The opportunity to succeed for women entrepreneurs in Saudi Arabia Research Paper

Abstract

Women play a momentous role in facilitating change and development in our society. Their daily contribution to socioeconomic well being of the society cannot be overstated here. One of such areas of importance where women play an integral role is in the private sector through the establishment of Small and Medium-sided Enterprises (SMEs).

While the Saudi Arabian society has not had a place for women especially in the business cycles, this situation has stopped women entrepreneurs to compete favourably and stiffly with the male counterparts. It is interesting to note that in spite of the challenges experienced by women entrepreneurs in Saudi Arabia, there are still a host of motivating factors that keep them going as observed in this research study.

For instance, it has been noted that women form a huge chunk of university graduates in Saudi Arabia in the sense that most of them are indeed well educated, a scenario that put s them into favourable competing ground with the rest of the business community.

This is especially so considering that they are the majority in the society, making up about fifty one percent of the world’s population. This being the case, it is important to note that empowering of women in the society will go a long way in helping everyone there.

Up to now, the women in countries that are already industrialised with strong and vibrant economies seem to have made significant gains in the business world. It is estimated that women run and control about a third of all business enterprises in this society.

Women entrepreneurship, as a result, has continued to attract the attention of scholars in the society. There is interest in analysing how this historically discriminated segment in the society is fairing on in a field that has been controlled by men for a very long time now. To this end, several studies have been conducted, addressing various attributes of this field. This ranges from the challenges that women face in their businesses, their rate of success and such other factors.

Business women in Saudi Arabia have especially attracted a lot of attention from these scholars. This is given the fact that the women of this region are especially known for their subordinate role in the society, considering the fact that men have traditionally dominated many spheres of life in this region for a very long time.

From this research study, it was found that both the Saudi and British women who engage in SMEs are largely inspired by the knowledge and skills in business that they have acquired mostly from their previous working stations.

In conclusion, this empirical research has attempted to prove it wrong that the place for the Arabic woman is the home. Her life does not just revolve around her family; her children, her husband and generally keeping the home habitable.

Women can also excel in starting and managing businesses enterprises just like their male counterparts. In addition, SMEs owned and managed by women are playing a very significant role in the economy of these countries, and their impact in the whole society in extension cannot be downplayed.

Findings

Small Business for Women in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

1. When the Saudi women were asked about their age, majority (39%) belonged to the group of 21-30 year olds followed by the 31-40 (28%) and 41-50 (24%) respectively. There were only a few respondents (9%) above 51 years (Fig. 1.1, Appendix 1).
2. When the respondents were asked their marital status, the majority that answered were married with children (46%), with the remainder being single (31%) and married but without children (24%) (Fig. 1.2, Appendix 1).
3. Majority of the respondents received bachelor’s degree (54%) followed by those who obtained master’s degree (21%) while small proportion (14%) of those who received secondary education. Very few respondents (10%) acquired PhD qualification preceded by negligible proportion (1%) of those who have primary qualification. (Fig. 1.3, Appendix 1).
4. When the working women were asked about their position at work, the majority (54%) belonged to the group of other while some of the respondents (13%) are of the executive position followed by those (10%) who are managers. (Fig.1.4, Appendix 1).
5. When the respondents were asked about their preferred business, the majority (45%) was intended to invest in educational sector followed by a large number of women (35%) willing to invest in beautician shop. A small number of the respondents (26%) preferred to open a small manufacturing enterprise preceded by those who were willing to open a hotel. Only a few (13%) showed the willingness to start the business of publishing (Fig. 1.5, Appendix 1).
6. When the respondents were asked whether the private sector is preferable to the public sector due to more income, majority (55%) were agreed to the statement followed by several (24%) who strongly agreed. A small number of the respondents (12%) were neither agreed nor disagreed to the statement while few (10%) disagreed (Fig. 1.6, Appendix 1).
7. When the respondents were asked whether the private sector is preferable to the public sector due to convenience for person ambition, majority (54%) were agreed to the statement followed by a little (28%) who strongly agreed. Not many respondents (12%) were disagreed to the statement while few (6%) were neither agreed nor disagreed (Fig. 1.7, Appendix 1).
8. When the respondents were asked whether the private sector is preferable to the public sector due to flexibility to work, majority (55%) were agreed to the statement followed by some (22%) who strongly agreed. A small number of the respondents (18%) were neither agreed nor disagreed to the statement while few (5%) were disagreed (Fig. 1.8, Appendix 1).
9. When the respondents were asked if there are many job opportunities available for women in Saudi Arabia, majority (73%) answered Yes whereas, the remaining (27%) answered No (Fig. 1.9, Appendix 1).
10. When the respondents were asked to rate the lack of business skills which impede business women when they start their own business the majority (54%) agreed followed by those (21%) who disagreed. Some of the respondents (19%) were strongly agreed to the statement while a few (6%) were neither agreed nor disagreed (Fig. 1.10, Appendix 1).
11. When the respondents were asked to rate the work life balance between home and work which impedes business women when they start their own business the majority (56%) agreed followed by those (30%) who disagreed. Some of the respondents (10%) were strongly agreed to the statement while a few (4%) were neither agree nor disagree to the statement (Fig. 1.11, Appendix 1).
12. When the respondents were asked to rate the problem of funding the project which impedes business women when they start their own business the majority (54%) agreed chased by several respondents (29%) who strongly agreed. Some of the respondents (10%) were neither agreed nor disagreed to the statement while a few (7%) were disagreed (Fig. 1.12, Appendix 1).
13. When the respondents were asked to rate the cultural issues related to the acceptance of women starting their own business which impedes business women when they start their own business the majority (49%) agreed followed by those (31%) who disagreed. Some of the respondents (15%) were strongly agreed to the statement while a few (5%) were neither agree nor disagree to the statement (Fig. 1.13, Appendix 1).
14. When the respondents were asked to rate the problem with government regulations and requirements which impedes business women when they start their own business the majority (51%) agreed followed by those (34%) who strongly agreed to the statement. A small number of the respondents (8%) were neither agree nor disagree to the statement while, a few (7%) were neither agreed nor disagreed to the statement (Fig. 1.14, Appendix 1).
15. When the respondents were asked to rate the encouragement of Saudi women to set up their own business majority (83%) answered Yes while the remainder (17%) answered No. Those who answered Yes were further asked to rate the stakeholders who effectively encourage them to set up their own business. A vast majority (79%) rated families as effective followed by those (58%) who rated their partners as supportive. A reasonable number of the respondents (46%) rated friends as supportive while some (24%) rated the government as helping followed by the others (13%) respectively (Fig. 1.15, Appendix 1).
16. When the respondents were asked whether the Saudi women are capable to manage their own business as good as Saudi men, the majority (51%) strongly agreed chased by those (32%) who agreed to the statement. A small number of the respondents (14%) were neither agree nor disagree to the statement while a few (3%) were disagreed (Fig. 1.16, Appendix 1).

