Female Entrepreneurs, Work–Family Conflict, and Venture Performance: New Insights into the Work–Family Interface*

Existing theory is extended to predict the effectiveness of strategies for structurally reducing work-family conflict by manipulating roles, given the salience of work and family roles and resources available to the female entrepreneur. A conceptual framework based on the constructs of role involvement and role conflict is used to examine whether high-growth female entrepreneurs choose more appropriate strategies for reducing work-family conflict than their less successful counterparts. Three basic strategies for manipulating roles are discussed: (1) role elimination; (2) role reduction; and (3) role-sharing. The following propositions are advanced: (1) work-family management strategies are a significant determinant of venture growth; (2) women who develop high-growth businesses more effectively reduce work-family conflict by choosing strategies better matched with their internal needs and access to external resources than less successful women; and (3) role-sharing strategies are preferred because they allow women to enjoy the enhancement of both work and family roles while reducing the level of inter-role conflict. As a result, the high prevalence of team-building and participative management practices observed in women-owned businesses may be driven by the need for female entrepreneurs to manage work-family conflicts as well as genetics or socialization. Introduction Managing the demands of both work and family is a continuing challenge for female entrepreneurs. While previous research documents that women experience greater conflict between work and family roles than men (Noor 2004; Welter 2004; Frone, Russell, and Cooper 1992), and the negative results of this conflict on the well-being of women (Hammer et al. 2004), relatively little work has examined the strategies employed to mitigate work-family conflict. While a number of researchers examine psychological means of coping with emotions resulting from work-family conflict (that is, Ashforth 2000; Edwards and Rothbard 2000; Greenhaus and Parasuraman 1999; Kossek, Noe, and DeMarr 1999), very few have examined strategies to structurally alter the interference between work and family roles that generates these emotions. Although Baltes and Heydens-Gahir (2003) test general life management behaviors, they stop short of examining specific methods. Here, existing theory is extended to predict the effectiveness of strategies for structurally reducing work family conflict by manipulating roles, given the salience of work and family roles and resources available to the female entrepreneur. More specifically, the following question is examined: Do high-growth female entrepreneurs choose more appropriate strategies for reducing levels of work-family conflict than women who desire but can not achieve high growth? The conceptual framework and testable propositions resulting from this investigation will be of interest to practitioners and academics alike. As a result of comparing high-growth women entrepreneurs to their aspiring but less successful counterparts, insights are also provided into the differences among female entrepreneurs. By relaxing the implicit assumption that female entrepreneurs are homogeneous, this paper sheds light on the complexity of issues faced by female entrepreneurs. The theoretical framework is based on the constructs of role involvement and conflict (Edwards and Rothbard 2000; Lobel 1991; Greenhaus and Beutell 1985). In addition to illustrating the mediating effect of work-family management strategies on new venture performance, it is also demonstrated that external resources and internal role salience impact the choice and effectiveness of work-family strategies. Guidelines for choosing and implementing various work-family management strategies based on these two factors are also presented. It is argued here that mitigating work-family conflict is an important condition for growth in entrepreneurial ventures. …