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After I began fundraising in 2017, ladies have been getting simply over 2% of enterprise capital. Six years later, ladies proceed to get simply 2% of enterprise capital. For myself and lots of different ladies tech founders, the funding hole is private. We have learn sufficient headlines and gotten sufficient rejections to know that the programs governing grants, debt, and fairness are usually not arrange for us to succeed. So, what are we going to do about it?
With beneficiant assist from Tiger World Affect Ventures, my firm got down to analysis the absolute best, most possible actions that clear up (or at the very least shrink) the funding gaps for ladies tech founders. This effort concerned surveying practically 20,000 ladies entrepreneurs and conducting 19 in-depth skilled interviews with founders and discipline specialists.
The ensuing report, titled “Standing within the Gaps: A Roadmap to Redesign the Capital Continuum for Ladies Tech Founders,” presents an motion plan for entrepreneurs, establishments and buyers to work collectively and unlock the total potential of ladies tech founders.
Based mostly on the report, listed here are three entrepreneur-focused steps to assist ladies safe the funding they should develop their startups. It is our motion plan to make sure the info six years from right this moment seems to be totally different.
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1. End up a co-founder
Take it from somebody who’s been a solo founder herself: Your journey will all the time be smoother (and extra pleasant) with a trusty copilot. The analysis agrees with me on this one, discovering that co-founders supply extra abilities, assist and even improved fundraising prospects. One evaluation discovered that 85% of enterprise and angel funding {dollars} go to corporations with two or extra founders.
It isn’t all the time simple discovering a co-founder you possibly can belief, respect, and be taught from, but it surely’s one thing I imagine each entrepreneur ought to search out. Listed here are a couple of strategies recognized in our report:
- Be a part of native coworking areas and networking teams: Meet the movers and shakers in your native startup group, share lunch with somebody new and unfold the phrase about what you are constructing. Even in case you do not meet your co-founder, you may make helpful connections that might repay.
- Use free co-founder matching platforms: Our report recommends a number of choices, together with YC Co-Founder Matching, CoFounders Lab, DigitalWell Ventures and StartHawk
- Attend conferences and trade occasions: These occasions are nice locations to fulfill people with technical backgrounds or deep expertise in your discipline.
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2. Benefit from each monetary wellness and fundraising training useful resource you possibly can
As soon as the novelty of beginning your enterprise wears off, you shortly be taught that there’s fairly a studying curve in relation to operating your enterprise. To not point out the immense value that it takes to maintain it afloat, particularly in these early proof-of-concept days. Systemic boundaries make it harder for ladies and different underrepresented teams to entry the capital we want, too, so it is important to know your stuff to impress bankers and potential buyers.
The 1st step is ensuring your enterprise financials are in fine condition. You do not want a enterprise diploma, however there are some classes each entrepreneur must be taught to keep away from costly errors. Listed here are some good locations to be taught greatest practices:
For these additional down the street and trying to fundraise, our report presents one other batch of sources. The next instruments will help you grasp widespread fundraising subjects and put together for conversations with VCs and angels:
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3. Strategy alternatives by way of the lens of cost-benefit evaluation
If ladies tech founders soak up nothing else from this report, I hope they pay attention to 1 easy but highly effective reminder: It is OK to do much less.
Entrepreneurs have excessive calls for on their time as we’re overrun with alternatives and decisions to make. In relation to funding, there’s all the time one other grant program to use for, one other investor to electronic mail, or a brand new credit score alternative to measurement up.
View each alternative by way of the lens of cost-benefit evaluation by asking your self whether or not the time, vitality, and willpower align with the potential final result for the enterprise. Be trustworthy! If sure, transfer ahead. But when not, be sort to your self and transfer on.
Funding is perhaps the lifeblood of a enterprise, however you are the beating coronary heart protecting the dream alive. Handle your self, and the remaining has a approach of taking good care of itself.
