Overcoming Obstacles and Charting New Courses 

Discover the assistance available to women entrepreneurs and executives from a number of helpful organizations.

By Jennifer L. Nelson, Contributing Writer On Mar 23, 2015

Across the country, more and more women are steadily climbing the ranks at major corporations or launching their own businesses. Whether they’re climbing the corporate ladder or becoming entrepreneurs, today’s women business leaders continue to overcome the obstacles that plagued women in the past and chart a new course for future  female executives and entrepreneurs.

Fortunately, the Garden State is home to numerous organizations and resources that help women develop the skills they need to succeed in the business world. The New Jersey Association of Women Business Owners (NJAWBO) is the largest statewide women business owners’ organization in New Jersey, with the goal of supporting and encouraging business ownership by women. Since its inception in 1978, NJAWBO has provided women with tools to develop and grow their enterprises, including networking, leadership, education, political advocacy and partnership opportunities.

“The organization has been around for quite some time, and our membership profile really runs the gamut, from start-ups to seasoned senior women business owners,” explains Willa Edgerton-Chisler, past state vice president of diversity and past state president of NJAWBO. Meanwhile, the number of women-owned businesses in the United States increased by 68 percent from 1997 to 2014 – and there are a total of some 230,000 women-owned businesses in the state of New Jersey.

This September, the New Jersey Business & Industry Association (NJBIA) will host the Women’s Leadership Conference at the Hilton Parsippany. According to Michele Siekerka, president of NJBIA, the theme of the program is building the new generation of women CEOs, with the aim of forging discussion and providing strategies that will help women advance to the C-Suite and the boardroom. “It’s really all about leadership, and this conference will be more than a discussion on work-life balance,” she explains. “Every year, women continue to climb the ladder into more and more Fortune 500 CEO positions, but we still have a long way to go.”

The conference will highlight strategies to help women earn their spots on corporate boards, and keynote speakers will offer motivation, skill set building and action plans to help attendees learn the steps to advance in their chosen fields. This type of support could be exactly what women need; Executive Women of New Jersey reports that women currently represent just under 14 percent of the total board seats of New Jersey’s 111 largest publicly-held companies, which is just slightly better than the national average, at 12 percent. Additionally, there are only 23 women CEOs running Fortune 500 companies.

The Center for Women and Work at Rutgers University is also helping women in business develop leadership skills in the hopes of boosting these numbers; the center conducts research and policy analysis focused on making the workplace more accepting of the issues that women may face, in addition to providing leadership training and opportunities for women to advance. Additionally, the center conducts cutting-edge research on successful public and workplace policies, provides technical assistance and programs, and explores issues that directly affect the living standards of working families. “If you’re in mid-level management, how do you develop the skills you need to break that glass ceiling and become a chief executive?” says Dr. Terri Boyer, executive director of the Center for Women and Work. “Leadership is one of the biggest things women call us about, and we help them understand how they can succeed at the highest level without giving up the unique qualities that make them women.”

The center also cultivates mentorship opportunities, including connecting women business leaders with high school and undergraduate students, particularly with the goal of inspiring female students who may be considering pursuing non-traditional fields. “If a woman owns a construction management business – yes, they do exist! – we try to help connect these leaders with students in order to provide role models and mentors to help them learn how to get where they want to be … and that there really are no limits to what they can do,” she adds.

Indeed, there are countless women business leaders who are branching out into industries that were once dominated by men. According to Marlene J. Waldock, president of the Women’s Center for Entrepreneurship Corporation (WCEC), technology-based enterprises are among the most attractive to investors, and today’s women aren’t afraid to break into high-tech fields, such as Angela Margolit, president of Dover-based Bluebird Auto Rental Systems, now a global value leader in car rental software.

The only center of its kind in the state, the WCEC provides women with the tools they need to be successful in their own businesses, and teaches them how to set new standards in terms of how profitable women-owned businesses can be. “Women really have been at the forefront of starting businesses for many years, and they continue to start businesses probably twice as fast as men,” Waldock explains. That’s why the organization offers services including classes, seminars, individual consulting, business plan reviews, loan packaging, start-up micro-loans and more.

Fortunately, the WCEC is noticing another positive trend when it comes to today’s women in business; successfully planning and running a profitable enterprise, and knowing how and when to ask for help. “Women are definitely learning how to run their businesses better than they have in the past,” Waldock asserts. “From the importance of proper bookkeeping to understanding the steps they need to take to be successful, women are learning to find the right support and take advantage of resources that allow them to get out there and focus on growing their business.” A lot of that has to do with women’s new willingness to reach out for guidance from mentors and develop partnerships, in addition to taking advantage of the resources offered by the state’s female-driven business organizations.

Even though times have changed significantly since the women’s rights movement of the 1960s and 1970s, that doesn’t mean that being a woman business leader or entrepreneur today is without its challenges. Though federal spending for women business owners in various industries continues to grow, it still falls short when compared to the access that male entrepreneurs have traditionally had to capital. “One of the biggest challenges for women business owners is financing their business; the research continues to show that women who are starting their own business will have access to fewer funding sources,” Boyer explains. Being a minority women business owner makes it even more challenging. “It really comes back to that idea of the ‘old boys’ network,’” she adds. “If you’re not an ‘old boy,’ how do you gather the money you need to start your business?”

Unfortunately, it’s also not always easy for women in the corporate world. In fact, Siekerka notes that the rising trend of women striking out on their own may be, in part, due to their inability to climb the proverbial corporate ladder at the same rate as their male counterparts. “It is still difficult for women to advance on the corporate side,” she explains. “More and more women are pursuing entrepreneurship opportunities, which allows them to take the fabulous skill sets they already have and translate them into their own businesses, ultimately providing them with the flexibility they need.”

Additionally, the access to technology and social media – which women continue to dominate, Boyer notes – have opened countless doors for women to launch home-based businesses and effectively market their products and services. “Women are finding that if they’re not able to make life work in the standard workplace, they can take advantage of these new opportunities to create a business of their own,” she adds.

Women also tend to possess unique qualities that can help boost their success in the business world. According to Edgerton-Chisler, women are adept at forging strong relationships that can lead to a profitable business for many years to come. “When it comes to networking, women aren’t looking to exchange business cards … they’re looking to build solid relationships that will ultimately help grow their businesses,” she explains.

However, that doesn’t mean that they aren’t still battling other gender-specific challenges that might be standing in the way of success. “Women often tend to be complacent being in the background, and not necessarily think of themselves as leaders,” Boyer notes.

Whether a woman opts to start her own business or advance in the corporate world, the challenging of juggling the demands of a high-level position with raising a family continue to pose a unique set of challenges. Many female-driven business organizations offer classes and workshops dedicated to striking that delicate balance between achieving their career goals while still being a parent. “For women, the challenges of raising a family and climbing the corporate ladder do exist … we’re kidding ourselves if we think they don’t,” Siekerka asserts.

Looking ahead, the future for New Jersey’s women in business appears bright. Female executives and entrepreneurs are continuing to overcome the obstacles that have traditionally prevented women from finding success in the corporate world, all while taking advantage of today’s innovative opportunities to build businesses of their own. “It’s not easy, but women are learning that they can follow their dreams and still have a family,” Waldock says.

Meanwhile, the state’s women business organizations continue to do their part to help women boost their own success, as well as contribute to the economy.

 

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