2010 POLICY PRIORITIES OF 

WOMEN BUSINESS OWNERS 
Prepared for the National Women’s 

Business Council by the Enterprise 

Center at Salem State University 

and written by Kate Victory 

Hannisian of Blue Pencil 

Consulting, this report reflects 

the discussions, policy 

recommendations, and opinions 

from the Salem town hall meeting, 

and as such does not necessarily 

reflect official policies or positions 

of the NWBC, the U.S. Small

 Business Administration or 

any other agency of the 

U.S. Government. 

Introduction 

On June 16, 2010, a summit of women business owners was held in Salem, 

Massachusetts, at the historic Hawthorne Hotel. Since the earliest Colonial 

times, Salem has been a major commercial center in a regional economy 

based on industries as varied as international maritime spice trade and textile 

manufacturing. Now, as the Greater Boston/North Shore region builds a 

twenty-first century economy based on tourism, technology and creativity, 

women entrepreneurs have the opportunity to play a key role. At this summit, 

women business owners on Boston’s North Shore shared their priorities, 

challenges and concerns to help the National Women’s Business Council 

(NWBC) to articulate policy recommendations for the consideration of the 

President, Congress, and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). 

Hosted and facilitated by the NWBC in conjunction with the Enterprise Center 

at Salem State University, this summit was the ninth in a series of town hall 

meetings held around the country beginning in March 2007. The Salem event 

brought together over 200 women entrepreneurs, NWBC members, and 

government agency representatives for candid, lively discussions of business 

challenges and possible policy solutions. As at other NWBC town hall 

meetings before and since, a subsidiary benefit was the opportunity for 

business-to-business networking among the region’s women business 

owners. 

The National Women’s Business Council is a bi-partisan federal advisory 

council created to serve as an independent source of advice and counsel to 

the President, Congress and the SBA on economic issues of importance to 

women business owners. Council members are prominent women’s 

business owners and leaders of women’s business organizations. The 

Council’s mission is to promote bold initiatives, policies and programs 

designed to support women’s business enterprises at all stages of 

development, from start-up to success to significance. 

The Enterprise Center at Salem State University (www.enterprisectr.org) acts 

as the North Shore’s small business incubation and growth center, helping 

to grow businesses at every stage of development through skill building and 

support, and serving as the voice of the small business community through 

advocacy and action. 

2010 Policy Priorities of Women Business Owners 2 
Women business owners 

are eager for knowledge, 

but seem to lack awareness 

of the full spectrum of 

resources available to 

help them start and grow 

their businesses. 

Overview 

This report focuses on policy recommendations on seven key topics identified 

by women business owners in the Greater Boston/North Shore Region. 

These include: 

• access to capital, 

• education and workforce development, 

• federal procurement, 

• healthcare costs and coverage, 

• microenterprise, 

• taxes, and 

• work-life balance. 

The themes and policy recommendations from the Salem summit echoed 

those raised at the earlier town hall meetings. One theme stood out across 

many sessions: the Greater Boston/North Shore region’s women business 

owners are eager for knowledge, but seem to lack awareness of the full 

spectrum of resources available to help them start and grow their businesses. 

Participants readily shared information with each other about a wide range 

of resources, but many of the women business owners in attendance 

admitted to limited awareness of these resources, particularly those related 

to access to capital, taxes, and education and workforce development. This 

demonstrates a continuing need for stronger outreach efforts to women 

business owners by resource and training organizations and agencies. 

For women business owners who have struggled with the recent challenging 

economic environment, there have been several developments of interest 

since the June summit. A requirement that five percent of federal contracts 

go to women-owned small businesses became final in October 2010 and is 

slated to take effect in 2011. The Small Business Jobs Act allows the SBA to 

offer enhanced loan provisions through the end of 2010 and to strengthen 

the ability of small businesses to compete for federal contract opportunities. 

However, even with these developments, many challenges remain for 

women business owners. At the Salem summit, participants offered 

comments and specific recommendations for how policymakers can help 

them move forward and grow their businesses, thus playing an important 

role in overall economic growth in the U.S. 

2010 Policy Priorities of Women Business Owners 3 
Women start with less 

capital than men and are 

less likely to take on 

additional debt to expand 

their businesses. 

