Barriers to women entrepreneurship are numerous but they are all treated with equal importance in prior research. We believe prioritisation will advance our understanding further. Hence, we start by identifying barriers from earlier studies and explore possible causality among them. A framework based on cause and effect relationship among barriers is proposed. Decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) technique was used to establish this causality. Our analysis identifies five of the 14 barriers as causal. They are as follows: lack of education, experience and training opportunities; spatial mobility and lack of family support; lack of institutional support; lack of entrepreneurial management; and problem in acquiring financial resources. Women entrepreneurs, scholars and policymakers will gain greater understanding through this causal framework of barriers. Knowledge and containment of these barriers will help in fostering a more conducive environment for enabling more women to attempt entrepreneurship.

Purpose In the wake of COVID-19, most of the countries at present, are in a dilemma whether to extend lockdown at the cost of economy or to improve the hard-hit economy by lifting the lockdown. It is indicated by the reputed organizations and medical fraternity that corona will stay here for a longer period contrary to the earlier assumptions. Hence the purpose of this study is to suggest a strategy which balances both preventive measures and economic losses to control the pandemic. Design/methodology/approach There is a need for the identification of the critical success factors (CSFs) for developing COVID-19 preventive strategies to control the pandemic with an economy-centric approach. Findings The six CSFs identified are “Effective communication”, “Social distancing”, “Adopting new technology”, “Modify the rules and regulation at workplace”, “Sealing the borders of the territory” and “Strong leadership and government control”. Research limitations/implications The study has a vital contribution to literature as no previous study has identified CSFs for developing COVID-19 preventive strategies while focusing on the economy. Practical implications Further, these identified CSFs are helpful in medium and longer-term planning which is required to rebalance and re-energize the economy following this epidemic crisis. Originality/value The study has given a model that depicts the cause and influence relationship between the key factors in the system under question. The importance of study increases many fold, as resources are limited and the outcome of the study could be used to channelize the resources effectively.

Purpose The aim of this study is to identify and rank the factors of innovation capability (IC) in Indian micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). This study focuses on ascertaining the important factors that help in enhancing the IC with an emblematic focus on the MSME sector of India. Design/methodology/approach This paper proposes a multicriteria decision-making methodology, which is based on fuzzy analytic hierarchical process to prioritize the factors that enhance the IC of MSMEs. Finally, sensitivity analysis is conducted to examine the ranking stability. Findings Knowledge management is the most important enabler, followed by creativity and idea management and organizational culture. Practical implications Several organizations promote the strategic measures for enhancing the IC. To increase their capability to innovate, there is a need to identify, acknowledge and implement the drivers of IC into practice. Originality/value Prioritization done in the study facilitates the entrepreneurs to determine the most important factors that need crucial attention in dealing with sensitive issues of IC. Entrepreneurs can take several steps to implement the most important factors for enhancing the IC into practices for meeting the needs of the consumers, generating profits and enhancing the competitiveness.

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