Questions for Saudi Business women only

1. When the Saudi business women were asked to rate the reason of choosing the line of business due to personal interest, the majority (30%) neither agreed nor disagreed to the statement, while some (18%) strongly agreed followed by a few (7%) who agreed to the statement (Fig. 1.17, Appendix 1).
2. When the Saudi business women were asked to rate the reason of choosing the business because it is easy to set up and there are no cultural constraints, the majority (31%) neither agreed nor disagreed to the statement, while some of them (15%) were agreed followed by those (9%) who strongly agreed to the statement. An insignificant proportion of the respondents (1%) disagreed to the statement (Fig. 1.18, Appendix 1).
3. When the Saudi business women were asked to rate the availability of funding as a prime reason to start a business, the majority (30%) neither agreed nor disagreed to the statement, while a small proportion (15%) agreed followed by a few (9%) who strongly agreed to the statement. A negligible proportion of the respondents (1%) were disagreed (Fig. 1.19, Appendix 1).
4. When the Saudi business women were asked to rate if they were already having a plan to choose the line of business, the majority (30%) neither agreed nor disagreed to the statement, preceded by several (13%) who agreed, while some of the respondents (12%) strongly agreed and a negligible fraction (1%) disagreed to the statement (Fig. 1.20, Appendix 1).
5. When the Saudi business women were asked to rate the previous learning about the specific line of business as a primary reason to adopt it, the majority (33%) neither agreed nor disagreed to the statement, followed by a similar proportion (10%) of the respondents who strongly agreed and agreed, while a few respondents (3%) were disagreed (Fig. 1.21, Appendix 1).

