Characteristic of successful women entrepreneurs

This is a descriptive study which aims to examine the characteristics of successful Bumiputra women entrepreneurs In Peninsular Malaysia. The characteristics were classified into personal, business, non-business and demographic. Data from 200 women entrepreneurs were collected from the membership list of the Malaysian Association for Bumiputra Women in Business and Profession,(peniagawati), and the Ministry of Entrepreneur Development, using self-administered mailed questionnaire. Data collected were tabulated and presented in the form of frequencies and percentages. Only women entrepreneurs whose businesses have been in operation for at least three years and whose annual sales exceed RM500,000 were categorised as successful and taken as sample of the study. The majority of the women entrepreneurs were found to be less than 40 years of age, married with children, most of whom are of school-going age. Most of them have gone through tertiary education, possessing at least a diploma and have had some working experience prior to the entrepreneurship. By nature, most of them are hardworking, brave and confident and looking for self-achievement when venturing into business and not just monetary gain. Most of the entrepreneurships they choose to venture into are services-oriented, with paid-up capital exceeding RM150,000. Business ownership are mostly in the form of partnerships, and most of the businesses have been set up between four to ten years ago. The businesses receive some support from government agencies in the form of advice and licensing, but not adequately in the area of financing. Financial support is mostly obtained from banks, financial institutions and family members. Most of the women mentioned that they found obtaining financial support and workers as the main problems during the start-up as well as growing stages of the business, while family members, especially husbands, have been applauded as being most supportive throughout their venture in the business world. Even though the number of successful women entrepreneurs have increased over the years, the number of unsuccessful ones are also undoubtedly many. It is recommended that future research be conducted on unsuccessful women entrepreneurs in order to learn from their mistakes and past experiences. Another interesting area of research is the study on business partnerships between spouses and how their relationship affect the business and vice versa.

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