Critical Factors for Business Sustainability in Women-Led Social Enterprises in Peru

Abstract

This study analyzes the key factors that determine the sustainability of women-led social enterprises in the Peruvian context via structural equation modeling (SEM). This research is based on a random sample of 521 social entrepreneurs and explores the influence of current employment, type of entrepreneurship, and years of entrepreneurial experience on social entrepreneurship potential. The results show that the current employment of women entrepreneurs significantly influences their social entrepreneurship potential (β = 0.383, p = 0.000), whereas the type of entrepreneurship (β = 0.653, p = 0.026) and years of experience (β = 0.269, p = 0.004) act as moderating variables in this relationship. Additionally, comparison tests revealed significant differences in social entrepreneurship potential according to age (p = 0.000), years of entrepreneurial experience (p = 0.000), and employment status (p = 0.000). Pairwise comparisons revealed that women aged 30 years or older had greater potential for social entrepreneurship than did those under 22 years (p = 0.001) and those aged 23–29 years (p = 0.006). Similarly, entrepreneurs with 6 or more years of experience presented greater potential than those with less than 3 years of experience (p = 0.000). These findings highlight the importance of considering employment status, type of entrepreneurship, prior experience, and age differences when designing policies and support programs for women’s social entrepreneurship. This study contributes to understanding the factors that influence the sustainability of women-led social enterprises and provides recommendations for future research, such as expanding the SEM, replicating it in different contexts, and complementing it with qualitative approaches.