Last Updated on: 15th April 2024, 02:54 pm
Alibaba.com, a leading platform for global business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce, today announces the launch of its Academy for Women Entrepreneurs (AWE) in Europe, in a bid to champion gender equality in business and advance female entrepreneurship.
The launch of the academy follows a recent survey which uncovers the hurdles faced by female entrepreneurs, with 94% citing societal expectations and gender stereotypes as significant barriers to business leadership, and nearly 60% highlighting gender as the reason for business failure.
According to the Europe-wide survey of female entrepreneurs, commissioned by Alibaba.com, nearly two thirds (63%) of respondents have encountered challenges where gender has been perceived as a disadvantage, and over a third (36%) believe there is insufficient representation of women in SMEs across the European Union.
However, more encouragingly, the survey found that companies with fewer employees and lower turnover are less likely to perceive gender as a barrier to entrepreneurial success and have encountered fewer instances of gender-based obstacles in the workplace.
Less than half of SMEs (48% of those with 1-9 employees and 41% with turnover under £85,500) believe gender is a contributing factor to entrepreneurial failure, compared to larger companies where this belief is more prevalent (82% of companies with 250-500 employees and 63% of companies with turnover between £85.5-427.5 million.
This suggests SMEs foster a more gender-diverse work environment, and could take a leading role when it comes to promoting gender equality more broadly across the business landscape.
