Female Entrepreneurs Need Access to All Forms of Capital — Particularly Social Capital

January 7, 2020

Did you know that we could add $5 trillion to the global economy if we supported women entrepreneurs?

Yep, you read that right — $5 trillion. That’s what new analysis by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) has found. If women and men participated equally as entrepreneurs, global GDP could rise by approximately 3% to 6% (boosting the global economy by $2.5 trillion to $5 trillion).

Companies globally are underutilizing a huge opportunity.

But the benefits of supporting women’s entrepreneurship go far beyond boosting global GDP. “Closing the gender gap in entrepreneurship and fueling the growth of women-owned enterprises will unleash new ideas, services, and products into our markets. And ultimately, those forces may redefine the future,” BCG writes.

So How Can We Support Women Entrepreneurs?

Yes, we need to support female businesses through funding (financial capital) and skills training (human capital), but one critical, overlooked area? Their lack of access to “social capital” in the form of powerful support networks.

In their research, BCG found that networks are a critical factor for small business success. In low- and middle-income countries, they studied how knowing at least one other entrepreneur (a proxy for entrepreneurial networks) impacted women-led businesses.

BCG found that stronger and broader networks are linked to smaller gender gaps in business sustainability and improved access to a variety of funding sources. Research by other groups, such as the Asia Foundation, has found that peer-to-peer networks encourage women to set higher aspirations for their businesses, plan for growth, and embrace innovation.

How a Robust Support Network Like Equita Financial Network Helps

BCG’s research is pure validation of Equita’s mission and the value we provide to Member Firms: a supportive, experienced network, resources, events, and more. We provide a way for like-minded women to not only share resources, to run the business they want for less expense than they would pay on their own, but also to share ideas on everything from best practices to help with questions regarding client issues.

Equita is so much bigger than just Bridget and I. Before we founded Equita, we thought that there had to be someone else that was already doing this, already focused on women-led financial planning firms. But after careful research, we realized there was no such place. We set out to build a firm that encourages women to make the leap, gives them the solutions to make the leap, and supports them to grow a successful practice. Equita is here to disrupt the industry and let women know that there is another way, a better way, to build the business you want and build the life you want to live.    

If you interested in joining our network and getting access to the social capital needed to bring your business to the next level, reach out to us today. We look forward to hearing from you.

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