A Different World A new study highlights the differences between male and female entrepreneurs.
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It's a well-known fact that men and women run theirbusinesses differently, but exactly how entrepreneurial behaviorsdiffer is less understood. To shed some light on the matter, BrookeR. Envick, an assistant professor of management at St. Mary'sUniversity in San Antonio, recently released the results of herstudy, Behaviors of Entrepreneurs: A Gender Comparison.
While previous studies examined only the psychologicaldifferences between the sexes based on self-reported data, Envickobserved eight behaviors in her study: planning, controlling,internal communication, human resources management, work-relatedtasks, customer service, networking and on-the-job personaltime.
One of Envick's most surprising findings was thatcontrolling behavior, previously considered a male-dominant trait,was actually more prevalent in female entrepreneurs. "I'velooked through [previous corporate management studies] and foundcomplete support for the [idea] that men are more assertive andcontrolling," Envick says. "But in this study, femaleswere more controlling." Her explanation? "Femaleentrepreneurs are motivated by the desire to have control, so itmakes sense that [control] is exhibited at work."
Envick also discovered that male entrepreneurs use moreon-the-job time for personal matters (reading the newspaper,visiting with drop-in guests, etc.) than their female counterparts,and that overall, male and female entrepreneurs exhibit similarplanning, customer service and networking behaviors.
Says Envick, "I think [the results] clearly show thatfemales can succeed as entrepreneurs, but they may succeed in adifferent way."
Best Behaviors
Women entrepreneurs engage in the following more often thantheir male counterparts:
- Controlling behavior
- Internal communication
- Human resources management
- General work-related tasks
SOURCE: BEHAVIORS OF ENTREPRENEURS: A GENDERCOMPARISON
