Who are today’s women business owners?

When RSM McGladrey embarked on their 2007 Survey of Women Business Owners, they elected to expand their scope in order to capture more compelling and holistic results. In partnership with the University of Chicago’s Graduate School of Business, as well as the Committee of 200 and the National Association of Women Business Owners, over 650 respondents were surveyed across 35 states.

The findings are fascinating. For example, more than two-thirds of those surveyed are married, and a similar percentage have children. Forty percent had a post-graduate education (compared to 9% of the entire female labor force) and nearly forty percent of those businesses in the top revenue category started their organizations between the ages of 20 and 29.

These women started young, are well educated and willing to take risks (often applying their personal home as collateral and using up the majority of their savings). They tend to favor logic over intuition and believe they are more optimistic and confident than others. Their biggest business challenge ahead? The economy, say forty eight percent of those surveyed.

So what made them take the leap of faith? Over two-thirds wanted to be their own boss and have more flexibility, and nearly half simply wanted to make an idea succeed. And their primary long-term goal? To generate enough income to provide for a comfortable life, which is really all that most of us are trying to achieve.

Let’s keep the conversation going.