As consultants working with founders, we track the analyses, frameworks, and case studies shaping the conversation around female founders. Since 2016, we’ve been curating the resources we find most relevant, so you don’t have to search for them yourself.
Where are the female business angels?
Only two out of every hundred tech startups in Austria are founded by women, and female business angels are just as rare. However, founding a startup that focuses on women’s issues is not easy either: In a predominantly male-dominated investor scene, enthusiasm for women’s issues is also quite limited. That’s why in the future, wealthier women should be directly approached to encourage them to become business angels for female startups. “Many women are already acting as mentors without seeing themselves as business angels,” points out Selma Prodanovic in the press, naming the problem. Learn more about female role models in the startup industry and the role of business angels here.
Women against Manterrupting
Countering Manterrupting (when women are constantly interrupted by men during discussions) – new strategies in a male-dominated world, which are unfortunately necessary. There is still much to learn. The current example of the White House and Clinton best illustrates what strategies women and men can use against this. More on that here.
The different image of women held by venture capitalists
Government Venture Capital is one of the most important funding sources for startups and entrepreneurs. In the European Union, between 2007 and 2013, a total of €3,621,000,000 was spent on promoting innovations and financing small and medium-sized enterprises. Three authors had the opportunity for the first time to attend the funding discussions of Government Venture Capital in Sweden over two years. What stood out to them most was: ‘The language used to describe male and female entrepreneurs was radically different.’ Different attributions of male and female founders not only have consequences for the funding of startups but also affect society in general. Learn more here and be as astonished as I was.
TOP 50: Europe’s most influential women in the startup and VC scene
Women are especially underrepresented among founders in the startup scene across Europe. The following article is therefore dedicated to the 50 most influential women in Europe who are active in the startup or VC scene, describing their entrepreneurial activities and innovations.
Female founders on the rise!
“It’s an old topic: there are still not many women working in technical professions. However, this image is changing, at least in the startup sector in the USA, slightly. In contrast to 2009, when only 9.5% of all American startups had at least one female founder, by 2014 this number had nearly doubled to 18%. Women are less likely to found companies alone. The more founders there are in a team, the more likely it is that one of them is a woman. The number of female solo founders is very low.
These are the results of an initial survey wave by CrunchBase. Further surveys will follow, and we will keep you updated!
More background data on this topic and interesting infographics can be found here.
Leap, Y Combinator’s online space for women in tech
Y Combinator (YC) software engineer Cadran Cowansage launched Leap, an online community for women, by women. It is for female founders, designers, software engineers, and VCs. With Leap, women in tech share technical articles, startup discussions, and job opportunities. The environment is trustworthy and governed by rules. You can learn more about Leap and the idea behind it here.
Learn more: 4 Tips for Female Founders to Succeed in Investor Meetings