What is known of the Chinese entrepreneurial businesswoman? How
does she fair in a sector dominated by men? What are her strengths
and weakness? What of her motivation? The survey published by
Invest Scientifically recently attempts to answer these
questions.
Facts: How, When and Why?
According to the survey, the Chinese entrepreneurial spirit has
been found to have a dominant stake in the working lives of many
Chinese women. This survey has shown that of the total number of
entrepreneurs in China, women account for 20 percent of the total
and, more significantly, that they represent 41 percent of the
private sector in China.
The survey has shown that the majority of women entrepreneurs in
China began their businesses in an age range between thirty and
fifty with 28 percent of them in their thirties, 53 percent in
their forties with 16 percent over the age of fifty. Only 3 percent
of the total were under thirty years old.
These statistics show that after the reforms in business and public
life of the 1980s, women entrepreneurs began to prepare themselves
for a life in business through participation in work, study and
social practice. The figures show that before 1980, roughly 10
percent of these women had registered a business enterprise.
Thereafter, 17 percent registered in the 1980s with the remaining
73 percent after 1990. The majority of these entrepreneurs then
went into business at the end of the 1980s and start of the 1990s
with a marked acceleration in start-up business during the late
1990s.
Pattern of ownership in this sector is interestingly revealed with
28 percent of these businesses being state-owned enterprises or
SOEs. The remainder is composed of collective ownership and joint
stock enterprise at 28 percent, private and individual enterprise
at 41 percent with foreign funded enterprise, making up the total,
at 3 percent. The survey shows that the ratio of private sector
ownership by women entrepreneurs in China's overall ownership
structure is comparatively high. In 2000, the private sector
represented 25 percent of the total business equity in China. The
current favorable environment for the development of private
enterprise in China is attributed to the 15th National Congress of
the Communist Party of China (CPC).
The motivational factor for entrepreneurial start-up is shown to
favor self-realization at 80 percent, with nearly 10 percent of
respondents attributing other factors such as preparation for the
next generation, development of family wealth and desire for
cooperation with family members. About 0.4 percent of women claimed
that they wished simply to change the fortunes of themselves and
their families through successful business activities.
The size of these enterprises varies considerably, where assets of
1 million yuan (US$120,957) or under represent 34 percent while 38
percent have assets worth between 1 and 10 million yuan. The upper
level is represented with 19 percent having assets between 10 and
100 million yuan and just 10 percent with assets over 100 million
yuan.
The total output of these businesses divides as follows: 33 percent
have an output level of 1 million yuan or under, 33 percent between
1 and 10 million yuan, 21 percent between 10 and 100 million yuan
while just 13 percent have an output worth over 100 million
yuan.
In
the sector, employment figures are also revealing with at least 63
percent of the businesses employing over 50 percent of women, with
25 percent employing 25 to 50 percent of women as staff for their
companies. The enterprises that represent a lower percentage of
women employees, that of under 25 percent, was just 12 percent.
According to the survey, although these highly successful
businesswomen account for 41 percent of the sector, business
ownership was not seen as their main activity. These women were
senior executives, with chairwoman or general managerial status, in
SOEs and had gained stake and share options. They were women who
had built up their companies using their own skills and capital
outlay and had successfully converted them into large successful
companies. These were women who also had completed their studies
abroad or had just graduated from domestic Chinese universities. A
number were women who had started to develop their business without
any great business intentions. Finally, there were women who had
maneuvered themselves, as either technologists or executives in
foreign funded or domestic enterprises, into the position of
establishing a business. This they did using considerable expertise
in management and other areas in order to go into business.
Achievements
Taking the sector as a whole, the business that these women ran was
comparatively successful. In terms of profit, loss-making business
accounted for just 2 percent, that was down 1.6 percent from the
time that they began. It is suggested that it is women's
unremitting effort in lowering costs that enhances their profit
levels in business. Roughly 50 percent of these businesses are in
the manufacturing sector while the remaining 45 percent work in the
services sector.
The survey shows that reward does not come without considerable
effort with at least 50 percent of the entrepreneurs working over
10 hours each day, none less than 8 hours. The average longest
working day was over 17 hours with 80 percent sleeping for less
than 7 hours. The survey showed that this high level of industry
left little time for entertainment or exercise. However, over 70
percent of these women said they were satisfied with the running of
their business.
In
order to start up their business, over one third used private
capital as collateral with a third raising funds through family
contacts. More than 50 percent of these entrepreneurs attributed
business difficulties to a lack of capital.
As
might be expected, the subject of what their husbands thought of
their business activities was revealed in the survey. Nearly all
the husbands supported them with 27 percent of women running the
companies jointly with their husbands. In the case of where the
business is solely operated 66 percent of spouses stood behind them
whereas just 6 percent gave limited support.
Attitudes to education became an important focus of the survey with
61 percent of the businesswomen stating that they believed a school
education was best for their children with 25 percent wishing to
educate their children privately. The elderly too were a subject of
the survey with 60 percent of these women stating they would look
after their elderly relatives while one-third said that other
family members would take care of them. At home, over one-third of
these women had to do all the housework with 60 percent part
sharing this work and only 6 percent abstaining from any housework
at all.
Competitive Advantage
According to the survey, the majority of women entrepreneurs in
China consider themselves very adaptable to business in general and
not just to one sector. However, over one-third of them felt that
the service industry was more suitable for entrepreneurial
start-ups, a fact that perhaps reflects a sectoral hesitation after
all.
For women entrepreneurs in China, the primary considerations for
starting a business was management experience where at least 50
percent thought this important, professional knowledge (one-third),
family support (one-third), the right positive attitude (one-third)
and capital outlay (a fourth). They all agreed that government
information and support, as well as public relations help, were
very important factors for successful start-ups.
As
far as having competitive-edge, or the quality that makes these
women so successful, 53 percent put it down to correct financing,
with 45 percent to personal tenacity and one-third to successful
public relations.
All the women in the survey wanted to develop their enterprises
further and half of them said that in order to do that they needed
greater capital with over one-third stating the need to re-train
management and to create a more productive business environment.
Naturally, these businesswomen regarded the rewards and honors of
their field as an incentive to continue to develop and expand.
Limitations
One-third of businesswomen in the survey regarded a shortage of
professional knowledge as their greatest limitation with 13 percent
believing it to be administrative skills. Eight percent identified
the fact that they were discriminated against while only 3 percent
said they lacked confidence in certain areas of their business
lives. The survey shows that perhaps greater attention needs to be
given to some of the difficulties experienced by women in
entrepreneurial business in China.
After initial start-up, these women said that they experienced the
limitations of further development through a lack of up-to-date
administrative experience (with at least 50 percent saying this to
be the case), and 34 percent without adequate market information
and 28 percent lacking professional skills. The survey pointed out
that women in business need to be informed, knowledgeable and
skilled in order to continue to develop their business after
initial efforts have paid off. Ten percent cited the lack of
government help and support as a considerable business
limitation.
Finally, the survey showed that few transnational companies were
established by these women entrepreneurs. There are companies with
established international export interests, but with less than
one-third of their total product sale was either directly or
indirectly sold on an international market. The survey showed that
70 percent of these businesses have export volume of US$100,000
with only 3 percent over US$10 million.
It
is clear from the survey that the Chinese female entrepreneurial
spirit is strong and that endeavors in the private sector are
particularly impressive. However, the survey does show that
limitations in growth are attributed to lack of support and
pre-emptive professional knowledge as well as administrative
experience.
(china.org.cn by Tang Fuchun October 8, 2002)