This work investigates how gendered social practices and cultural discourses shape the construction of the entrepreneur as a professional identity. The authors, Attila Bruni, Barbara Poggio, and Silvia Gherardi, utilize their expertise in organizational studies and sociology to examine the lived experiences of business owners. By applying an ethnographic lens, they argue that entrepreneurship is not a gender-neutral activity but is instead deeply embedded in societal expectations and power dynamics that influence how individuals perform their roles.

Scholars in the field of organizational sociology frequently cite this text for its rigorous application of ethnographic methods to the study of business identity. Experts highlight the book as a foundational resource for understanding the subtle, often invisible ways that gender norms persist in modern corporate environments.