Business Angel syndicates in the UK: a gender aware, relational framework

Jones, Jill 2023. Business Angel syndicates in the UK: a gender aware, relational framework. PhD Thesis, Cardiff University. Item availability restricted.

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Abstract

This thesis explores the observed gender differentiation in the support of nascent entrepreneurial ventures by private investors, known as business angels. Business angels are equity investors who group together in organised syndicates to provide both tangible and intangible support to companies. They do so at the high-risk early stage of business growth when other funding options may not be available to the entrepreneur and, as such, they are deemed to play a vital role in an entrepreneurial economy. As equity investors, business angels take shares of the business and work together with the founder to grow the venture. Business angel activity is differentiated by gender such that women are underfunded as business founders and are underrepresented as investors. This is significant, as socially and economically valuable ventures may be overlooked. Supported by recent diversity initiatives, however, women are now grouping together to invest collectively in organised female syndicates to support female founders. It is not known how the emergence of this new organisational form in the funding landscape may influence the support of entrepreneurial ventures. This comparative case study is delineated in the context of syndicated business angel activity and draws on data from interviews and documents. A retroductive analysis builds on a relational framework to explain the gender differentiation in the funding ecosystem. The potential for a change in the relational configuration of the funding ecosystem which could see women flourish in the entrepreneurial environment is also explored. Theory is advanced by bringing an emergentist approach to the business angel literature and by exploring the emancipatory potential of business angel syndicates. This thesis also makes methodological, practical and policy contributions

Item Type:	Thesis (PhD)
Date Type:	Completion
Status:	Unpublished
Schools:	Business (Including Economics)
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General)
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Entrepreneurship. Gender. Business angel. Relational sociology. Critical realism
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	28 August 2024
Last Modified:	28 Aug 2024 09:43
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/171581

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