Assessing the Impact of Leadership Styles on the Performance of Women Entrepreneurs in Kano Metropolis

This paper examines the impact of leadership styles on the performance of women entrepreneurs in Kano Metropolis, addressing the challenges faced by women entrepreneurs in navigating societal, cultural, and economic barriers. The study recognizes that there is a research gap in the knowledge of how the various leadership styles; transformative, transactional, participative, autocratic, and delegate influence entrepreneurial growth in a largely patriarchal society. The paper employs a qualitative approach based on the analysis of secondary data collected from journal articles, books and history. The findings reveal that transformational and participative leadership styles are critical in fostering innovation, inclusivity, and long-term growth. Transactional leadership is characterized by the provision of structures and the provision of objectives, though does not offer flexibility. Specifically, authoritarian and laissez-faire leadership were evident to reduce the extent of innovation and accountability in organizations respectively. Recommendations emphasize empowering women entrepreneurs through leadership development programs and policy frameworks that support their ventures' sustainability and growth. Some of the limitations here include lack of use of primary data and also the fact that the article only considers one geographical area. Future research should integrate quantitative methods and explore cultural and economic influences on leadership styles in women entrepreneurship.