Access to Capital 

Access to capital is a key tool for starting and growing a business, and a topic 

that generated much discussion at the Salem summit. Women-owned firms 

with revenues of $1 million or more are more likely than any other womenowned firms to access commercial loans or lines of credit.1 Yet, even these 

businesses lagged behind those run by men in accessing credit (56% of 

women versus 71% of men.) Women-owned businesses also tend to rely 

more on their business earnings as their primary funding source. 

The NWBC report, Launching Women-Owned Businesses on to a HighGrowth Trajectory,2 noted: “A recent Kauffman Foundation publication 

reporting on a survey of high tech firms concluded that women and men 

entrepreneurs are equally likely to succeed given similar conditions.” 

However, as the Kauffman publication made clear, women entrepreneurs 

were not necessarily facing similar conditions; during their early years of 

business operation, women entrepreneurs “remained unwilling or unable to 

develop external sources of equity capital, which could fund further 

innovations, employment or growth.” 

“Women start with less capital than men and are less likely to take on 

additional debt to expand their businesses,” according to the report WomenOwned Businesses in the 21st Century.3 “They are more likely than men to 

indicate that they do not need any financing to start their business. It is 

difficult to distinguish preferences from constraints in these data. For 

instance, women may encounter less favorable loan conditions than men or 

they may be less willing to take on risk by seeking outside capital.” 

Salem summit participants confirmed these findings, noting that credit cards 

and home equity loans sometimes provide funds, but can leave a business 

owner drowning in debt. Several women business owners shared stories 

about being so frustrated with or confused by the process of accessing 

capital that they used credit cards to fund their businesses. Said one, “There 

have got to be new ways that we as women entrepreneurs can secure 

capital.” 

One participant suggested during the microenterprise session that very 

successful women entrepreneurs be encouraged to create micro lending 

2010 Policy Priorities of Women Business Owners 4 
Women business owners 

seeking capital for the 

first time often need 

basic information about 

preparing to approach 

lenders and investors. 

funds, “because they get who we are and where we are because they were 

there once, too.” Participants saw other policy possibilities here, including 

the creation of tax credits for investors who lend money to small and 

microenterprise ventures, or government-sponsored tax incentives to help 

make money available in these pools. 

Women business owners can take advantage of existing financing options 

and resources designed specifically to serve them–provided they are aware 

that these resources are available. The key policy recommendations on 

access to capital that emerged from the Salem summit call for improved 

outreach efforts by resource organizations. 

• First, resource organizations could expand their outreach efforts to 

women business owners who need improved awareness of 

information resources on how to prepare to approach lenders and 

investors. As Salem summit participants shared their own stories of 

struggles to gain access to capital, it became clear that women business 

owners seeking capital for the first time often need basic information about 

preparing company documents, available funding sources, and approaching 

capital providers. 

• Second, resource organizations could improve their outreach efforts 

to women business owners who need an improved understanding of 

the different types of funding sources and the associated advantages 

and disadvantages of each. Salem summit participants indicated that 

women business owners need to better understand what different capital 

providers are looking for (such as how venture capitalists and community 

bankers differ in their expectations), as well as the common information 

set required by all capital providers and investors. 

Education and Workforce Development 

Participants at the Salem summit expressed the view that sole proprietors 

are their own employees and as such need to develop themselves 

professionally in whatever way they can, just as owners of businesses with 

employees need to continually train and develop their workforce. Sole 

proprietors indicated they would like to be able to access grant money to 

train themselves, but said they saw no clear path for accessing this pool of 

money. Workforce investment boards, for example, often have grants 

2010 Policy Priorities of Women Business Owners 5 
Business owners need more 

training to learn how to hire 

effectively, and mature 

professionals need more 

technology training. 

available to train employees at local companies. But because sole proprietors 

are not considered employees, they are thus not eligible to access this grant 

money to train themselves. 

Women business owners offered two policy recommendations on how 

government agencies and resource organizations can improve educational 

resources for business. 

• First, agencies and resource organizations could provide business 

owners with more training for the crucial hiring/interviewing process. 

Because the hiring process is so critical to the success of any business, 

and there is much room for costly error, small business owners – some of 

whom may not have had prior management experience – need help. They 

need more training to learn how to hire effectively. Women business 

owners said they particularly need training in the skills associated with the 

interviewing process, such as behavioral interviewing. 

