Embrace the Power of Agility in 2023
Women-owned businesses are paving the way for the country’s new normal.
Women in America have been changing jobs, demanding more from their companies, and starting businesses at higher rates than men increasingly each year since the pandemic first began. That’s according to findings from LeanIn, Zippia, and WEForum. As urban powerhouses, these findings ring true for women in the Metro New York and Greater DMV region, too. Women in and outside of our network are increasingly taking the reins amid economic and industry uncertainty—and we’re succeeding. Revenues, confidence and anticipated expansions are up (Source: Bank of America).
It’s why we kick off 2023 applying the theme The Power of Agility. The way business is conducted has undergone an evolution, and it continues to evolve: stakeholders have much larger say in how they procure goods and services, workforces demand flexibility, and technological advances are inciting new ideas and solutions. Continuing with our mission to help fuel the local economy through women-owned businesses, this year we’re focusing on helping women business owners adapt and optimize in this environment of uncertainty so they can meet their goals and have a positive impact in this new and hopeful economy.
To build agility, we promote that women business owners in the Metro NY and Greater DMV region should prioritize People, Technology, and Process. Together we should embrace the continual assessment, analysis, and adaptation of existing strategies to address the unique challenges of a potential crises.
Why People, Technology, and Process?
We’re focusing on People because the reality of the fragility of life in the past few years of the pandemic has prompted our shared understanding of the individuality of our workforce. 2023 begins as the first year in three years without mandatory local lockdowns, wherein businesses have become accustomed to both the challenges and the opportunities that hybrid workforces have introduced. Organizations will succeed when they can support a flexible, elastic workforce, where life at work is integrated with life at home. To foster agility, women business owners in the Metro NY and Greater DMV region should acknowledge and work within this reality.
We’re focusing on Technology because it is part and parcel to People when considering a hybrid workforce. To be agile, women business owners in the Metro NY and Greater DMV region must adapt to new technologies and have systems and processes that drive simplicity, innovation, collaboration, rapid decision-making, knowledge sharing, empowerment, and experimentation.
And we’re focusing on Processes because we can see that, within this new reality where there is more flexibility, individuality and trust, there is a need for clear guidelines for shared accountability. It is no longer just one person’s responsibility to ensure shared success: with greater flexibility comes greater individual accountability.
As the premier network supporting women-owned businesses in the Metro NY and Greater DMV region, our focus on People, Technology and Process is derived from related research, experts in our orbit and the lived experiences of women business owners in our network. At the last count, the number of women-owned businesses in the country rose 58%, while all businesses increased only 12%; total revenue of women-owned businesses jumped 46%, while revenue for all businesses increased only 36%.
This momentum is grouped with the facts that women have been increasingly taking the reins amid uncertainty and revenues, confidence and anticipated expansions are up, that we look to 2023 with high expectations and tangibly held hope.
This year we will embark on the journey to foster economic growth through women business owners in the Metro NY and Greater DMV region together, learning, adapting, and optimizing along the way. Through our programming, policies, and projects, we will apply a people-centered lens to our work, adapt to tech to simplify and streamline, and build organizational stability through efficient processes to meet the moment and capitalize on the opportunity.
Join us.