Women have good communication and listening skills and are naturally strong at nurturing and maintaining relationships. Bola Akinseye, Makeover Designs

Female business owners are more likely to survive tough economic times than men thanks to their pragmatic and open approach to business, according to Business Link in London (BLiL).

A vox pop of 300 businesswomen attending a BLiL last week dealing with economic downturn reveals that women’s slow and steady approach to business puts them in a strong position to be successful in a difficult economic climate.

Business Link in London, a business support organisation that helped over 28,000 female-owned businesses in the Capital last year, cites a number of reasons why women stand a better chance of riding the storm during tough economic times. A summary of the key strengths that give women the edge include:

• Looking ahead – Women are meticulous planners but are also good at improvising should their original plans need to change

• Seeking support – Women are more likely to seek independent advice than men when the going gets tough

• Speaking out – Women are typically better at communicating when the going gets tough and are happy to share their experiences, both good and bad with their peers

• Modest motivations – Women are often less driven by high monetary success and instead value camaraderie, positive relationships and the opportunity to teach and learn

Commenting on the findings, Dr Abigael San, a psychologist specialising in gender studies said: “Women aren’t afraid to hold up their hands and ask for help when needed. They are willing to share their knowledge and seek guidance to save them becoming overwhelmed by situations which could make them feel out of their depth. The provision and seeking of support promotes the building of trust-based relationships and fosters confidence – all of which are important during periods of economic difficulty.”

Dr San’s comments were echoed by some of the 300 delegates attending BLiL’s ‘We Mean Business’ event later today. Bola Akinseye of Makeover Designs said: “Women have good communication and listening skills and are naturally strong at nurturing and maintaining relationships. These are fundamental skills that women can use to their advantage when things get tough – particularly when dealing in customer service markets.”

Fran Currie, head of the client service manager team, Business Link in London concluded: “The women that we support on a daily basis continually prove themselves to be successful improvisers with huge amounts of intuition and self-determination, key ingredients for business success. However, as the credit crunch continues to bite, it’s more important than ever that women seek independent advice to ensure that their businesses are ‘crunch-proof’.”