• Second, these same resource organizations could provide more 

technology training for small business owners. Women business 

owners expressed a need for training on a broad spectrum of technology 

topics, from social networking tools to bookkeeping programs. Summit 

participants perceived a lack of accessible technology training for business 

owners, especially mature professionals, and how to relate this technology 

to improving their businesses. 

Federal Procurement 

When the Salem summit was held in June 2010, participants were awaiting 

news of a final rule that would create a program that permits federal 

contracting officers to set aside procurements for women-owned small 

businesses and economically disadvantaged women-owned small 

businesses. In October 2010, the regulation that establishes a federal 

procurement program for women-owned small businesses became final. The 

program will become effective in February 2011, and contracting officers at 

federal agencies will be able to start setting aside contracts for womenowned businesses in early 2011. 

The set-aside has been in statute since 2000, so it is exciting news for 

women business owners that there will finally be a federal program to assist 

2010 Policy Priorities of Women Business Owners 6 
Even with the new federal 

procurement program for 

women-owned small 

businesses, challenges 

remain, including the need 

for a simpler registration 

process to become eligible 

for government contracts. 

agencies in meeting the goal of awarding five percent of all federal contracts 

to women-owned small businesses. (In fiscal year 2009, women-owned 

small businesses received 3.68% of federal contracts.) To participate in the 

program, firms will need to either self-certify or be certified by a third party 

as a woman-owned small business. Information about the program is 

available at www.sba.gov/wosb. 

Despite the new requirement, some challenges remain that women business 

owners say they are eager for federal policymakers to address. Two policy 

recommendations emerged from the well-attended Salem session on federal 

procurement. 

• Policymakers could simplify the registration process for becoming 

eligible for government contracts. Salem summit participants had a 

number of recommendations on how to do this, including: 

• Set up the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) system so that if a 

business is entered in this registry at www.CCR.gov, its information 

would automatically be updated in other systems. Linking these systems 

would greatly simplify the process and remove potential errors. 

• Clarify which certifications, registration numbers and NAICS codes are 

necessary. Certification does not translate directly into business 

opportunities. Some participants expressed dissatisfaction with having 

to declare themselves “disadvantaged” to be eligible for certain types of 

certification. 

• Agencies and resource organizations could offer additional 

matchmaking events to increase access to subcontracting 

opportunities with government contractors. This is an effective activity 

for businesses just starting out in government contracting. In terms of 

winning contract business, a database listing has limited utility; high-touch 

marketing efforts and in-person networking and matchmaking events with 

prospective clients are keys to success. 

Participants with experience in government contracting advised that instead 

of trying to start a company based on doing business with the government, 

women business owners should start by working as a subcontractor for 

another firm that has a large federal contract. They also noted that 

“government work” doesn’t necessarily have to be for federal-level entities, 

2010 Policy Priorities of Women Business Owners 7 
Women business owners 

asked policymakers to 

consider making sole 

proprietors eligible for 

health insurance tax credits. 

since cities, counties and their respective departments can be much more 

accessible to smaller businesses seeking contract work. 

Participants also noted that registering on the CCR will help counter the fact 

that women-owned small businesses are “woefully under-reported” in 

certain statistics. Women-owned small businesses can stand up and be 

counted by entering themselves into the CCR if they meet all the 

requirements of a woman-owned small business. 

Healthcare Costs 

Salem summit participants shared their concerns that the high cost of health 

insurance chills business growth and slows hiring. They commented that high 

health insurance costs may be discouraging some people from starting 

businesses if they are afraid to leave their current employer-sponsored health 

insurance plan because they fear they won’t be able to afford such insurance 

independently. 

Some 60% of all uninsured people (28 million) in the U.S. are small business 

owners or their staff or families, according to a 2009 survey by the National 

Association for the Self-Employed (NASE).4 Said one Salem summit 

participant, “The basis of this country is small business. That is the enterprise 

of this country. We are this powerful group and we have to rally. I thought I 

was in a vast minority, but here I find out I’m in this vast majority.” 

The Affordable Care Act, a health care reform law enacted in March 2010, 

includes a tax credit for small businesses (those with fewer than 25 

employees) that offer health insurance to their employees.5 However, 

participants worried that small businesses purchasing health insurance may 

not necessarily have access to the same discounts available to larger firms, 

nor are they always permitted to negotiate rates as a group. The selfemployed said they found themselves purchasing health insurance in the 

higher-priced individual market. 

