Training needs of pre-venture female entrepreneurs

Few studies on female entrepreneurship have focused on preventure women and their training needs. This study used four years of data collected from a Small Business Development Center (SBDC) in a large mid-western city. The information needs sought by pre-venture females were compared with those of women who were already business owners. The groups were compared to determine training need differences before and after seeing an SBDC counselor. Male clients also were included.Data were obtained from two sources: A Small Business Administration counseling request form to be completed before counseling, and a SBDC counseling form which is a record of items discussed during the counseling session. Of the usable surveys, 553 were female and 276 were male.The three information needs most requested by pre-venture women were: Information on SBDC services (including start-up information), sources of capital, and the business plan. In counseling sessions, the business plan was the most discussed topic. Educational opportunities were the second most discussed.The next six information needs were rated closely together: Sources of finance; legal structure; industry information; business license; business name; and tax information.Little difference was found between the requested needs of pre-venture women and women in business. A greater percentage of the women in business discussed assistance in marketing, record keeping, accounting, advertising, and financial analysis. Further, women in business required more detailed information than did pre-venture women.No difference was found between African-American and white women on the amount of time spent with a counselor. Significantly more African-American women requested information on the business plan, government procurement, and international trade than did white women No difference was found in rank order comparisons of requested training needs between the two groups.Significantly more males than females requested information on bidding, sources of finance, advertising, government procurement, accounting/record keeping, and personnel. Similar gender differences were found in topics discussed during counseling. These differences may be due to the type of business started rather than gender. Rank order comparisons of training needs requested by males and females were identical.More research needs to be done with pre-venture entrepreneurs. Follow-up studies need to identify those who did or did not actually start businesses and the determinants of their decision.Department of Educational LeadershipThesis (D. Ed.