Small Business for Women in Britain

1. When the British women were asked about their age, majority (45%) were of the group 21-30 year olds followed by the 41-50 (18%) and 31-40 (17%) respectively. Only a few respondents (5%) were of the age above 51 year (Fig. 2.1, Appendix 2).
2. When the British women were asked their marital status, the majority that answered were single (47%), followed by various respondents (21%) being married but without children while the reminder (19%) were married with children. A small proportion of the respondents (7%) were found to be in partnership (Fig. 2.2, Appendix 2).
3. A large proportion of the respondents (44%) received master’s degree followed by several women (30%) who obtained bachelor’s degree. A reasonable percentage (18%) was found of those who obtained diploma while, a small fraction (5%) was found of the respondents who obtained GCSE/A Level or equivalent qualification. A negligible proportion (1%) acquired PhD qualification (Fig. 2.3, Appendix 2).
4. When the respondents were asked about their working position, the majority (53%) belonged to the group of other while some of the respondents (27%) are of the manager position followed by many (19%) who are executive (Fig. 2.4, Appendix 2).
5. When the British women were asked about their preferred business, the majority (32%) was willing to invest small manufacturing enterprise followed by several respondents (30%) willing to invest in restaurant. Various respondents (28%) preferred to invest in a hotel while several other were interested to open a beautician shop. Only a few (9%) showed the willingness to start the business of publishing (Fig. 2.5, Appendix 2).
6. When the respondents were asked whether the private sector is preferable to the public sector due to more income, majority (52%) were agreed to the statement followed by some (29%) who strongly agreed. A small number of the respondents (15%) neither agreed nor disagreed while; a few (4%) disagreed to the statement (Fig. 2.6, Appendix 2).
7. When the respondents were asked whether the private sector is preferable to the public sector due to convenience for person ambition, majority (51%) agreed to the statement followed by some (36%) who strongly agreed. A small number of the respondents (11%) neither agreed nor disagreed, while a few (3%) disagreed (Fig. 2.7, Appendix 2).
8. When the respondents were asked whether the private sector is preferable to the public sector due to flexibility to work, majority (55%) agreed to the statement followed by a small fraction (22%) who strongly agreed. A small number of the respondents (18%) were neither agreed nor disagreed while; a few (5%) were disagreed (Fig. 2.8, Appendix 2).
9. When the respondents were asked if there are many job opportunities available for women in the UK, majority (90%) answered Yes whereas, the remainder (10%) responded as No (Fig. 2.9, Appendix 2).
10. When the respondents were asked to rate the lack of business skills which impede business women when they start their own business the majority (36%) agreed followed by some (26%) who neither agreed nor disagreed to the statement. Some of the respondents (21%) disagreed to the statement while, several others (18%) were strongly agreed (Fig. 2.10, Appendix 2).
11. When the respondents were asked to rate the work life balance between home and work which impedes business women when they start their own business the majority (36%) agreed followed by many (27%) who neither agreed nor disagreed. Some respondents (21%) disagreed to the statement while a few (16%) strongly agreed (Fig. 2.11, Appendix 2).
12. When the respondents were asked to rate the problem of funding the project which impedes business women when they start their own business the majority (49%) agreed while several others (30%) neither agreed nor disagreed. Some of the respondents (14%) strongly agreed while a few (7%) were disagreed (Fig. 2.12, Appendix 2).
13. When the respondents were asked to rate the cultural issues related to the acceptance of women starting their own business which impedes business women when they start their own business the majority (51%) disagreed followed by numerous others (23%) who agreed. Some of the respondents (15%) neither agreed nor disagreed to the statement, whereas a few (11%) were strongly agreed (Fig. 2.13, Appendix 2).
14. When the respondents were asked to rate the problem with government regulations and requirements which impedes business women when they start their own business the majority (45%) disagreed followed by numerous others (27%) who neither agreed nor disagreed to the statement. A similar proportion (14%) was found of those who agreed and strongly agreed to the statement (Fig. 2.14, Appendix 2).
15. When the respondents were asked to rate the encouragement of British women to set up their own business, an overwhelming majority (88%) answered Yes while, the remainder (12%) answered No. Those who answered Yes were further asked to rate the stakeholders who effectively encourage them to set up their own business. A vast majority (67%) rated friends as effective followed by several other (48%) who rated the government as supportive. A reasonable number of the respondents (45%) rated family as supportive while, some (36%) rated the partner as helping (Fig. 2.15, Appendix 2).
16. When the respondents were asked whether the British women are capable to manage their own business as good as British men, the majority (48%) strongly agreed chased by numerous other (36%) who agreed to the statement. A small number of the respondents (14%) neither agreed nor disagreed to the statement while a few (3%) were disagreed (Fig. 2.16, Appendix 2).

Questions for British business women only

1. When the British business women were asked to rate the reason of choosing the line of business due to personal interest, the majority (21%) strongly agreed followed by those (16%) who agreed to the statement. A small proportion of the respondents (5%) were neither agreed nor disagreed while a negligible fraction (1%) disagreed (Fig. 2.17, Appendix 2).
2. When the respondents were asked to rate the past experience in specific type of business as a reason to choose it, the majority (23%) agreed followed by some (10%) who strongly agreed to the statement. A small number of the respondents (8%) neither agreed nor disagreed to the statement while a few (3%) disagree to the statement (Fig. 2.18, Appendix 2).
3. When the British business women were asked to rate the reason of choosing the line of business because it is easy to set up and there are no cultural constraints, the majority (23%) agreed followed by those (15%) who strongly agreed. A small number of the respondents were neither agreed nor disagreed while; an insignificant proportion of the respondents (1%) disagreed to the statement (Fig. 2.19, Appendix 2).
4. When the British business women were asked to rate the availability of funding as a prime reason to start a business, a similar proportion (15%) was found for those who neither agreed nor disagreed and for those who agreed to the statement. A small proportion of the respondents (8%) strongly agreed followed by a few (5%) who disagreed to the statement (Fig. 2.20, Appendix 2).
5. When the British business women were asked to rate if they were already having a plan to choose the line of business, the majority (22%) agreed to the statement preceded by several other (11%) who strongly agreed, while some of the respondents (7%) neither agreed nor disagreed and a negligible fraction (4%) disagreed (Fig. 2.21, Appendix 2).
6. When the British business women were asked to rate the previous learning about the specific line of business as a primary reason to adopt it, the majority (22%) agreed to the statement, followed by various respondents (14%) who strongly agreed. Only a small proportion of the respondents (7%) neither agreed nor disagreed while a negligible fraction (1%) disagreed to the statement (Fig. 2.22, Appendix 2).

Discussion and Analysis

The research findings is unanimous about one factor; that Arabic women are indeed inspired to start and run their own businesses bearing in mind that the formal sector is largely dominated by males and few women find employment opportunities there (Dhaliwal & Amin, 1995, pp. 38-39).

The available opportunity in the government public sector is also highly competitive compelling women to seek other means of earning a living. It is also worthy to note that Saudi Arabia seems to be offering vast business opportunities for women SMEs in spite of the fact that they need to step out from their comfort zones and prove their worth in a male dominated society like Saudi Arabia (Carter & Cannon, 1988, p.54).

Interview analysis

Primary research was also carried out by conducting interviews. There were a total of ten interviews that were conducted in multiple businesses. Six of the interviews were done with the Saudi women while the remaining four were carried on the British women.

For the Saudi women who were interviewed during the primary research, the following types of businesses were involved namely Centre for sewing and beauticians, Auto-syndrome canter, Jewellery designing, School complex, Traditional cosines restaurant, Beautician.

