Despite the continuing under representation of women in senior roles in accounting firms in India, there are increasing numbers of women now studying to gain qualifications in accounting and starting their own firms.

Dr Sujana Adapa and Professor Alison Sheridan have recently published a book chapter engaging with women entrepreneurs running micro, small-sized and family-owned accounting firms in Chennai in south India. The research reveals that women as entrepreneurs need to grapple with multiple identities in order to manage their business performance and family responsibilities. There seems to be a complex interplay of multiple identities including gender, caste, entrepreneurship orientation etc., with a new social identity emerging alongside the more traditional one.

Details: Adapa, S. & Sheridan, A. (2016). The Complex Hues of Entrepreneurial Identity Amongst Women Owning Accounting Firms, In P. Kumar (Ed.) Indian Women as Entrepreneurs – An Exploration of Self-Identity, Palgrave Macmillan, New Delhi, India, 21-42.