International Management Practitioner: Critical Evaluation

International Management Practitioner: Critical Evaluation

B. Ozkazanc-Pan (2015) ‘Secular and Islamic feminist entrepreneurship in Turkey’, International Journal of Gender and Entrepreneurship, Vol. 7 Issue: 1, pp.45-65.

Although multiple measures are taken by International Organisations to reduce the gender inequality, it is well acknowledged as being a global issue (Sarfaraz and Faghig, 2011, p. 45-57). While some countries such as India have improved their situation over the years, there are others, more controversial ones, where the gender gap remains substantial (World Economic Forum, 2016). One of these countries that still remains affected by significant gender inequality is Turkey. This ongoing issue has several repercussions especially within the business environment. This has led to many academics to conduct research into the origins and possible solutions to the problem, to help ease and promote effective women’s entrepreneurial activities.

To give an illustration of the severity of the issue that Turkey faces, a good example is provided by the author B. Ozkazanc- Pan. The conceptual paper called “A Critical Evaluation of Secular and Islamic feminist entrepreneurship in Turkey” tries to tackle the issue of gender inequality by looking into the origins of the issue as well as providing possible solutions. In short, the paper questions whether gender inequality could be tackled by women’s entrepreneurship. This is done by comparing and contrasting two particular approaches: Secular and Islamic feminist ideologies. Despite the article highlighting this problem on several occasions and providing objective solutions, there are still some flaws that emerge from within the paper. Thus, this review of the journal article will provide a critical evaluation of the B. Ozkazanc- Pan’s paper, which will be done in the three following stages.

Questionable amount of background data and reasoning for women’s non- participation within the business field.

Although it is clear that the article considered is a conceptual piece of work and as such does not necessarily require empirical data or statistics, in this particular case, it would be beneficial for a reader to understand the point that author is making. As Gilson and Goldberg (2015, p.127) noticed, a conceptual paper needs to be clear and logical, in order to be able to evaluate and criticise the issue proposed. Based on previous studies it also requires strong and valid arguments to encourage further development and research. Wallace and Wray (2011, p. 91-92) also agreed that to pursue this aim, it is necessary that a set of connected ideas support the theory through general observation and specific investigation. This becomes apparent in the article in the lack of detailed introductory information about the current women’s participation in the business environment in Turkey overall. Based on Maden’s insights (2015, p. 312-313), the author provides only superficial information about how women’s entrepreneurship can challenge gender inequality in the Turkish context, confining the reasoning just to the economic and political external environment surrounding women. However, for the examination of this particular issue, this article does not offer sufficient evidence with which to evaluate to the extent to which women’s empowerment projects in Turkey can be effective (Landig, 2011, p. 2016-219). For instance, to support the claim that all women should have access to the business field, the author could have analysed the profile of a Turkish woman trying to set up her own business, perhaps providing at least a few possible challenges that this woman in business could have encountered. In other words, the paper could instead be more focused on the reasons behind the decisions that allow women to build their business, the characteristics they have and the business they would like to launch. In addition, the aspirations that encourage women to start up or get involved in business could be taken into account and preferably compared to the traditional view of women in Turkey. This is due to the fact that some women, as Ufuk and Ozgen (2001, p. 299-308) noticed, prefer to have a traditional life rather than taking an initiative role in business. Therefore, carrying out similar analysis could help improve understanding of the relationship between women and entrepreneurial activities to begin with. This could potentially lead to the finding the right approach to tackle this issue in a community where female empowerment is still ‘a deep rooted-problem. As demonstrated by the authors Idru, Pauzi and Munir (2014, p. 82-89), focusing on these factors is more likely to lead to encouragement in the education and training required to fight the barriers that women meet along their path. Thus, this could broaden the knowledge and general understanding of the women’s situation itself, in addition to increasing the depth of knowledge that encompasses the core problems that highlight why women are failing in the current business environment.

Debatable introduction of the Islamic and Feminism approaches which are used as crucial tools for tackling the gender inequality.

The author's main goal is to provide potential grounds upon which to challenge gender inequality using two approaches: Secular and Islamic feminism entrepreneurships. However, to grasp a full understanding of the approaches used by Ozkazanc-Pan to solve the problem, the reader is required to conduct an in-depth research on their own. Doing so would provide enough background knowledge for the reader to effectively question the feasibility of these two approaches, so as not to take them for granted.

The pure definition and origins of the two feminism entrepreneurship approaches can sometimes be misleading and a deeper analysis, that provides a broader understanding, could be necessary. Otherwise, this could put constraints on the readers’ evaluation of the different feminism entrepreneurships and even the concept of feminism itself. Furthermore, this can also worsen the situation in understanding how feminism and its approaches used in Turkey currently affect the business field. A good practice noticed by Ahl and Marlow (2012, p. 544-545) could be used to introduce the reader to and briefly describe the term of ‘entrepreneur’, according to a neo-liberal framework. This is needed to see how it could be associated with a feminist perspective (Ahl and Marlow, 2012, p.545-548). What is more, the concept of an ‘entrepreneurial feminist’ would be beneficial if analysed further, ensuring that the distinction between being a feminist and a female is understood. For instance, neoliberal ideas have changed the way entrepreneurship is seen, allowing the individual to express and realize its potential inside the economic field without constraints imposed by the public institutions (Down, 2010; Ogbor, 2000; Sturdy and Wright, 2008). Despite this, the favourable image of being an entrepreneur seems to have create too many limitations in the possibility of having access to the entrepreneurial profession nowadays (Ahl, 2006; Ahl and Nelson, 2010; Calás et al., 2009; Taylor and Marlow, 2009; Watson, 2009). In fact, the male model dominates the idea of an entrepreneur and the qualities used to describe the profile of an entrepreneur are the same as that attributed to a typical man (Ahl, 2006; Marlow et al., 2009). Therefore, feminists want to challenge this deep-rooted belief, but before this can be achieved, it is necessary to differentiate the concept of being a female from that of being a feminist. Based on Orser, Elliott and Leck (2012, p. 241-257) entrepreneurial feminists are described as the predominant driver of change aimed at improving women’s quality of life and well-being through new strategies and processes. Also, as Ahl (2004, p.16) added, a feminist is defined as a business owner who gives ‘…recognition of men’s and women’s unequal conditions and the desire to change this.’ Thus, as seen in the examples, a good knowledge of the terms used by the authors lets us not only understand the concept, but also encourages us to question how entrepreneurial processes and feminist values can interact or maybe even contribute to each other. All things considered, it seems reasonable to assume that a primary knowledge is compulsory in order to critically evaluate and challenge the secular and Islamic feminism entrepreneurship approaches used by the author.