Some of the factors that were found to be dominant in affecting the success of SMEs included but not limited to financial needs, previous education, the need to practice own hobby as well as pursue personal interest.

For the business women, there were quite a number of challenges which they faced namely strict customs regulations, inadequate skills of conducting business as well as restrictions posed by traditional beliefs and practices. Three out of the six of those who were interviewed had previous experiences in government.

When the Saudi business women were asked about the knowledge needed in starting and running a business, business skills was repeated three times, confidence was repeated two times, while two replied that hardworking was requisite in running successfully business ventures.

Finally, professionalism and ability to understand the operations of the business well was given a nod by two of the respondents.

The British women interviewed operated and run business in the following areas: Restaurant, dry cleaning shop, clothes and shoes shop and beautician shop. Their major sources of motivation, challenges and difficulties were similar to the above interviews.

From the research findings, it is definite that the success of Saudi women in staring and running small scale businesses is mainly impeded by lack of adequate capital and numerous government restrictions that come in form of taxes and licenses.

Although all the women interviewed agree that the opportunities are vast, there is also the tendency towards shying away from the very business opportunities by women because some of them have a feeling that male gender is overwhelmingly controlling a bigger stake in business, a situation that only jeopardises the success of women SMEs.

As the interviewees unanimously agree, the available business opportunities for women in Saudi Arabia can only be explored if the right effort, commitment and knowledge in business management is put in place.

It is important for women engaging in business to get to know that real commitment and application of stringent business management skills cannot be evaded at any given time during business operation.

In addition, women SMEs are asked duly advised that whenever they set their hands in businesses, they should expect challenges that come with it. As most of those women interviewed stated, the period of time each one of them has been in business has been marked with myriad of challenges but they have always been determined to remain afloat and persistent.

For the 20 women working in the private and public sectors, their responses were varied though had some similar striking points. For instance, 10 out of the 20 respondents complained on the intolerable working conditions in the public and private sector.

Besides, most of them have the desire to work for themselves in form of self employment. As clearly identified, the type of self employment liked by these women is only readily available in the Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs).

At this point, it is vital to note that Saudi women employed either in the private or public sector are manly motiiva6ed to engage in business activities due to the hard the hard working conditions at their places of work. A good example to reckon with was the women in the private sector in banking.

According to the information obtained from the questionnaires, the workload on each day is excessive while the earnings are seemingly not proportional with the services delivered. In other words, the respondents complained of being overworked while at the same time receiving meagre pay.

Such difficult working conditions has not only prompted Saudi Arabia women to seek other alternative solutions to income generation but has also acted as major motivation in accelerating their need for self-employment.

Both genders in the society have unique roles which they play in the society (Carter, Mason &Tagg, 2004, p.35). Although they have equal opportunities in life, the latter has historically struggled to assume a better position in a male dominated world (Dhaliwal, 2000, p.210; Sadi & Henderson, 2005, p.46).

In spite of this, the case of the developed world is rather unique since women seem to be at the centre stage of development controlling more than 30 percent of businesses. These developed economies are being transformed by females (Al-Ghazali & Sadi, 2010 pp.4-5).

In Saudi Arabia, about 45 percent of the entire population is made up of female. This is a relatively lower figure than that of the United States (Hickson & Pugh, 2005, p. 57; McElwee & Al-Riyami, R. 2003, p 78). About 51 percent of the population in US is comprised of women.

However, the difference in Saudi Arabian has been caused by the influx of several non-residents male workers in Saudi Arabia leading to a lower female population. There are about 5.6 million expatriates in Saudi Arabia the majority being men (UMUC Working paper, 2009, par. 7).

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has slightly over 23,000 businesswomen with a total of 62 billion dollars in their account.

By 2008, it was reported that a total of ten business executives who were women from Middle East made their record as among the best 100 bankers worldwide, indicating how women have not only excelled in conducting business, but are also great entrepreneurs and skilled in the business world (AlMunajjed, 1997 pp.141-143).

This is an interesting point of departure for Saudi women in the sense that although capital has been a major impeding factor in their growth in the business world, they are not badly off.

The saving culture by Saudi women has been phenomenal in running successful SMES. It is also crucial that the excellent business strategies adopted by the Saudi women has indeed motivated them to look further into the horizon in terms of both investing and capital accumulation.

There are quite a number of business solution that have been adopted in the last five years to enable women have a conducive business environment that promises success. One of the compelling factors that will make Saudi women excel in business is education (Carter, 2000a, p.67).

Over 58 percent of university graduates are females. In addition, the Saudi economy is still young and has a higher prospect of growth. Moreover, the Kingdom has adequate resources that are needed in any successful business environment.

This has made the Saudi society grow rapidly both in terms of capital accumulation and surplus investments (Abdul, 2004, p. 63). Indeed, the aforementioned factors are great incentives for Saudi women who are planning to engage in entrepreneurial activities, including those who are in various businesses (Powell, 1993 p. 34).

This paper seeks to extensively explore the various opportunities that women have for successful business operation in Saudi Arabia as compared to United Kingdom (Carter, 2000b, p.68).

Both the public and private sectors play an integral role in building the economy of any country and Saudi Arabia is not an exception (Cronin & Taylor, 1992, p.59). While the public sector is run and managed by the government, the main players in the private sector are individuals who set up their own businesses and run them as private entities (AlMunajjed, 2009 p. 6; McKay, 2001, p.149).

