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How 94 Women Entrepreneurs Would Fix Silicon Valley's Sexism Problem

This article is more than 6 years old.

2017 was a watershed year for gender dynamics and disparity. Accounts of sexual harassment and assault have covered all the headlines and industries - starting in tech and spreading to entertainment, sports, and politics. The stories are shocking. Every day — and, sometimes multiple times a day — high profile leaders fall, quickly being removed from power and post. The reckoning is here, it’s happening, and as we move into 2018, there are no signs of the movement slowing down. Silicon Valley had a particularly eventful year, from the Google Manifesto to the large number of high profile investors kicked out of their firms and forced to relinquish their unicorn board seats due to accusations of sexual assault and harassment. Headlines have also been filled with male founders and CEOs kicked-out of their companies for creating toxic cultures that result in abuse, sexism and racism, and other unethical happenings.

In all of these cases, the abuses highlight the strained power, gender and age dynamics in the Valley. As we all seek answers, accountability and progress, the public discourse (predictably) continues to be dominated by industry influencers. Unfortunately, those with less influence — like the brave women who brought their difficult stories to light  are often not the ones afforded an opportunity to drive thought leadership on potential solutions. As a woman founder, I can’t help but think about all of the voices being left out of the mainstream conversation: those discussing and sharing in back channels, women entrepreneurs growing companies outside of the Silicon Valley bubble, introverts and those founders who don’t want to contribute to any part of the dialogue for fear of retribution.

Bias is also greatly impacting the mainstream discussion. Group think is especially prevalent, as everyone hops on the bandwagon of the loudest, most vocal groups, even when they don’t agree with the suggestion being put forward. Sunflower management and implicit bias are also plaguing the dialogue and driving inaccurate and unfair evaluation of proposed solutions and next steps. The ‘Silicon Valley Meritocracy Myth’ has long been debunked, but if the tech industry is to ever get close to that ideal, the process of change needs to be more inclusive.

There are voices that should be front and center in the discussion, and with that aim in mind, my team conducted a study with 94 women founders and venture capitalists to unpack their perspectives on changes needing to take place in the industry. The founders interviewed have raised a combined $128 million for their companies, spanning seed to Series B+ venture rounds. They have intimate knowledge of what it’s like to raise money and what needs to shift about the process. The technology used to facilitate the study eliminated over ten types of bias from the discussion, including groupthink, anchoring, pattern recognition and sunflower management, and allowed anonymous (but claimable) submissions of ideas and feedback. The responses highlight that a more inclusive discourse can add unique and valuable insights and ideas.

There were three questions posed to the participants. To analyze the results, responses were categorized. Results are presented below, along with the top responses in each of the categories. These responses highlight the most supported responses by fellow women founders and investors.

Question 1: What are some actionable ideas for how we can help address the challenging gender dynamics in the founder-VC relationship?

Responses were well distributed across the categories, covering topics like education, transparency and community.

Baloonr

Ideas around increasing leadership roles for women were the most common, accounting for 35% of responses. Here are two examples:

“Invest in women VC fund managers so that women founders don't have to go to male VCs only. Currently women VCs control way less capital because LPs (those who fund VC funds) are sexists too. So women VCs raise way less money than male VCs.”

“More male VCs need to mentor and sponsor up-and-coming women principals.”

Other categories and top responses:

Feedback & Community: “VC firms should have a 'community manager' who checks in with founders at every stage of the engagement process to gather feedback.”

“Every VC should follow up with a survey asking for feedback on their meeting.”

Education, Awareness & Workshops: “Acknowledge gender bias as a fact. Harvard Business Review (in May) published a study on how VCs talk about women founders as having less credibility, trustworthiness, experience, and knowledge than their male counterparts. Awareness must be heightened before change can happen.”

Code of Conduct:My concern is that this conversation and codes of conducts being put forward are only focused on harassment and assault and not on gender bias, which has widespread impact that can't as easily be stopped, addressed or measured.”

Transparency & Accountability: “Firms should have to publish their statistics of who applies, who comes in the door to pitch, and who gets funded--if numbers are disproportionate, then there is clear numerical proof.”

Question 2: How can/should founders hold investors (of all genders) accountable when fundraising?

Responses to this question were split into four categories.

Baloonr

The women participants overwhelmingly think that more transparency and publishing around investments is the best way to hold investors accountable. The benefits to women entrepreneurs seem straightforward. You can see this sentiment emphasized in these suggestions:

“Clarify requirements for investment upfront; if an investor pulls out when requirements are met, then they should be held accountable or at least called out.”

“The only way to hold investors accountable is to create an environment where good investors are rewarded and others are not. That means creating a community of transparency and visibility that highlights investors who are really focused on metrics that matter, diversity, and fair treatment. We need to share our experiences with each other & take some of the leverage that investors with money have.”

“Track and publish: 1. The % of women partners in the fund and growth, and 2. % of women and underrepresented founders funded. I would love to see somehow a huge movement to stop deal flow to those that do not progress, however I do not see how this would really be executed.”

There have been numerous studies showing how women are disadvantaged in the fundraising process. More transparency would provide fewer opportunities for biased investment decisions, ultimately leveling the playing field for all entrepreneurs. The first step to solving any problem is clear identification and understanding of the problem.

Question 3: What would be helpful for our male counterparts to know about being a woman in tech?

To emphasize the learnings, we opted to keep each of these responses uncategorized. Included below are the top responses that were surfaced and supported by the other women founder and investor participants:

“Proactively network on behalf of womens you believe in. It truly is a "good 'ol boy" network, so make intros!!”

“We need you! Being one of the good guys" does not mean that you don't participate in either blatant or subtle Misogyny or harassment. It means you stand-up and proactively call out other men who do. This will drive better results."

“Mentor women, even if you don't think you'll be an investor and even if they aren't a superstar. Raising the level of game of any women only helps everyone. Don't treat them with kid gloves - give them specific, concrete, actionable feedback on how to be better.”

“Imagine how much the combination of 1) being treated daily as "less than" 2) putting energy into what you wear, what events you can safely attend, how to remove yourself from situations daily, and 3) wasting time in follow-up meetings over 25% of the time when the investor just wants a date, etc. etc. detracts from productivity. Imagine what could be accomplished if this was a non issue.”

“Do an honest soul search. Are your unconscious biases destroying productivity or hampering results? Some of the most hurtful actions come from men who believe they support women. Ask women around you if you have any major blind spots, listen, and be willing to become part of the solution.”

“In group settings we always have to prove that we deserve to be there even though we are just as competent. Even then we are spoken to in a condescending tone by others.”

How can the tech industry become a true meritocracy, if the process to transform and reach that goal isn’t truly inclusive?

Amplifying the voices of women entrepreneurs and investors in the public discourse is just a prerequisite to start addressing the significant systemic issues we have in the tech industry. This is Step One as we look for ideas and solutions. Similar outreach needs to occur in other troubled industries, as the media stories continue to illuminate the size and scope of this problem. Solutions exist, and we can rely on research and data to design and build a path toward a better, more innovative and productive future for everyone.

Thank you to the women who participated, sharing their ideas and solutions, and providing an opportunity to amplify the voices that matter the most - theirs.

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