# **V. Conclusion**

Using results from the _Future of Business_ survey among small businesses on Facebook in 97 countries, this paper studies sectoral segregation on a global level. Consistent with previous research, we find that women who enter male-dominated sectors earn higher profits than women who remain in traditionally femaleconcentrated sectors. Second, a hierarchy of earnings (“the profitarchy”) emerges whereby men in maledominated sectors earn the most; women in male-dominated sectors and men in female-concentrated sectors in the middle tier; and women in female-concentrated sectors at the bottom. This particular pattern is driven mostly by the developing economies. In developed economies, the “profitarchy” takes the form of maleowned firms, either in male-dominated sectors or female-concentrated sectors, being more profitable than women in any sector.

While we do document some differences across developing and developed countries in factors surrounding sectoral segregation, what is striking is the large area of commonality. Recent work (e.g. Goldin, 2014) has shown a decline in occupational segregation in wage work in the United States. However, sectoral segregation among entrepreneurs, and the gender earnings gap, remains large and persistent across the world.

Women engaged in male-dominated sectors are less likely to have started their business themselves and were more likely to have inherited the business from family when compared to women in femaleconcentrated sectors, but this is only part of the story. Mentorship, particularly from men, is important: we observe that women in male-dominated sectors are more likely to have had a male role model while growing up. These findings are consistent with having better support networks that could assist women to enter nontraditional business sectors and circumvent some of the challenges they may face. Conversely, women who break into male-dominated sectors do not seem to have more education, and capital does not appear to be a particularly binding constraint to the women who have managed to cross over.

In terms of creating programs to support greater rates of crossing over, it is possible that carefully chosen apprenticeship or mentoring programs could help provide the same kind of support that a role model does. A key programmatic aspect would be to target younger women, ideally before they choose a career. <mark>When introducing potential career paths to young women, highlighting the earnings potential and the growth in female representation in non-traditional sectors could also motivate them to pursue a career in that industry.</mark> In addition to mentoring, it could be important to support potential crossover women with socioemotional skills training. We find that crossovers have higher self-efficacy, a socioemotional skill often associated with entrepreneurial success. In addition, the finding that certain types of spousal support can be influential for breaking into male-dominated trades suggests another programmatic approach could be to explore and improve the intrahousehold dynamics. In particular, a spouse only providing funds or moral support is associated with a lower likelihood of breaking gender occupational norms, while help with running the business as well as multi-faceted support are positive forces. Nurturing collaboration between a husband and wife’s business endeavors to capitalize on complementary skills could enhance overall performance.

Given the persistence of sectoral segregation around the world, as well as the misallocation of factors it presents, tackling this global problem with a multifaceted program will not only improve equity, it will make us all better off.

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