Back to History Current Version

Digital Technology Adoption

Last registered on September 02, 2021
View Trial History

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Building Managerial Capital for Women Microentrepreneurs
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0008104
Initial registration date
September 01, 2021

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
September 02, 2021, 11:08 AM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

Country
India
Region
Karnataka

Primary Investigator

Name
Sanghamitra Mukherjee
Affiliation
University of Oxford
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

Additional Trial Information

Status
In development
Start date
2021-09-02
End date
2022-12-31
Keywords
Finance & Microfinance, Firms & Productivity, Gender
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
Poor managerial capital has often been cited as a reason for low productivity in microenterprises. Managerial capital is the ability to make good business decisions (strategic and operational). This experiment will focus on building a specific aspect of managerial capital – the ability to understand one’s own business. I do this using a digital app, MeraBills, that helps microentrepreneurs maintain detailed records and view simple analytics of their business.

A majority of microenterprises in developing countries do not maintain business records. A major barrier to maintaining business records, is the low perceived returns to record-keeping. For example, a long list of financial data in a diary can be difficult to interpret and learn from. In this study, we increase the perceived returns to record-keeping by enabling entrepreneurs to use their business data while making business decisions. Working with 1200 low-income women microentrepreneurs, I ask two questions. Firstly, can microentrepreneurs use their own business data to make better management decisions? Second, does this translate to improved firm outcomes? Combining app data with survey data, this study will unpack the effects of this digital app on business decision making and firm outcomes.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Mukherjee, Sanghamitra. 2021. "Building Managerial Capital for Women Microentrepreneurs." AEA RCT Registry. September 02. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.8104-1.0
Sponsors & Partners

There is information in this trial unavailable to the public. Use the button below to request access.

Request Information
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
This intervention will provide access to a digital app that helps microentrepreneurs process the information in their business data. The theory of change is that enabling entrepreneurs to learn from their business data can be a means of building managerial capital and in turn, improving firm outcomes. In this study, I ask two questions. One, can microentrepreneurs use their own business data to make better management decisions? Two, does this translate to improved firm outcomes? I answer these using a field experiment with 1200 women led microenterprises in Karnataka, India.
Intervention Start Date
2021-09-06
Intervention End Date
2022-03-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
There are two groups of primary outcomes. First, Business Performance. This includes variables such as business revenue, expenditure and profits. The second group is Business Practices. This includes variables that measure record-keeping, marketing practices, managing customers and managing trade credit.
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
To understand the effect of a digital tool on business decision-making, I design a field experiment in India. I will randomly vary access to three treatment arms which differ in the degree to which they help entrepreneurs process business information. The control group gets access to a paper template to maintain records. This group is not provided any support to process information from their business data. The second treatment arm receives access to the MeraBills app for a period of three months. The app helps process and understand business data. A third treatment arm receives access to the MeraBills app for three months as well as three visits (a month apart) from a field officer who works with them to interpret the data/ statistics on the app. Combining app data with survey data, I will unpack the effects of this digital app on business decision making and firm outcomes.
Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
Randomization done in office by a computer.
Randomization Unit
Individual level randomization
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
1200 women microentrepreneurs
Sample size: planned number of observations
1200 women microentrepreneurs
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
~400 microentrepreneurs in the Paper/ Control group ; ~400 microentrepreneurs in the App / T1 group; ~400 microentrepreneurs in the App
+ Business advice / T2 group.
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
CENTRAL UNIVERSITY RESEARCH ETHICS COMMITTEE (CUREC), University of Oxford
IRB Approval Date
2021-02-02
IRB Approval Number
ECONCIA21-22-07
Analysis Plan