The women business owners at the Salem summit expressed the hope that 

the cost issue will be addressed under the new national health insurance law, 

and offered several key policy recommendations on healthcare. 

2010 Policy Priorities of Women Business Owners 8 
Owners of microenterprises 

would like all levels of 

government to make a 

clearer distinction between 

“small businesses” and 

microenterprises. 

• First, policymakers could write regulations that would allow sole 

proprietors to be part of the tax credit program, helping them cover 

the costs of health insurance. As new regulations are written, summit 

participants would like policymakers to consider making sole proprietors 

who pay for their own health insurance eligible for a tax credit. Since there 

are an estimated 23 million sole proprietors in America, according to the 

National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE), this is not a trivial 

question. 

• Second, policymakers could consider sole proprietors in drafting 

future healthcare coverage laws. For example, summit participants said 

they would like to see sole proprietors included in the exchanges (to be 

established in each state) through which individuals and small businesses 

will be able to purchase health insurance, starting in 2014. Before the 

exchanges come into effect, employers – but not sole proprietors – will be 

eligible for a tax credit for a portion of the costs of health insurance for their 

employees. A sole proprietor is considered a business owner, not an 

employee, and thus is often left out of the equation. 

Microenterprise 

The entrepreneurs who run microenterprises can face just as many 

complexities and difficult choices as their counterparts in the largest Fortune 

500 firms. Participants in the microenterprise sessions shared long lists of 

what keeps them awake at night as women business owners who wear 

many – or most – of the hats in their companies. Concerns and challenges of 

women running microenterprises range from business development, 

administrative tasks, operations, capital, and cash flow to sourcing, time 

management, health insurance and the need for mentors and networking. 

Owners of microenterprises said they want to support each other and stay 

in touch with policymakers, but are unsure about how to do so. Salem 

summit participants questioned whether existing business associations were 

set up to meet the needs of microenterprises, noting that some of these 

organizations have entrance requirements that present high hurdles to the 

smallest companies. 

Women business owners at the summit agreed that the government – from 

the federal level on down – could make a clearer distinction between “small 

2010 Policy Priorities of Women Business Owners 9 
The small business 

community suggested that 

the IRS could improve its 

outreach efforts by creating 

a website dedicated to 

small businesses and the 

self-employed. 

businesses” and microenterprises. Said one participant: “I would like to send 

a message to Washington and ask them to stop calling us ‘small businesses.’ 

We’re not small businesses, we’re micro businesses, and until that 

distinction is made we’re never going to get the attention that we need and 

deserve out of our tax dollars.” 

Participants voiced microenterprise-related concerns that have policy 

implications. 

• First, policymakers could address the sole proprietor’s sense of being 

alone. Sole proprietors said they feel nearly “invisible” from a statistical 

perspective (from not being reported as part of Census data but only as a 

Schedule C on tax returns). Those running microenterprises said they want 

recognition and parity with their larger counterparts. 

• Second, policymakers could encourage resource organizations and 

agencies to create more networking opportunities for women 

business owners. Women business owners seemed eager to continue 

networking at a level beyond meeting prospective clients and partners, 

expressing the wish to come together to discuss the “business of 

business.” They want to use networking with other women to learn how 

to operate their businesses at a higher level. 

Taxes 

Keeping up with changes in tax reporting and filing requirements can be a 

challenge for many members of the business community, including women 

who own small businesses. Women business owners raised several taxrelated issues, including their desire for parity in the deductibility of health 

insurance costs. Since the Salem summit, policymakers have enacted a 

temporary health insurance deduction for sole proprietors and the selfemployed, effective for the 2010 tax year. An extension of this deduction to 

future tax years would be one possible way to achieve this parity. 

Participants also expressed concern about the potential record-keeping 

burden that the new Form 1099 reporting requirement will impose on small 

businesses and sole proprietors when it takes effect in 2012. This 

requirement would require companies to obtain 1099s from all vendors from 

whom they buy more than $600 worth of goods and services per year, 

2010 Policy Priorities of Women Business Owners 10 
Resource agencies and 

organizations serving 

women business owners 

could help address 

work-life balance issues 

by providing more 

networking events that 

provide connections and 

learning opportunities. 

including independent contractors and entities as varied as airlines, hotels 

and office supply stores. Participants indicated they were unsure how they 

will meet this requirement, suggesting an opportunity for the IRS to both 

provide education and to consider modifying the requirement for small 

businesses. 

