Mentoring and training programs that just focus on women aren’t going to be a success. Men have to be part of the equation. Programs need to understand the male perspective. Saying you support equality isn’t enough. You need to be proactive. “The term ‘ally’ isn’t just a noun, it’s an action word,” said Wade Davis, a former NFL player who consults with numerous professional sports leagues on issues at the intersection sexism, racism and homophobia. “Men know very little about women’s experiences in the workplace.” He recommends that all men — not just those with daughters — read about and speak to women about their experiences.

The credit risk of women-owned firms that are six or more years old are indistinguishable from their male counterparts, according to Small Business Credit Survey Report on Women-Owned Firms. The under-capitalization of women-owned firms places significant limits on their growth. Women’s activism to correct this injustice has been building, as evidenced by the rising tide of financing options for women entrepreneurs. Now, the #MeToo movement could bring a tidal wave of funding as women are inspired to stand up and speak out against sexism.

People and institutions can use their investment portfolios not just to make a return on their investment but for social impact. While women are currently twice as likely as men to own impact investments (18% compared to 10% respectively), more than half of both men and women have an interest in social impact, according to 2017 U.S. Trust Insights on Wealth and Worth. Among these social impact investments are opportunities to invest, using a gender lens, in public stocks and fixed income securities, such as bonds, and private equity and debt that align with your values and fit every portfolio size.

It turns our that one reason for the low percentage of dollars going to companies with women CEO's and executives is that there are so few women VCs. VC firms with female partners are more than twice as likely to invest in companies with a woman on the management team (34% of VC firms with a woman partner versus 13% of VC firms without a woman partner), according to Diana Report Women Entrepreneurs 2014: Bridging the Gender Gap in Venture Capital. The research was conducted by Babson. With women making up just 11% of investment decision-makers, according to the NVCA-Deloitte Human Capital Survey Report, no surprise that women entrepreneurs aren't getting funding.