Business success factors of Muslim women entrepreneurs in Indonesia

Purpose - This paper aims to identify important factors affecting the success of Muslim women entrepreneurs (WOE) in the Medan city, North Sumatera province in Indonesia. There are 19 factors that are derived from trait-based, social psychological-based and behavioral-based approaches. Design/methodology/approach - A descriptive, exploratory factor and confirmatory factor analyses are used in this study. There are 110 respondents of members of Indonesian Woman Entrepreneur Association and Indonesian Muslim Women Entrepreneur Association in North Sumatera, Indonesia. Findings - The profile of Muslim WOE is elaborated, and 19 important factors are rated, while the top three factors of each approach are analyzed and discussed. This paper prioritizes the important factors and develops a framework that acts as a reference for success factors of Muslim WOE. Research limitations/implications - For the government, the rules and regulations must be created to support and facilitate the Muslim WOE and to conduct programs to enhance the development of their business. While for the researchers, they could see an increasing interest of Muslim WOE in business. With a combination of frameworks, the list of important success factors can be compared with the research studies by male counterparts and can be used for further studies. Originality/value - The success in business is achievable regardless of gender difference. The Muslim WOE make everyone recognize the challenges that they were exposed to and the struggles that they have overcome in managing a business as what men may have already been through.