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Strengthening Women's Business Organizations

Program Overview

Strengthening Women's Business Organizations

To effectively represent the interests
and concerns of their members
(Global)

I. Summary

While women entrepreneurs are an important and growing force within economies in transition, often their full participation in the business and public policy arenas is hindered by lack of representation, legal barriers, and traditional gender roles. Effective women's business organizations can help women entrepreneurs begin to overcome these obstacles.

To help women's business organizations fulfill this role, CIPE proposes to conduct a program to strengthen women's business organizations so that they can more effectively represent the interests and concerns of their members. As part of this program, CIPE will 1) conduct a market survey of existing institutions and successful programs, 2) contract a collection of papers on topics identified in the market survey, 3) sponsor a 3-day international strategy forum to discuss challenges and solutions, and 4) produce a guide to action based on the conclusions from the forum.

II. Background

The rising importance of women-owned businesses in the US economy has recently been highlighted in reports by the National Foundation for Women Business Owners and the US Bureau of the Census which indicate that women-owned businesses currently employ one in four American workers and that the number of women-owned businesses has increased by 43 percent between 1987 and 1992 with annual sales increasing by 131 percent.

Women-owned businesses are also vital to economies in transition. In many newly democratizing countries, women comprise a majority of the workforce especially in the informal- and small-business sectors. Due to both legal and cultural traditions, these businesswomen face unique challenges and restrictions to the success of their businesses. While CIPE's experiences globally have proven that business organizations can offer a vehicle for improving the business environment through advocacy, training and other services, women rarely benefit from adequate representation in the existing business organizations. Further, the business organizations dedicated specifically to women are often weak, lacking the institutional capability, resources, skills and experience to assist their members and to promote women in business.

With adequate institutional frameworks, women's business organizations-professional or trade-can be conduits for promoting women in business and market-oriented economic policies. Women's needs within business organizations are similar to the needs of their male counterparts in many ways. For example, they benefit from training and services that business organizations provide for their members. Yet, women also have unique needs such as confidence building and advocacy for a legal framework favorable to women in business. The National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) and Les Femmes Chefs d'Entreprises Mondiales (FCE or World Association of Women Entrepreneurs) are two notable examples of women's business organizations that have provided technical assistance programs and made a positive impact on the business environment for businesswomen in the US, Canada, and France.

The three basic activities for women's business organizations are:

Training, basic business skills as well as how to grow businesses from micro and small to medium and large scale,
Advocating a legal framework and business culture that encourages women in business, and
Confidence building and technical assistance in societies where women have not traditionally participated in the economic sector.

This program aims to bring together experts from successful international women's business organizations to develop a strategy to strengthen the institutional capabilities of women's business organizations worldwide in each of these key areas. As a result of strengthening these activities within business organizations, the program seeks to (1) enhance women's participation and representation in public policy debates effecting their businesses, and (2) enable them to move their businesses into the formal sector and grow into medium or large scale enterprises.

III. Project Objectives

CIPE developed a project to strengthen women's business organizations with the following objectives:

to identify women's business organizations and the unique needs of their institutions and membership,
to help build stronger institutions which are capable of providing services and representing members, and
to promote public policy which favors women's participation in the business community.

IV. Project Activities

To achieve these objectives and goals, CIPE held a three-day international strategy forum in Washington, DC, providing an opportunity for women throughout the world to discuss challenges, experiences and best practices, and to develop a strategy to improve the effectiveness of women's business organizations. CIPE is currently in the process of producing a publication which will provide an opportunity to share lessons-learned, successful programs and the strategy with a wider audience.

1. International Strategy Forum to Strengthen Women's Business Organizations

In order to identify priority issues for women's business organizations, develop an agenda for future action, and share successful programs and experiences, CIPE developed and conducted an International Strategy Forum to Strengthen Women's Business Organizations in Washington, DC at the US Chamber of Commerce in April 1997. Approximately 20 representatives from women's business organizations world-wide were invited to participate in the meeting. Participants will be selected on the basis of the relative strength and successes of their business organizations' programs for women entrepreneurs, and to provide a relative balance among regions. Additional individuals were invited to attend the meeting as observers. The focus will be the economic challenges that women entrepreneurs face and how these obstacles can be lessened through effective activities and services conducted by women's business organizations. The forum was divided into speeches, open discussions, and regional working groups.

Topics will included:

Assessment of How Women's Business Organizations Can Address the Needs and Challenges Unique to Women Entrepreneurs
Best Practices-Exemplary Women's Business Organizations Worldwide and What They Have Accomplished
The Role of Grassroots Public Policy Advocacy for Women Business Organizations
Successful Media Techniques for Women's Business Organizations
Strategy Formulation for Educational Programs and Services
Strategy Formulation for Public Policy Advocacy
Setting an Agenda for Women's Business Associations Worldwide

In order to reach organizations worldwide and benefit from their perspectives, participation included experts from Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Russia/NIS, Central and Eastern Europe, Latin America and the US. Participants were selected on the basis of recommendations from CIPE's regional program staff and the project advisory committee.

Market Survey

Prior to the forum, CIPE conducted a market survey of the current institutional structure, membership base, activities, and needs of women's business organizations. Organizations were identified through contacts with CIPE grantees, American Chambers of Commerce, and US Embassy staffs. These additional organizations were also be included in the survey. The survey itself was based on CIPE's business association training needs assessment survey.

Success Stories

Also prior to the forum, CIPE contracted international leaders to write papers on each of the topics identified for the forum. The papers were presented by the authors at the forum and distributed to the participants. These papers will also be incorporated into the post-forum guide to action.

2. Guide to Action

A guide to action including a collection of the unique needs for women in business organizations, best-practices, and strategies will be produced. The publication will include reports on advocacy, confidence-building, training and other relevant topics.

3. Advisory Committee

To assist CIPE in formulating the forum agenda and identify the best participants, an advisory committee was formed. The twelve members were invited on the basis of the expertise as women entrepreneurs, knowledge of the needs of women entrepreneurs, and involvement with successful programs. In order to ensure representation from each region on the advisory committee, international members were identified by the CIPE program staff and individuals invited to participate in a "virtual" advisory committee via faxes and conference calls. The advisory committee met three times prior to the conference in order to develop the agenda, invite participants and plan the conference itself.

V. Evaluation Plan

The conference was also evaluated through the following criteria:

A pre- and post-survey of participants
The successful development of a consensus and a strategic plan
The germination of future CIPE programs

VI. Organizational Background

As a participant in the National Endowment for Democracy, the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE) has as its mission the building and strengthening of democracy around the globe through the promotion of private enterprise and market-oriented economic reform. It is hoped that through this conference, CIPE can identify specific training needs for women's business organizations internationally. In the area of training, CIPE bases its international efforts on the adaptation of the US Chamber of Commerce's domestic Institute for Organization Management for use overseas, and has also developed strategic planning seminars to enhance local organization's involvement in democratic development. Institute programs have been carried out regionally in Asia, Latin America, Southern Africa and Central Europe, and on a single country basis in the Philippines, Thailand, Russia, Mozambique, Egypt and South Africa.