Each of these sectors has unique merits and demerits. For instance, there are individuals who would prefer to be employed in the public sector largely due to job security and stable salary (Deakins & Whittam, 2000, p.75).

However, the private sector may also promise better salaries among other fringe benefits that come along with various jobs being offered (Howe, Hoffman & Hardigree, 1994, p.503). The working environment may be enjoyable alongside flexibility at work which enhances creativity as well as skill development.

In spite of the existence of small businesses in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, their variance has been remarkable over the past ten years both in terms of quality and number. This has also been the trend across the world (Zoepf, 2010 par.3; Ram & Jones, 1998, par. 3).

The private sector is steadily supplementing the public sector through spontaneous growth (John, Tansuhaj, Manzer, & Gentry, 2006, p.6). It is out of the small businesses that developed economies such as that of US have seen the light of day in economic progress (Honeycutt, Siguaw, & Hunt, 2005, p.143).

Moreover, small businesses have remarkably shaped the way business is done and as a result, the Saudi economy is experiencing growth mainly due to the existence and expansion of small businesses (UMUC Working Paper Series, 2009, par 5).

It has also been reported that small businesses are responsible for over 75 percent of new jobs being created (Heathfield, 2010, par 4). Similarly, the UK economy has been positively impacted by the growth momentum for small businesses. It is estimated that small firms are contributing significantly to employment creation (Brown, Widing, & Coulter, 1991, p.349).

Despite the enormous contribution of small businesses to the economy of Saudi Arabia, there are still several setbacks that demand to be resolved (Cooper, Gimeno-Gascon & Woo,1994, p.373; Mcatavey, 2002, p.5).

It is imperative to note that the impacts of globalization is gradually injecting numerous changes in the small business world since the markets are now being integrated and also opened up to the world economy (Carter, Mason &Tagg, 2004 p.76).

Products and services can now be sold not only within the borders of the Saudi economy but also in other destinations (Madhi & Barrientos, 2003, p.7).

Hence, the element of competition is in board and cannot be ignored at all. Both the legislators as well as policy makers are gaining more interest in the development of small businesses largely due to the impact of this sector to the economy (Dhaliwal, 1998, 470).

It is also vital to reiterate that small businesses in Saudi Arabia is the main channel through which the private sector can boast of investment (Donnelly, Van’T, Hull & Will, 2000, p.496). Throughout the kingdom, the small businesses, most of which are run by women, constitute over 90% of the private sector investment (Zoepf, 2010 par.5).

As already mentioned, these small businesses have been deemed to be the major creators of employment in Saudi Arabia (Carter & Cannon, 1992). Consequently, poverty reduction is being celebrated due to small business not to mention the ability of these businesses to promote growth and innovation in business culture and technology.

In addition, it is through the small businesses that new products and services are being developed to meet the growing needs of the population in the entire Kingdom (Marlow & Patton, 2005, p.533; Powell, 1993, p.2).

Further estimates indicate that over 50 percent growth in the entire economy is expected to be realized in Saudi Arabia in the near future and this will mainly be contributed by small and medium sized enterprises.

It is against this backdrop that women in Saudi Arabia stand a higher chance of developing and growing their business skills both now and in the future (Marlow & Carter, 2005, pp.47-53; Orhan & Scott, 2001, p.235).

Better still, they have a better chance to succeed as entrepreneurs in Saudi Arabia as can be seen by the numerous opportunities for growth (Dhaliwal & Kangis, 2006, p.97).

On the other hand, women SMEs in Saudi Arabia has not only been motivated and boosted by past hardship experience in the public and private sector employment. As can be noted in the findings section, not all women interviewed had past working experiences with the government.

Some of them had been motivated from the early beginnings from the success witnessed in their male counterparts. The fact that men have always succeeded in running SMEs has greatly boosted the confidence in Saudi women to start and independently run their own business enterprises without relying on men fully.

On the same note, the cultural dilemma that has faced most women in past has indeed gone down and as a result, women are n longer viewed as house-keepers but as equal competitors both in the academia and business world.

However, the worry that surrounds the small and medium sized enterprises under small businesses is that growth and prosperity is still being hindered by the very fact that the basic tools required are not readily in place (Burke & Davidson, 2000, p.36).

The small businesses operated by women in Saudi Arabia can only prosper if the right tools and business mechanics are put in place (Carter et al., 2002, par.4). For instance, these small and medium sized enterprise lack adequate funds and various means through which they can access credit facilities (Kleiman, 1998, p.7).

Contrary to the UK, where the credit facilities are adequate and small business can borrow to expand their businesses. Worse still, small businesses in Saudi Arabia also face stiff government regulations that require them to adhere to the numerous policies (Buttner & Moore, 1997, pp.45-47).

The red tape for non-residents is even tighter. Moreover, the ignorance on the relative importance and contribution of small business has led to lack of statistics on their market progress and hence, they mainly operate without the much needed figures for carrying out business decisions. This is a similar case with many developing economies (Brindley & Ritchie, 1999, p.2; Starr & Yudkin, 1996, p.22).

Therefore, the success of women in small and medium sized business enterprises will require government intervention. The support from government will equally demand the private sector to participate and cooperate fully (Federation of Small Businesses, 2002, par.1).

Large and well established enterprises in the UK are indeed making a mark in developing and supporting the small businesses over and above the government support which is already in place (Marlow & Patton, 2005, p.143).

