Business Schools must proactively support and develop female entrepreneurs – for the good of society, says Lyly Lepinay, board member at Girls in Tech Paris
The need for greater gender balance touches every element of society and progress is faster in some areas than in others. For example, there is a united front encouraging girls to enter STEM subjects as early as possible. There are also advocates promoting the need to hire more women for the top management positions, of which many also speak out against the gender pay gap.
While everyone has been singing the same battle song on the above, the same cannot be said for supporting more female-led startups. This issue is yet to garner the same level of attention in mainstream news.
We know that most funding goes to male-led startups. Is this really a problem if, after all, there are fewer female-led startups to begin with? We are facing a chicken and egg problem. Unless we take a proactive attitude to supporting women entrepreneurs in the first place, we will be unable to inspire and encourage more women to launch their own businesses. Consequently, it will remain much more difficult for female-led startups to find sufficient funding opportunities.
Disparities in venture capital funding
The good news is that there has been positive change over the past few years. Venture capital (VC) funding in startups with at least one female founder more than doubled between 2017 and 2018 to $46 billion USD, up from $21.9 billion in 2017, according to a joint report by US research organisation, Pitchbook, and non-profit, All Raise. However, in terms of share of distribution, this still only represented 20% of total VC funding.
In Europe, there is a much lower proportion of female-founded startups, but in terms of how much VC funding goes to all-female founded startups, the figures vary from as little as 2% to 12%, according to, respectively, the State of European Tech (a report headed by VC firm, Atomico) and research from the Index team at tech event company, TNW. I have not been able to find funding statistics specific to Asia-Pacific, which is not a good sign. Needless to say, despite the progress made so far, we still have a long way to go in achieving gender balance in the startup world.
These are the realities that propelled Girls in Tech into action. Founded in 2007, the San Francisco-headquartered non-profit organisation now has 47 chapters across the world. Its Amplify pitch competition was launched seven years ago, creating a unique opportunity for female founders to accelerate the growth of their early-stage startups.
The purpose of the competition is to provide funding, exposure on a global stage, and a community of investors and changemakers. The application’s criteria are short and simple – at least one of the founders must be female and the startup must have a minimum viable product (MVP).
Exploring different ecosystems
The demand for this type of support is certainly there. In 2018, Girls in Tech received 363 applications for Amplify, a 33% increase on the numbers received in 2017 and a 144% increase on 2016, with applicants hailing from more than 40 countries. Following on from the success of the original Amplify, the Girls in Tech Paris chapter launched its own edition of the competition in 2018. Among the six finalists, the judges awarded three winners (each of which were deep-tech startups) with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Instead of the original format’s cash prize, Girls in Tech Paris decided to send the winners on an exploration journey to another geographic hotbed of innovation: Singapore.
Sending these startup founders to visit an unfamiliar ecosystem and explore potential new opportunities is only part of their journey. Girls in Tech Paris relies on a network of partners to support its startup winners, from governmental organisations, such as the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), the French Embassy in Singapore, and the Embassy of Singapore in France, to the startup network, via French Tech and Hello Tomorrow, for example, plus multinational corporations Kaspersky, PwC and Standard Chartered.
Participants also attended Singapore’s biggest tech conferences, FinTech Festival and Singapore Week of Innovation and Technology (SWITCH). One of the winners – a startup from Spain – stumbled across the Spanish Embassy at SWITCH and this led to deeper talks on how the Spanish government could support its work. The other winners arranged fruitful client meetings with Asian companies, thanks to the support of PwC.
A cash prize can only last so long, whereas this opportunity provided startup founders with potential clients, partners, and ideas
for their business and technical roadmap, creating a much greater long-term impact. This is why Girls in Tech Paris is taking the startup winners of its 2019 Amplify competition back to Singapore this year.
Growing and supporting female-led startups
One core partner which made this whole experience possible for our winning startups was ESSEC Business School. We must never underestimate the value and strength of Business Schools and universities, and the role they play in the startup ecosystem. Educational institutions often act as the initial source for a startup’s existence. MBAs and programmes with a focus on entrepreneurship don’t just provide inspiration to ignite the imagination and motivation of future female entrepreneurs, they also equip students with the practical and theoretical knowledge, skills, and tools to turn their idea into reality.
It’s heartening to see more universities and higher education institutes investing time and resources in championing female entrepreneurs. Imperial College London’s President, Alice Gast, co-authored a recent article about the important role universities play in nurturing female entrepreneurs.
The article highlights examples of dedicated programmes on offer at universities around the UK, including the University of Winchester’s Women in Digital Enterprise programme, which provides workshops
to help businesses to accelerate their business growth; events and conference initiatives designed to celebrate the achievements of women at the University of Suffolk and University College London, and Imperial’s programme which focuses on providing funding, mentoring, and access to investor networks.
Education must continue to encourage future entrepreneurs and educational institutions can do this by exploring new and innovative ways to help grow and support female-led startups; for example, by partnering with non-profits and sponsoring female empowerment initiatives. ESSEC Business School’s partnership with Girls in Tech Paris is a good example of this.
In saying that, MBAs and programmes focused on entrepreneurship are only one half of the educational equation. Educational institutions and government bodies must promote and encourage more girls into STEM subjects. There is a role in this for everyone: not just Schools and universities, and not just businesses – it starts in our own homes.
User-centric design
People may question the need to encourage girls into STEM, or support female-founded startups. Why should we address the lack of diversity in the technology sector?
In a world with a total population of 7 billion people, made up of men and women in almost equal measure (50.4% men: 49.6% women), you would think that the products we buy and use would be adapted evenly to the needs and preferences of both genders.
Instead, we have airport metal detectors that can be triggered by the type of underwear a woman is wearing and car seatbelts designed for men (which may have contributed to the myth of women being bad drivers), to name but two examples.
We talk about user-centric design, so how about designing software and hardware that suit women, people of different races, and those of varying abilities? When people of all types of backgrounds see such products and services launched to market, they will be better able to understand how technology is relevant to their lives and are likely to develop a greater interest in technology. And who could be better at designing these products than their users? Therein lies the virtuous circle.
When we have more women (and people from other diverse groups) pursuing technological careers and launching their own startups, we ensure that every industry has the right balance of talent and perspectives to design products that serve all areas of their market. This will increase market demand and value, and so on.
Everyone can take action to address the startup world’s gender imbalance, be it through volunteering, sponsorship, donation or partnership. Whether you’re an individual or an organisation, look out for non-profit organisations that support female-led startups and offer your help.
Each person and organisation can offer more than they think in encouraging entrepreneurial people to pursue their dreams. Research the VC firms and organisations that offer funding, mentoring and networks to
help them launch, and know that the world needs their bright ideas. Business Schools can help remove barriers and ensure that the world serves and reflects the rich fabric of the world’s population.
Lyly Lepinay is Group Head of Content at Euler Hermes, a company of Allianz, and serves as a board member of Girls in Tech Paris, a non-profit organisation dedicated to promoting gender diversity and female entrepreneurs in STEM.
