An Exploratory Study of Women in the Service Industry of Johannesburg

Abstract

The aim of research was to assess and evaluate the relationship between profitability and skills in social entrepreneurship among female entrepreneurs who operate in the services economic sector or industry of Johannesburg, South Africa. The study was carried out by gathering data from a stratified random sample of size 946 business enterprises operating in the services industry of Johannesburg on 31 indicators of profitability. The study assesses the level of social entrepreneurship by measuring proxy variables for the 4 pillars of social entrepreneurship (the ability to use human capital without causing harm to human rights, evidence of a well-balanced human capital, the ability to render business services profitably on a long-term basis, and the ability to render business services without causing harm to the environment and vulnerable members of local communities).A composite index consisting of 8 dimensions was constructed by using criteria set out for quantifying the level of social entrepreneurship by Schumpeter (1991), Satar (2022) and Samuel, White, Peattie and Thomas (2022). The study found that 802 of the 946 businesses in the study (84.78%) were profitable, whereas the remaining 144 businesses (15.22%) were not profitable. Estimates obtained from ordered logistic regression analysis showed that profitability was significantly influenced by 3 factors. These factors were ownership of business, duration of business operation, and level of social entrepreneurial skills.