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Whilst some women are motivated to establish entrepreneurial ventures by factors which are similar to those of their male counterparts (including a desire for independence and financial gain), unlike the majority of men, a sizeable number choose entrepreneurship to balance work responsibilities and earning potential with domestic/familial commitments. Despite growing numbers of women citing flexibility and childcare obligations as strong motivations for starting a business relatively little attention has been paid to exploring their motivations, expectations and actual experiences of entrepreneurship, and the extent to which entrepreneurship really offers an improved work/family 'balance'. This paper presents findings of exploratory, qualitative research conducted in Northern Ireland, which focused upon the entrepreneurial journeys of 14 women as they established and managed their ventures, whilst balancing domestic/familial demands. Drawing upon information-rich evidence from in-depth interviews, insights are presented into their motivations and expectations of what entrepreneurship would offer, and the realities of their experience.

To pursue development goals, policymakers and scholars alike have proposed that actors in rural areas may usefully engage in collective actions, e.g. by forming community groups, producer associations or multi-actor networks. One proposed benefit of such collaborations is the enhanced knowledge exchange and learning which may be created, and in the literature the dynamics of this are often explained via the concepts of embeddedness and/or social capital. To date however, studies tend towards a somewhat narrow, territorial, interpretation of these concepts, with the result that current understanding of how collaborations and learning evolve between rural actors is rather constrained. This paper aims to explore a broader interpretation of these concepts, through case analysis of a producer cooperative in the Scottish shellfish sector. In the case, the realities of member and management relations are revealed, along with the types of knowledge generated and the processes by which these are, or are not, shared between actors. In terms of embeddedness, our analysis reveals that, rather than the local community context which tends to dominate the literature, it is sectoral norms and habits which shape actor relations and learning most significantly in this case. In terms of social capital, we identify that tension-fuelled social relations are not in themselves a barrier to collaboration, again in contrast to existing claims, particularly where key actors have appropriate interpersonal skills, and where a values-based mindset ('cooperative know-how') is held in common. The findings therefore challenge popular assumptions about how embeddedness and social capital shape collective action and learning in rural areas, and illustrate the value of interpreting these concepts more expansively.

The ability to develop and manage effective networks is a crucial entrepreneurial competence for venture establishment and growth. Relatively little attention has been paid to the network development and networking activities of female entrepreneurs in general, and even less to such activities in technology-based ventures. The limited existing evidence suggests that female entrepreneurs may develop different approaches to network development and participation to that of their male counterparts. This paper presents findings from exploratory, qualitative research conducted in Northern Ireland, which focused on the nature and dynamics of female entrepreneurial networks in traditionally male-dominated science, engineering and technology-based ventures. Drawing upon information-rich evidence from 18 in-depth interviews with the lead female entrepreneurs of technology-based ventures, insights are presented into the nature and dynamics of female entrepreneurial networks and networking at different stages of the business lifecycle.