The growing participation of women in entrepreneurial ventures and their significant impact on the social and economic advancement of nations have been acknowledged over the past decades. However, this growth in participation presents both challenges and opportunities particularly in navigating the demands of running a business venture and managing familial responsibilities. Clearly, achieving balance between roles is critical to optimal functioning and continues to be a subject of interest within the workforce. Yet, extant research on work-family balance has focused on employees. Thus, offering minimal insights into the work-family balance experience of female entrepreneurs. Drawing on work-home resources model therefore, this study sets out to answer the research question- How do female entrepreneurs conceive and experience work-family balance and what are the key drivers and coping strategies that influence their perception of balance and enhance their well-being?

Adopting qualitative methodological approach to answer the research question, this study combined the use of focus group discussions and semi-structured interviews. A total of 13 women participated in the focus group discussions while 25 women participated in the semi-structured interviews. Both samples were drawn from female entrepreneurs with children less than 18 years old and running diverse small to medium enterprises in Lagos, Nigeria. The focus group discussions were conducted via Zoom across two days while the semi-structured interviews were conducted face-to-face in Lagos, Nigeria. The primary data collected was analysed following the six steps thematic analysis procedure.

Findings revealed that female entrepreneurs conceptualise balance in a variety of ways. However, there was a consensus on balance as a function of the phase of life the female entrepreneur is in, and the priority placed on each role at a given time. The findings also suggested the inclusion of ‘self’ as a domain in addition to work, family or life balance. These diverse perceptions reinforce the school of thought that posits balance as a subjective experience. Thus, implying that the current definition and operationalisation of the construct may be problematic. Also, the findings revealed that several drivers such as contextual demands and resources influence the perception of balance. Of interest are domain resources such as resourcefulness and emotional spousal support and identity-based resources such as entrepreneurial identity salience and family identity salience. Coping strategies such as religiosity and entrepreneurial self-care were noted to support female entrepreneurs in achieving balance and lastly, female entrepreneurs alluded to the benefit of work-family balance in enhancing their well-being. The study notes several theoretical and practical implications for research and for female entrepreneurs. Particularly it highlights the potential usefulness of the work-home resources model in the context of entrepreneurship.