Furthermore, there is a closer private-public sector partnership in UK that has enabled a profitable working environment among small businesses. This is a similar case with Saudi Arabia although the ties between the two sectors are not very strong (Omair, 2008, p.2)

In UK, there is a practical working framework that entails policy formulation on the progress and needs of small and medium sized enterprises (Baron, Markman & Hirsa, 2001, pp.927-928).

There is a systematic approach through which the government of the day is working closely with small businesses to ensure that they grow. In comparison to Saudi Arabia, it is a lot easier to seek funding from the public sector to initiate small business in UK (Dhonte, Bhattacharya & Yousef, 2001, par. 2; Ambika, 2011, p.2).

Business women in Saudi Arabia would reach greater heights if and only if there were clear policy formulations in the Kingdom that seeks to support them in their business endeavours

The Saudi Arabian woman has been affected by quite a number of barriers in her attempt to excel in doing business in the Kingdom (Babaeva & Chirikova, 1997, p.88). For instance, the cultural setback that requires women to be submissive and seek permission from their male partners before engaging themselves in any decisions is a major setback.

In takes a long time before they can embark on serious business while in some cases, the permission is not granted (Johnson, Sear & Jenkins, 2000, p.27). This has adversely affected the business merit of these women bearing in mind that they have to compete equally with their male business rivals in the market (UMUC Working Paper Series, 2009, par.10).

Another cultural setback originates from the fact that women are not permitted to drive in Saudi Arabia. It is common knowledge that any business person needs to travel frequently and when this is not possible, then most business deals may be spoilt.

This is the constraint to women where they have the liberty to drive freely and conduct their own businesses. In KSA, women have to consult their male partners is necessary before making some decisions while in UK, it is not a mandatory requirement (Ali, 1989b, p.24; O’Gorman, 2001, p.62).

Additionally, there are limited government programs that have been tailor made to reach out for women in small businesses. In UK, such programs are in place and women are in a position to expand their businesses with more ease (Omar, 2008, pp 34-37; Walker & Joyner, 1999, p.95).

However, the major disadvantage in UK is that small and medium sized enterprises are not very common and are not necessarily given the best concern in the business world. The economy has grown rapidly and only those with adequate capital may enjoy starting and running businesses in UK (Al-Ghazali & Sadi, 2010 pp.6-9). In other words, it is cheaper to start and maintain a mini business in Saudi Arabia than in UK.

The challenge posed by gender when staring and running small businesses is not limited in Saudi Arabia only. Despite the fact that there is no evidence that segregate enterprise ownership along gender line, current statistics reveal that only 15 percent of all business units are owned by women in UK while the remainder is owned by males (Marlow & Patton, 2005 p.48).

Furthermore, there is minimal statistical evidence on the growing number of women engaging in self employment through small and medium sized enterprises. For the past two decades or so, the increase in small business among women in UK has been small (Ali, 1993).

Self employment among women has been more stagnant than growing and this has posed more concern on whether small and medium sized enterprises are well placed as alternative sources of employment especially among women (Madhi & Barrientos, 2003 p.112; Orser et al., 1999, par.3).

Comparatively, Saudi Arabian case has been one of the growing patterns in small and medium sized enterprises. As already noted the economy is still young, resources are abundant and in spite of lack of structured government support and funding, Saudi economy still provides the best opportunity for growing small businesses.

It should also be noted that the very small businesses heavily depend on the nearby population. The Saudi population is indeed an asset to the growth of its small business portfolio (Brush, 1992, p.10; Nelton,1998, p.39).

Further research conducted in UK reveals that the likelihood of women becoming self employed is lower than men besides the plain fact that their business skills differ significantly from men (Business.com, 2010 par. 1; Riebe, 2003, p.2).

There seems to be a completely different business platform and ideals in UK compared to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia mainly due to different cultural outfits between the two regions (Khan, 2010, p.3; Still & Timms, 2000, p.280).

For women who engage in small businesses as part of self employment, they mostly take part in traditional occupational sectors like finance and education (Ardichvili, 2001, p.2; Srinivasan, 1995, p.3).

By the side, there are those who work on part-time basis. From this perspective, it is definite that gender has influenced women participation in small business both in UK and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and so it may not necessarily be a determining factor when carrying out comparative advantage between doing business either in UK or Saudi Arabia (Johnson, Sear & Jenkins, 2000 pp.55-59).

Right from the perspective of gender, stereotypes emerge such as the one that ascribes to the inability of a woman to manage personal business well without getting assistance from a male person (Henry, 2002, p.5; Rosa, Carter & Hamilton, 1996, p.466).

For this reason, there are myriad of professional organizations that have been set up to act as custodian for women enterprises especially in Saudi Arabia. These organizations are managed professionally to assist in rising the level and expertise of women involvement in small and business enterprises without being sidelined by gender and other cultural stereotypes.

The role played by small and medium sized enterprises in the Saudi economy has been given more importance than in UK. The Saudi government believes that its economy would only grow if the small business are recognized and supported (Coleman, 2000 pp.38-40; Mostafa & Mohammed, 2005, p.524). For women, this must be a real impetus for growing their businesses in Saudi Arabia than in UK.

To begin with, small, and medium sized enterprises have significantly lowered the rate of high unemployed which was once being experienced in the economy (Flynn, Schroeder & Sakakibara, 1994, par.2). It is worth to note that large scale enterprises do not have the capacity to employ the growing population.

