News

French Government sparks debate over gender quotas

Women short-changed by ‘lipstick entrepreneur’ label

First Approved Women’s Business Centres announced

New study shows women’s enterprise hit hardest by recession

Entrepreneurial mums on the increase

Government programme to cut business regulations saves firms billions

Enterprise Finance Guarantee scheme reports £580million boost to business sector

Business confidence high in 2010

Call for non-bank lending channels for UK business

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News

French Government sparks debate over gender quotas
The debate over gender-based quotas has been reignited following proposed French legislation requiring all companies listed on the Paris stock exchange to appoint a board that is 50% female by 2015.  This goes further than comparable action in Norway which came into effect in January 2008, introducing legislation that requires 40% of board members of Norwegian companies to be female.  This new law was written into the Public Limited Companies Act rather than the Gender Equality Act, strengthening the message that diversity is an economic priority.  Backed by a boardroom training programme, Norway now reports female board participation at 44%, well above the European average of 8%.  Although the furore this caused in some sectors may have deterred other countries from following suit, there have been several further moves across the EU to address gender imbalance in the boardroom.  In the UK, a drop in the number of female executive directors in FTSE 100 companies last year has again raised the question of whether legislation is the only way to effect real change.  Critics fear that quotas alone will just create token roles for women, while failing to address the obstacles women face when seeking advancement.  Read more at http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/ireland/article6968348.ece

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Women short-changed by ‘lipstick entrepreneur’ label
Criticism is emerging of the new media-friendly labels for female entrepreneurs, suggesting that they undermine women in business and negatively influence Government attitudes.  ‘Lipstick entrepreneurs’, the term created for cosmetics brand Avon by trends consultancy Future Laboratory to lead their recent research into female entrepreneurship, is the latest example.  These tags have spread rapidly through the media and are leaving women feeling marginalised.   Men in business do not find themselves similarly labelled, suggesting that women entrepreneurs are far from being taken seriously.  Critics have suggested that these labels are a symptom of this wider problem that plagues the women’s enterprise sector, resulting in inconsistent and largely lukewarm support from Government.  Commentators call for greater recognition that women face the same, if not more, challenges as men in launching and growing a new enterprise, and are done no favours by media stereotyping.   Read more at http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/yourbusiness/6935970/The-Government-is-still-paying-lipservice-to-lipstick-entrepreneurs.html

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First Approved Women’s Business Centres announced
The first organisations to achieve the new Women’s Business Centre (WBC) Quality Standard will formally receive their accreditation at the North West Women in Business Awards on 29 January.  Bolton Business Ventures Ltd, Blackburne House, Blue Orchid, Enterprise4All (North West) Ltd, Furness Enterprise Ltd, Hyndburn Enterprise Trust, Rochdale Borough Women’s Enterprise Network and University of Cumbria are set to become the very first Approved Women’s Business Centres.  The standard is currently undergoing a three year pilot in the North West which is due to complete in March 2011, leading to an anticipated UK-wide and international roll-out.  The WBC pilot launched in December 2008, led by Prowess and with funding from North West Regional Development Agency (NWDA), and aims to assess 30 organisations in total against the new standard.  The North West region will also host a series of WBC workshops in February and March on how to attain the standard – details will be available on the WBC website shortly.  Visit http://www.wbcinternational.org to find out more, and read case studies from organisations currently taking part in the pilot. 

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The rest of this section is restricted to Prowess Members. For details of membership visit:

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Social Enterprise news

Public commitment to social enterprise declines
Public support for social and ethical businesses in Britain is in decline, according to a new survey.  The ‘SEE What You Are Buying Into’ survey charting consumer trends has been carried out three times since 2005.  While research in 2005 and 2007 showed an increase in the public's commitment to ethical consumerism, the 2009 survey shows a reverse in this trend.  However, despite this decline, support remains strong.  Of the 983 people interviewed, 56% said they would pay more for ethical products (compared with 63% in 2005 and 68% in 2007) and 53% said they would work for an ethical business if given the choice (compared with 64% in 2005 and 66% in 2007). SEE, an organisation that promotes social, environmental and ethical businesses, suggests that this drop may be a result of widespread general uncertainty during recession, and conflicting messages from the media, and does not necessarily indicate a continuing downward trend.  Read the full report at http://www.socialenterpriselive.com/sites/default/files/stories/files/SEE_Report_2009.pdf

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Business support for social enterprise improving
Baseline findings from the evaluation of the Government programme to improve business support services for social enterprise have been published.  The evaluation aims to assess the quality of the social enterprise customer experience through Business Link, and to measure the impact of Office of the Third Sector funding on the mainstream business support environment in each of the English regions.  The report shows that 6% of Business Link customers are social enterprises, and 88% of these clients are satisfied with the services they have received.  Early indications show that business support services for social enterprise are improving, but progress is variable across the regions.  The study also suggests that the sector will continue to benefit from a specialist support component, although social enterprises’ business support needs are broadly similar to other firms.  The evaluation will be completed with the end of the project in March 2011.  Read more at http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/third_sector/news/news_stories/social_enterprise_
business_support_baseline_report.aspx

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Online support for Social Enterprise start-ups
A section of the Business Link website has been set up to provide advice and information for people thinking of starting a Social Enterprise.  Visit www.businesslink.gov.uk/trysocialenterprise to find out more. 

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The rest of this section is restricted to Prowess Members. For details of membership visit:

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Events

This section is restricted to Prowess Members. For details of membership visit:

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For details of events aimed at women entrepreneurs taking place in your area click on the map below, members remember you can add your events to the Prowess online clickable map quickly and easily at no cost:

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