In search of perfect boundaries? Entrepreneurs’ work-life balance

Abstract

Purpose Does the self-employed nature of entrepreneurs’ business ventures mean that they have perfect boundaries between their work and nonwork lives? Drawing on border theory, the purpose of this paper is to examine entrepreneurs’ work–life balance (WLB) in terms of how they construct and manage the borders between their work and nonwork lives. Design/methodology/approach The authors adopt a qualitative research approach to enhance their insight into entrepreneurs’ WLB using border theory. The study benefits from its empirical focus on Nigerian migrants in London who represent a distinct minority group living in urban areas in the developed world. Data for the study was collected over a three-month period, utilising semi-structured interviews as the primary method of data collection. Findings The study’s findings indicate that entrepreneurs prioritise “work” over “life” and reveal that entrepreneurs have little desire for boundaries as they work everywhere, which makes long working hours prevalent among them. Furthermore, the findings bring to the fore the prevalent social anomaly of entrepreneurs preferring to be unmarried, single and even divorced as a result of or associated with the entrepreneurs’ boundaries creation and management. Research limitations/implications The extent to which the findings of this research can be generalised is constrained by the limited and selected sample of the research. Practical implications Research on human resource management (HRM) in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) or businesses in which entrepreneurs operate is still under developed. The issue of the size and the nature of an organisation (i.e. labour or product market influences, ownership structures, etc.) have profound implications for human resources (HR) structures, policies and practices and the quality of the WLB of entrepreneurs. Research on HRM and entrepreneurship is still evolving. Consequently, HRM in several entrepreneurial business ventures is sometimes (if not often) organisationally fluid and ad hoc. The main implication for this work environment is that there may be little structure in HRM policies and processes to help self-employed entrepreneurs in their ability to comprehensively manage border crossing and to achieve WLB. Originality/value This paper provides valuable insights into entrepreneurs’ work/nonwork boundaries, which is hugely influenced by the commodification of time and money. It also enriches work–life border theory and its social constructionist perspective.

The work–family balance of British working women during the COVID-19 pandemic

“…By contrast, studies reveal that entrepreneurs find it difficult to separate the boundaries between work and family (Adisa et al , 2019b; Pareek and Bagrecha, 2017). This is due to the flexibility of being able to work everywhere that is associated with entrepreneurship, and entrepreneurs are accustomed to long working hours (Adisa et al , 2019b).…”

“…In addition, Johansson Sev€ a and € Oun (2015) advocate self-employment (based on the assumption that it facilitates flexibility) as a strategy for managing the competing demands of work and family. By contrast, studies reveal that entrepreneurs find it difficult to separate the boundaries between work and family (Adisa et al, 2019b;Pareek and Bagrecha, 2017). This is due to the flexibility of being able to work everywhere that is associated with entrepreneurship, and entrepreneurs are accustomed to long working hours (Adisa et al, 2019b).…”

Work–life balance and life satisfaction among the self-employed

“…However, only a few studies have investigated the aspects of WLB among the self-employed. Adisa et al (2019) explored whether entrepreneurs' self-employed nature means that they possess perfect boundaries between work and non-work activities. The study found that self-employed entrepreneurs prioritise work over non-work activities and tend to have little consideration for limitations since they work from everywhere and for long hours.…”

Investigating the Influence of Entrepreneurship on Entrepreneur's Life

“…Nevertheless, the influence on family life, exists, and the hypothesis that entrepreneurship influence family life is accepted, as confirmed by previous researchers, (Gunnarsson et al,. 2017;Mordi 2019). Family life of people engaging in entrepreneurship venture, could face several challenges mainly due to the entrepreneurship demands for time and continues presence and concentration of the entrepreneur, as the sole responsible for the success or failure of the business.…”