The ‘Burt Report: Inclusive Support for Women in Enterprise’ was released by the Government in February this year, and does what it says ‘on the tin’ with recommendations and advice going forward. The view is that women are an under-utilised economic resource and that the more women involved in business, then the better for the economy, employment, aspiration etc. There is no doubting that there are inherent female skills which us blokes just don’t have (editor’s note: a piece written by a bloke).

So where are we starting from? Some 20% of businesses are owned by women, and they are a third less likely to start a business than men. And business failures? How successful are those women?

We don’t have the best statistics on this; perhaps something for BIS to look at. We do know however that in the personal insolvency world, Bankruptcies and Individual Voluntary Arrangements involving women in 2014 amounted to 40% and 51% of the totals, an increase of a third over the last 15 years on both counts. Yes, doubtless these figures are ’skewed’ by pure personal insolvencies in the period, but many will involve businesses operated by women (un-incorporated businesses, partnerships, sole traders etc) and or as a result the failure of businesses they were involved with (as directors, key employees etc).

Without deeper analysis of the data from failed businesses of all genders, and the extent to which women are involved in those failed businesses, we cannot conclude whether a ‘woman in the enterprise’ is more or less likely to succeed compared to her male counterpart. One thing is certain, however, women are not immune from business failures nor the consequence of those failures.

If you are a ‘woman in the enterprise’ and think your business is suffering distress, select one of our Team near to your base, and contact us. The initial appraisal is free and confidential and therefore priceless.