Women In Business 2023 — Savings and Entertainment Guide
This century is an exciting one for women in business. Never before have
women enjoyed so many opportunities to succeed as entrepreneurs—whether
they’re looking to make an impact in corporate board rooms or to
establish a business or professional practice. Our area is teeming with
female go-getters—ladies who lead, stand out in their fields, and stand
tall on the shoulders of the women who blazed trails before them. In
this special section, you’ll meet some of these foremost females whose
stories of accomplishments and journeys to success are bound to inspire.
A century ago, only 15% of women worked outside the home, mostly as domestics. By 1960, a third of women were employed. That decade gave rise to two important laws: the Equal Pay Act of 1963, which began closing the salary gap between the sexes, and a ruling in 1968 that job ads could no longer be segregated by gender. Yet it took until 1988 and the passage of the Women’s Business Ownership Act before women-owned enterprises could get business loans without male co-signers.
Today, more than three-quarters of working-age women are employed, and women are filling career opportunities once virtually closed to them: More than a third of doctors are women, up from 6%—not a misprint—in 1950. Lawyers’ Wives groups have given way to women lawyers associations. And more than a third of STEM workers are women; only 8% were in 1970. Not to be overlooked: Our country has its first woman vice president, and next year for the first time a woman astronaut will fly to the moon.
Some achievements still seem elusive. Women don’t yet own as many companies as men do—42% vs 58%—but the growth of women-owned businesses is increasing exponentially: 16.7% between 2012 and 2019, compared to 5.2% for male-owned businesses. Women entrepreneurs’ gross earnings rose by more than 50% compared to just over one-third for men. And most notably: While women helm fewer than 10% of S&P 500 companies, their rates of return have outperformed the men-run corporations by 384% to 261%.
One key to women’s success is that traditionally they network, support one another, share, and foster expertise. If entrepreneurship is your goal, here are just a few of the many available resources you might want to check out.
Hear speakers and learn from the area’s best and brightest women business owners on May 12 at the Sacramento Women’s Conference. bbb.org/local/1156/womens-conference
HER (Folsom Women’s Conference) is sponsored by Folsom Chamber of Commerce, among other local businesses, and features speakers, lunch, networking, giveaways, and shopping. This year’s event is October 5 at the Harris Center. folsomwomensconference.com
These organizations—in addition to local chambers of commerce— provide women with free or low-cost counseling/training/mentoring:
SBA Women’s Business Centers, sba.gov/district/sacramento
SBA SCORE, score.org
California Women’s Business Centers Network, californiawbc.org
Sacramento Valley NAWBO (National Association of Women Business Owners), nawbo-sac.org/about-nawbo
WomensNet (for startup grants), ambergrantsforwomen.com
A century ago, only 15% of women worked outside the home, mostly as domestics. By 1960, a third of women were employed. That decade gave rise to two important laws: the Equal Pay Act of 1963, which began closing the salary gap between the sexes, and a ruling in 1968 that job ads could no longer be segregated by gender. Yet it took until 1988 and the passage of the Women’s Business Ownership Act before women-owned enterprises could get business loans without male co-signers.
Today, more than three-quarters of working-age women are employed, and women are filling career opportunities once virtually closed to them: More than a third of doctors are women, up from 6%—not a misprint—in 1950. Lawyers’ Wives groups have given way to women lawyers associations. And more than a third of STEM workers are women; only 8% were in 1970. Not to be overlooked: Our country has its first woman vice president, and next year for the first time a woman astronaut will fly to the moon.
Some achievements still seem elusive. Women don’t yet own as many companies as men do—42% vs 58%—but the growth of women-owned businesses is increasing exponentially: 16.7% between 2012 and 2019, compared to 5.2% for male-owned businesses. Women entrepreneurs’ gross earnings rose by more than 50% compared to just over one-third for men. And most notably: While women helm fewer than 10% of S&P 500 companies, their rates of return have outperformed the men-run corporations by 384% to 261%.
One key to women’s success is that traditionally they network, support one another, share, and foster expertise. If entrepreneurship is your goal, here are just a few of the many available resources you might want to check out.
Hear speakers and learn from the area’s best and brightest women business owners on May 12 at the Sacramento Women’s Conference. bbb.org/local/1156/womens-conference
HER (Folsom Women’s Conference) is sponsored by Folsom Chamber of Commerce, among other local businesses, and features speakers, lunch, networking, giveaways, and shopping. This year’s event is October 5 at the Harris Center. folsomwomensconference.com
These organizations—in addition to local chambers of commerce— provide women with free or low-cost counseling/training/mentoring:
SBA Women’s Business Centers, sba.gov/district/sacramento
SBA SCORE, score.org
California Women’s Business Centers Network, californiawbc.org
Sacramento Valley NAWBO (National Association of Women Business Owners), nawbo-sac.org/about-nawbo
WomensNet (for startup grants), ambergrantsforwomen.com