Women business owners suggested that the IRS could improve its outreach 

to the small business community in two key areas. 

• First, the IRS could improve its outreach efforts regarding available 

resources for the small business community. Participants reported that 

they often found the IRS website difficult to navigate and cumbersome to 

use, and complained of difficulty finding information relevant to small 

businesses and sole proprietors. Although the IRS offers regular legislative 

and regulatory updates online and distributes e-newsletters targeted to 

different categories of taxpayers (including small businesses and the selfemployed), many business owners said they were unaware of these 

resources. 

• Second, the IRS could create an easier-to-navigate website dedicated 

to small business owners. Because the IRS small business / selfemployed division deals with enterprises ranging in size from sole 

proprietors up to corporations with $10 million in assets, participants saw 

the need for a stronger separate focus for just small businesses. 

Participants agreed that small businesses would find a dedicated segment 

of the IRS website more effective and useful. 

Work-Life Balance 

This was the first NWBC town hall meeting to specifically invite participants 

to discuss the topic of work-life balance and associated policy concerns. 

Nearly two-thirds of the participants in one of the two work-life balance 

sessions had a home-based business, highlighting the challenges faced by 

sole proprietors and women owners of microenterprises. Some new 

entrepreneurs who had transitioned out of larger companies reported 

struggling with the transition from too much structure to too little. One homebased businesswoman described her biggest challenge as “just trying to help 

my family understand that I am not on an eternal coffee break.” 

2010 Policy Priorities of Women Business Owners 11 
There is a real need for 

better ways of connecting 

available information 

resources with the women 

business owners who 

need them. 

Women business owners suggested areas where policymakers may be able 

to help address these concerns, with two themes in particular resonating 

with women in the Greater Boston/North Shore region. 

• First, resource agencies and organizations that serve women business 

owners could provide or sponsor more networking events that 

provide connections and learning opportunities. Women business 

owners said they need opportunities to network with other entrepreneurial 

women, both to stave off isolation (especially if they have a home-based 

business) and to have a professional exchange of issues and solutions. 

Participants said they need help with and information on setting better 

boundaries, an umbrella term that encompasses such issues as time 

management, delegation, and the need to practice self-care as part of a 

whole life plan. 

• Second, policymakers could acknowledge the ranks of sole 

proprietors and self-employed individuals in the labor force. At present, 

the self-employed are ineligible for unemployment benefits; participants 

said they would like to see policymakers allow sole proprietors and owners 

of family businesses access to unemployment insurance. 

Summary and Conclusions 

As at the NWBC’s prior town hall meetings,6 women business owners at the 

Salem summit confirmed the importance of networking and mentoring, 

expressing the desire for more opportunities to learn from each other and 

from those who’ve successfully walked the path before them. That so many 

women business owners admitted to a lack of knowledge about available 

information resources points to a real need for better ways of connecting 

these resources with the people who need them. 

The issue of advocacy was one theme that ran through all of the Salem panel 

discussions, as was the feeling of statistical “invisibility” among sole 

proprietors, who reported feeling that their concerns can easily fall under the 

radar. The NWBC can advocate to help increase the visibility and the power 

of women business owners, many of whom are sole proprietors. 

To conclude, here are the highlights of the policy recommendations from 

women business owners in the Greater Boston/North Shore Region. 

2010 Policy Priorities of Women Business Owners 12 
Women business 

owners offered key 

recommendations to 

policymakers on issues 

crucial to business growth. 

Access to capital 

• Resource organizations focused on helping women entrepreneurs could 

improve their outreach efforts so these business owners can take 

advantage of existing information on capital access. 

• Agencies and organizations could expand their outreach and marketing 

efforts to women entrepreneurs, seeking an improved understanding of 

the different types of funding sources and the associated advantages and 

disadvantages of each. 

Education and workforce development 

• Agencies and resource organizations could provide women business 

owners with more training for the crucial hiring/interviewing process. 

• Resource organizations could provide technology training for women 

business owners, especially mature professionals, in areas ranging from 

social networking to bookkeeping software. 