It is only through the creation of small businesses that unemployment can be brought down by double digits. Moreover, the small and medium sized enterprises are also easy to start and administer in comparison to large scale business establishments. Small capital is required and the legal requirements are also minimal (King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, 2010, p.5).

For small and medium sized enterprises under the umbrella of small businesses, they have limited liability and therefore they can remain vibrant in the market in spite of unforeseen market changes such as inflation (Alstete, 2003; Welsh,1988, p.230).

Nonetheless, securing sufficient funding for these small businesses is still a challenge especially in Saudi Arabia. Moreover, they have weak capacities that delay expansion of their working capacities (Foxman, Raven & Stem,1990, p.23; Marlow & Patton, 2005, p.528).

Women in Saudi Arabia are more likely to succeed in small businesses there bearing in mind that up to 92% of businesses there are made up of small and medium sized enterprises, a practice not common in UK (Federation of Small Businesses, 2002 par. 3).

Although the small businesses are major drivers of the Saudi economy, their overall contribution to the GDP stands at only 33% (Hisrich, et al., 1997, p.239). It is against this backdrop that the government has initiated the ‘kafallah’ program to assist in the process of financing small and medium sized enterprises in the Kingdom.

For women aspiring to start small businesses in Saudi Arabia, they have a higher chance of succeeding with a shorter time than their fellow businesswomen in UK (Al-Ghazali & Sadi, 2010, p.6).

In spite of the gender and other cultural factors working against the success of women in small and medium-sized enterprises, there are those female personalities who have made a mark in the business world in UK and around the world (Ali, 1990).

One such successful woman in UK is Deborah Meaden. Although she is perceived to be highly entrepreneurial, Meaden is most likely to have crafted her business skills and ideas from the male dominated society without the fear of being outwitted.

She had a business mind from the early stages of her life and would settle for nothing less than her own run enterprise. She started off with the importation of glass and ceramics at barely 19 years (Burke & Davidson, 2000 pp.38-42; Marlow & Carter, 2005, par.2).

She has grown her business empire by leaps and bounds. In one of his latest establishments, Meaden started a marketing research company having gained vast knowledge in marketing from her previous business outfits (Alshemari, 2005, par. 3; Timmons & Spinelli, 2003, p.72).

The Saudi Arabian economy is well placed both in terms of resources and human capital required to start small and medium-sized enterprises. The striking difference between the two economies namely UK and Saudi Arabia is that the latter is still in its growing phase while the former seems to be static especially in the growth and expansion of SMEs (Roggenkamp & White, 1998, p.69).

It is against this background that women who engage in small businesses in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have a higher probability of excelling than those in UK.

Additionally, small and medium-sized business enterprises remain to be major contributors to both Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and overall economic growth in developing and advanced countries.

It is only through the public-private sector support that small businesses will ever grow to meaningful levels (National Foundation of Women Business Owners, 1998, p.2; Still & Walker, 2006, p.303).

Conclusions & Recommendations

In summing up, it is important to emphasize that the broad meaning of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) tends to differ across borders. It has been used variously in different economies around the world.

For example in Germany and other European nations, it has always been taken that a company with less than 250 employees could qualify as an SME. On the other hand, the United States of America sets the beginning point at less than 500 employees (Cooper, Gimeno-Gascon & Woo, 1994, p.382; Acker, 1991, p.139).

Several efforts have been made to standardise this definition. The European commission has made efforts to this end, setting the limit for a small and medium enterprise to be at 250 employees or less. There are other criteria that are provided by this commission in defining an SME.

There are several factors that affect the success of SME in various economies around the world. For Saudi Arabia women, the government plays a critical role in determining whether the SMEs will succeed or not.

This has to do with policies such as the regulations to access credit, the regulation of the currency and such others. In countries where it is easy to access credit, the SMEs tend to succeed than in those where credit access is limited.

They also tend to succeed where the regulations such as those needed to set up a business are supportive. The SME sector will be vibrant in countries where the tax regime is friendly, and where the regulations are not discriminatory (Farris & Glenn, 2006, p.400).

As much as SMEs affect the economy of a nation, they are also affected by the same. For example, the sector tends to thrive in times of economic stability and boom. SMEs are the first to be affected by economic downfalls such as the recent credit crunch. This is given the fact that they may not have a strong capital base to cushion them from the effects of recession.

There is also the issue of social factors such as the belief systems and values in the society. According to World Bank, these enterprises seem to succeed in countries where people have the ethic of saving. The savings are then used to invest in the businesses.

However, it also noted that some level of spending among the populace is needed to make this model of SME work. This is given the fact that the SMEs will rely on the spending power of the consumers for them to thrive (Ali, 1989a, p.99).

The main worry is that employment opportunities in the construction and public works sector cannot sustain the population for a longer period of time.

For example, jobs in the construction sector last as long as the construction boom lasts. The jobs from this sector are more or less cyclical in nature, meaning that they are unable to provide a stable or high quality employment in the future.

Those who are working in the construction and public works sector, according to the world bank (2009), are less likely to be able to enter into employment in other sectors when the construction boom comes to an end. They are likely to revert back to the unemployed class, in effect widening the unemployment rates in the country (Ali & Al-Shakhis, 1986, par. 3).

Despite the fact that employment is generally high in Saudi Arabia, the case is different when one considers the women who are in employment in this country (Abouchedid & Nasser, 2002, par. 3; Woldie & Adersua, 2004, p.90).

