USA: Smart CEO Women

By Elsa Sherin Mathews

When Chitra Darke came to the US from India as a 19-year-old bride, setting up a business was the last thing on her mind. But 11 years and three children later, when she did start her own enterprise - Oakland Printer and Copy - Darke was in for a shock. Her lack of English speaking skills proved to be a major obstacle while conducting daily business. "I had a tough time maintaining a break-even and handling competition," she recalls. At that time, things were not easy and business growth was out of the question.

The turning point, however, came when, on a chance visit to a flea market, someone handed her a leaflet of C.E.O. Women.

C.E.O. Women - Creating Economic Opportunities for Women - for is a California-based organisation dedicated to creating economic opportunities for low-income immigrant and refugee women by teaching them English, communication and entrepreneurship skills, so that they can establish successful livelihoods. In addition, it also provides women with intensive mentoring, coaching and access to capital needed to start a small business.

Darke lost no time in enrolling herself in their programme. "My English language skills improved. I picked up computer skills as well. I now understood how to deal with customers and serve their needs and how to do the inventory and profit and loss calculations. I feel much more comfortable doing my business now," she reveals.

Darke is just one of the numerous immigrant women who, despite living in the land of opportunity, are unable to carve out a career for themselves as they are intimidated by a different culture and language. And this is exactly where C.E.O. Women steps in.

The organisation was set up by Farhana Huq, to address the unique needs of immigrant and refugee women struggling to become self-sufficient. "I started C.E.O. Women in 2000. At the time I was working for a women's entrepreneurship training programme that I had helped start up in California. After the programme had to shut down because of a resource crunch, I didn't want to just give up. When I reached out for help, a philanthropist friend suggested I start my own organisation. She offered to give me $1,000 for a start. That's how we began," says Huq, who is greatly inspired by Nobel laureate Muhammed Yunus' work with the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh, her father's birth country.

Though it had modest beginnings, the NGO has been attracting a lot of attention ever since it became the recipient of the Isabel Allende Espiritu Award for empowerment of women in 2004. Last year, Huq was conferred the Ashoka Fellowship, one of the most prestigious fellowships for leading social entrepreneurs in the world.

C.E.O. Women has helped about 1,000 women so far. Over 60 per cent of those who approach the organisation are Hispanics, while only 30 per cent are South Asians - Indians comprise only one per cent of the total strength undergoing training. This, Huq believes, is not because South Asians are not enterprising but because the headquarters of C.E.O. Women is located in the Bay Area, where the concentration of South Asian women is low. "However, we will soon be opening an office in the Silicon Valley, where South Asian women will be able to better access our services," she says.

C.E.O. Women offers a variety of programmes that impart computer skills, English language training, and give tips on the legal aspects of business, marketing, networking and public speaking. The organisation has a women-friendly study environment and on-site babysitting facilities. Course fees for 16-week programmes range between $50 and $500 depending upon the income of the women. But, most usually pay between $50 and $125 for a full year of services, which includes training, curriculum materials, baby sitting, and access to ongoing support services.

"For those unable to pay, we also have a work/study option wherein they can volunteer their time to the organisation in lieu of payment for the course," explains Huq.

In an effort to reach out to more women, besides the existing classroom-based training curriculum, the organisation has started an educational soap opera, 'Grand Café', which is the story of four women and their experiences of starting a business in the US. Each lesson is followed by English language building skills and an application of business concepts introduced in the lesson via workbook material. "We just sent out the first episode. By using this method we hope to reach out to women in their homes," says Huq.

C.E.O. Women's training methods have received a thumbs-up from many outgoing students. "Those who have successfully completed a stint with us commend us on the quality of the programmes we offer. The only downside is that while there are many women who need our services, we do not have the resources to tackle large numbers. For example, last year we identified over 127,000 women in the San Francisco Bay area itself who could benefit from C.E.O. Women, but were able to reach out to only 500," says Huq.

Once trained, the women confidently step into the world of big business. Maythe Oliveros migrated to the States in 1994 from Mexico in the hope for securing a better life for her 11 children. Though she began working as a housekeeper she never abandoned her dream of opening a beauty salon. She joined C.E.O. Women, brushed up her English, learnt the basics of starting a business, and today is the proud owner of a home-based salon - Bella Mia Salon - with an impressive customer base. In fact, her success prompted a $1,500 grant from the C.E.O. Women Venture Fund to help her expand. "Now, I feel I can do anything. C.E.O. Women has opened our minds and shown us what we have within," she says.
The impressive alumni include owners of restaurants and catering services, child day-care centres, and on-line retail businesses. "In the past year we've had a lot of businesses with sustainable themes. One woman is importing jewellery from the Brazilian rainforest; another is starting a 'green' salon," Huq says with satisfaction.

(Courtesy: Women's Feature Service)

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