Federal procurement 

• Policymakers could simplify the registration process to be eligible for 

government contracts, by: 1) setting up the Central Contractor Registration 

(CCR) system so that being entered into the registry at www.CCR.gov 

would automatically update a company’s information in other systems; and 

2) clarifying which certifications, registration numbers and NAICS codes are 

necessary. 

• Agencies and resource organizations could offer additional matchmaking 

events to promote subcontracting opportunities with government 

contractors. 

Healthcare costs 

• Policymakers could adjust regulations so that sole proprietors can 

participate in the tax credit program that would help them cover health 

insurance costs. 

• Policymakers could consider sole proprietors in drafting future healthcare 

coverage laws. 

Microenterprise 

• Policymakers could address the sole proprietor’s sense of being alone, and 

offer microenterprises recognition and parity with their larger counterparts. 

2010 Policy Priorities of Women Business Owners 13 
Women-owned businesses 

are already a significant 

economic force, and can 

become even more so in the 

future if they can connect 

with the right information 

and capital resources to 

help them grow. 

• Resource organizations and policymakers could also create more 

opportunities for women running microenterprises to come together to 

discuss the “business of business.” 

Taxes 

• Policymakers could encourage the IRS to improve its outreach efforts on 

resources available to the small business community. 

• The IRS could create an easier-to-navigate website that is dedicated to 

small business owners. 

Work-life balance 

• Resource organizations and agencies could organize more networking 

events for women business owners, both to help them stave off isolation 

and to engage in a professional exchange of issues and solutions. 

• Policymakers could acknowledge the ranks of sole proprietors and selfemployed individuals in the labor force, and consider allowing sole 

proprietors and family-owned businesses access to unemployment 

insurance. 

Today, women-owned businesses are already a significant economic force in 

the U.S., and they can become an even bigger force in the future. According 

to the Center for Women’s Business Research, 28.2% of all businesses in 

the U.S. are owned by women, and one in five firms with revenue of $1 

million or more is woman-owned.7 However, only 4.2% of all revenues are 

generated by women-owned businesses in the U.S., highlighting the 

importance of connecting women-owned businesses with the right 

information and capital resources to help them grow. Salem summit 

participants and the NWBC hope that policymakers will take this report’s 

recommendations to heart and take actions that will allow women-owned 

businesses to reach their full potential, and then, in turn, acting as a powerful 

engine that helps move the U.S. economy forward. 

2010 Policy Priorities of Women Business Owners 14 
Endnotes 

1 Economic Blueprint: Access to Capital Principles, Women Impacting 

Public Policy (WIPP), http://www.wipp.org/resource/resmgr/issues/ 

bluepring_access_to_capital.pdf 

2 Launching Women-Owned Businesses on to a High Growth Trajectory, 

October 2010, National Women’s Business Council. http://www.nwbc.gov 

3 Women-Owned Businesses in the 21st Century, U.S. Department of 

Commerce Economics and Statistics Administration, for the White House 

Council on Women and Girls, October 2010, http://www.esa.doc.gov/WOB/ 

4 Survey, National Association for the Self-Employed, February 2009, 

http://www.nase.org/media/researchstatistics/surveyresults/09-02­

28/Have_You_Ever_Gone_Without_Health_Insurance_Feb_2009.aspx 

5 Information on the Affordable Care Act, http://www.healthcare.gov 

6 Voices From the Field: A Report from the National Women’s Business 

Council Town Hall Meetings, 2007, http://www.nwbc.gov/idc/groups/public/ 

documents/nwbc/voicesfromthefield.pdf 

7 The Economic Impact of Women-Owned Businesses in the United 

States, Center for Women’s Business Research, October 2009, 

http://www.nwbc.gov/idc/groups/public/documents/nwbc/ 

economicimpactstudy.pdf 

2010 Policy Priorities of Women Business Owners 15 
ABOUT NWBC 

The National Women’s Business Council is a bi-partisan federal government council created to serve as 

an independent source of advice and counsel to the President, Congress, and the U.S. Small Business 

Administration on economic issues of importance to women business owners. Members of the Council are 

prominent women business owners and leaders of women’s business organizations. The Council’s 

mission includes conducting and supporting research on issues of importance to women business owners 

and their organizations in order to promote bold initiatives, policies and programs designed to support 

women’s business enterprises at all stages of development in the public and private sector marketplaces.