The RE-FEM project consortium has reached an important milestone, the publishing of the Research Report. The report provides results on the impact of COVID-19 and all other crises that came after the pandemic and affected women entrepreneurs.
The research was conducted with the involvement of all project partners and countries; hence data was collected from Finland, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania (Transylvania), Serbia, Slovakia, and Spain (Andalusia). More than six hundred (608) respondents completed the survey, which provides valuable insights into the experiences and responses of women entrepreneurs during the COVID-19 pandemic and the recovery phase after the pandemic (an era which can be described as a poly-crisis) shedding light on their resilience and adaptability in the face of challenges. Furthermore, interviews were conducted with 24 experts and 56 women entrepreneurs.
The experts highlighted that there should be targeted policies, support programmes and initiatives dedicated to women entrepreneurs, not only during crises but consistently and that these programmes should recognize and address the specific challenges women entrepreneurs face in business.
Similarly, the focus of the respondents’ stories extended beyond just COVID-19 and its impact. It encompassed all the other challenges they had faced since the last wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our analysis presents in detail what are the challenges women entrepreneurs face in times of crisis, what are the strategies to employ and their needs for support.
Not only challenges but learning and new opportunities characterise the post-Covid era. The women entrepreneurs gained valuable experiences, enhanced their skills to further professionalise their entrepreneurial activities, strengthened existing or started to build resilient communities, and seized new business opportunities within the constraints they faced during the crisis.
In recent months, our research findings have been disseminated across various platforms:
- WORK2023 Conference
- Date: 23-25 August
- Venue: Online & Turku, Finland
- The RE – FEM project partners shared initial cross-country research insights at the WORK 2023 conference on Digital Capitalism: Peril and Possibilities. Details
- EmpowerHER Balaton
- Date: 29-30 September 2023
- Venue: Zánka, Hungary
- Our preliminary results were presented to women entrepreneurs and their professional network at the EmpowerHER Balaton event.
- VOSZ Women Entrepreneurs Section Annual Meeting
- Date: 11th October 2023
- Venue: Budapest (HU)
- Katalin Oborni presented research results as a keynote speaker and round table participant at the joint event organized by SEED Foundation and VOSZ. A valuable opportunity to engage with policymakers on issues affecting women entrepreneurs.
- Entrepreneurship Research Conference
- Date: 16-17 November 2023
- Venue: Budapest (HU)
- Orsolya Gergely and Katalin Oborni presented the research, titled “Crises and responses – Women entrepreneurs and their businesses in the light of comprehensive international research,” at the annual conference of the Network of Economic Researchers and Analysts. Details
- Hungarian Sociological Association Annual Conference
- Date: 17-18 November 2023
- Venue: Budapest (HU)
- Our research on “The Impact of Crises on the World of Work: Challenges and Responses in the Sociology of Work” was presented in the section “From crisis to crisis” by Orsolya Gergely, Katalin Oborni, and Eszter Szőnyi. Programme
- Danube Cup – Conference on Entrepreneurship Education
- Date: 24-25 November 2023
- Venue: Belgrade (SRB)
- Sanja Popovic Pantic and Katalin Oborni presented in the section “Entrepreneurship in Practice – Effect of Covid-19 on Entrepreneurship.” Programme