for Women’s Business Research. “Facts of the Week, December 30, 1996.” Washington, DC.