This is given the fact that they are unable to work in the construction and public works industry, where most of the employment opportunities are to be found. This means that as unemployment among the male population is declining, that among the female population is on the rise.

Unemployment among females in Saudi Arabia is acute especially among those women who are educated. This significance of this can be better appreciated when one takes into consideration the fact that women make up a large portion of those graduating from universities, as compared to men.

Women who are educated are thus not willing to join the construction industry, in effect increasing the number of unemployed women in the society (AlMunajjed, 1997, par.2; White, Cox & Cooper, 1992, p.41).

This is like creating a sustainable source of income, given that women entrepreneurs tend to deviate from the normal and conventional fields of investing, such as construction and oil extraction and processing industries (Woldie & Adersua, 2004, p.90; Omair, 2008, p.2).

For women who engage in small businesses as part of self employment, they mostly take part in traditional occupational sectors like finance and education (Coleman, 2000, p.38). By the side, there are those who work on part-time basis.

From this perspective, it is definite that gender has influenced women participation in small business both in UK and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and so it may not necessarily be a determining factor when carrying out comparative advantage between doing business either in UK or Saudi Arabia.

Right from the perspective of gender, stereotypes emerge such as the one that ascribes to the inability of a woman to manage personal business well without getting assistance from a male person (Abbasi & Hollman, 1993, pp.58-59).

For this reason, there are several professional organizations that have been set up to act as custodian for women enterprises especially in Saudi Arabia. These organizations are managed professionally to assist in uplifting the level and expertise of women involvement in small and business enterprises without being sidelined by gender and other cultural stereotypes.

The role played by small and medium sized enterprises in the Saudi economy has been given more importance than in UK. The Saudi government believes that its economy would only grow if the small business are recognized and supported. For women, this must be a real motivation for growing their businesses in Saudi Arabia than in UK.

To begin with, small, and medium sized enterprises have significantly lowered the rate of high unemployed which was once being experienced in the economy. It is worth to note that large scale enterprises do not have the capacity to employ the growing population.

It is only through the creation of small businesses that unemployment can be brought down by double digits. Moreover, the small and medium sized enterprises are also easy to start and administer in comparison to large scale business establishments. Small capital is required and the legal requirements are also minimal.

For small and medium sized enterprises under the umbrella of small businesses, they have limited liability and therefore they can remain vibrant in the market in spite of unforeseen market changes such as inflation. Nonetheless, securing sufficient funding for these small businesses is still a hurdle especially in Saudi Arabia.

Moreover, they have weak capacities that delay expansion of their working capacities. Women in Saudi Arabia are more likely to succeed in small businesses there bearing in mind that up to 92% of businesses there are made up of small and medium sized enterprises, a practice not common in UK.

In terms of recommendations, it is vital to observe that the growth and development of SMEs is largely dependent on the dominating social and economic factors.

Hence, for Saudi women to fully benefit from the proceeds of SMEs there is need for expertise knowledge on business management over and above capacity building and training of those who are interested in venturing into businesses. It is highly recommended that the high number of women graduates in Saudi economy should take courses that are aligned with entrepreneurial skills and competences.

Similarly, the growth and development of Saudi SMEs has greatly been hampered by the low capital availability for women starting and running their own businesses. The sector can thrive well if and only if capital funding is adequate and readily availed to women entrepreneurs.

It is therefore recommended as part of this study, that capital funding should be made a priority in the SMEs development inn Saudi Arabia. This dissertation can act as a policy document framework for policymakers.

For example, the fact that capital has been identified as one of the setbacks for women SMEs in Saudi Arabia, the government in particular should come up with ways and means of developing more friendly lending schemes for women. This will no only boost the economic growth of the country but also assist in reducing the level of unem0ployment and high dependency level in the Saudi economy.

Reflection

The opportunity to succeed in Saudi Arabia as women entrepreneurs is a wide research study that cannot be concluded with a single empirical study. It is worthy to note that there are countless factors that are instrumental when deliberating on a topic of this nature.

While time and financial constraints were some of the real challenges faced during the study, it does not undo the fact that the growth and development of SMEs in any society cannot just rely on a single gender, say the male.

The case study of Saudi Arabia culture is indeed a good example worth mentioning at this point of reflection. In comparison to women in United Kingdom, the Saudi counterparts are thwarted by cultural setbacks that impede their growth and development in business cycles.

Nonetheless, of great importance is the fact that he research study has been an eye opener for me in the entire process since the first draft was put down.

Secondly, the research was well planned and executed since al the variables needed to conduct the study was availed before hand and fully utilised. For instance, one of the requirements for successful research work was the ability to conduct interviews and obtain raw empirical data.

Another important need was the value of time within the entire research period. Although time awarded was relatively short, proper planning enabled not only the completion but also full adherence to the criteria for the research.

On the same note, my dissertation is also compatible with the earlier written research proposal which sought to establish factors that motivate Saudi women to engage in small and medium-sized enterprises.

In addition, the minor research questions were also answered within the dissertation in order to fully meet the needs of the paper. This was necessary because it would have been quite impossible to fully come up with sound motivating factors why Saudi women engage in business without giving a brief overview of other underlying factors.

This research study could have been conducted in a better way should adequate fiancés were set aside for the project. It was noted that the number of interviews carried out in the research study were probably not sufficient especially when considering the wide array of factors that may work for or against women entrepreneurs in Arabian society.

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Appendices

Summary of Interviews carried out with Saudi women

Summary of Interviews carried out with British women