Women and Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurial Style Contd...

She faced a lot of problems convincing people of the seriousness of her purpose. According to Ekta Kapoor, people did not take her seriously because they thought she was only working to pass the time. They also tried to take advantage of her inexperience by trying to force her to accept sub-standard scripts. In addition, they tried to exploit her by overcharging, because she had a wealthy father. Faced with these obstacles, analysts felt Ekta Kapoor did well to adopt a high-handed autocratic style. Had she not been assertive, people would have taken advantage of her and, consequently, she would not have been able to achieve what she did. Her assertiveness helped her overcome the problems created by her youth and inexperience.

Kiran Mazumdar had neither a business degree nor business experience, yet she successfully set up Biocon from scratch. She adopted a democratic leadership style. Kiran Mazumdar believed in creating an open atmosphere and a culture which encouraged risk taking. Such an environment is essential for research based organizations which thrive on innovative ideas. She recruited people only on the basis of competency, thus ensuring that she got the best talent. This approach to recruitment helped Biocon become the largest biotech company in India. Shahnaz Husain, believed in flexibility in business. She said that she did not believe in rigid principles of management, and that she often went beyond pure management principles because 'dua' (blessings) was more important to her.

She did not advertise because she knew that her products spoke for themselves. Since she relied on her products for publicity, she had to ensure that they were of good quality. To maintain a high level of quality, all her products were put through strict quality control processes. Even the raw materials went through stringent quality tests before they were used.

By not advertising, she gave her products an aura of glamour and exclusiveness. Shahnaz felt that entrepreneurship was about dreaming and having the determination to achieve that dream. The women of SMGULP showed how women could overcome any number of barriers to establish a successful business. SMGULP was essentially a venture of and for semi-literate, unskilled women.

These women were able to create a successful business out of something as mundane as cooking. Despite being untrained, they were able to make their business a success because of their discipline and commitment. The ingenious methods adopted by the women of SMGULP (such as their method of sharing advertising expenses) demonstrated that business acumen was not the prerogative of those who held graduate degrees in business.

Work at SMGULP proceeded smoothly, as there were set procedures for most of the important activities. All the women entrepreneurs discussed in this case were able to overcome odds to create successful business ventures in their respective fields. They also were an inspiration to a number of other women in India.

Case Details

Case Code : LDEN013
Themes: Corporate Social Responsibility, Woman Entrepreneurs
Case Length : 13 Pages
Period : -
Organization : Mahila Griha Udyog, Balaji Telefilms Limited, Biocon
Pub Date : 2003
Teaching Note : Available
Countries : India
Industry : Varied

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