🇪🇸 Madrid, Money & Mujeres| GENDEX #03
Hi friends,
It’s been a whirlwind here at GENDEX. 🌀
Last week, I joined my colleagues Stephanie, Brendan, and Tanya in Madrid for the 20 x 30 summit. They spoke on panels about advancing digital skills in Europe, offering us a great chance to connect with thought leaders on these critical topics.
My time at 20 x 30 was spent interviewing founders, CEOs, and industry experts on the state of diversity in Europe—a thrilling first foray into videography for me! 📹 The conversations were eye-opening, highlighting both the challenges and opportunities in our field.
On a personal note, I had a fantastic weekend in Madrid, exploring the city, enjoying delicious tapas, and catching up with family and friends.💃🏾
What are your thoughts on the current state of diversity in tech? Share with us!
Graçias,
– Sophie Webber, Communications Lead at Founderland for GENDEX
A snapshot from my interview with Monique Calisti at the 20 x 30 summit 📹
🫶🏾Current state of GENDEX: Brendan Rowan on progress and the diversity premium 🔥
What’s your role in GENDEX?
My role involves defining what the index needs to look like, ensuring it's useful, and working with our colleagues from IDC and Founderland to make it happen and make it relevant in validation as well.
Can you share more about the hypothesis and methodology for GENDEX? Fundamentally, we have to prove something here because the diversity gap in investment and founder teams is not moving fast enough. We need to measure where these gaps are happening and understand their impact. We're looking to see if there’s a 'diversity premium' – whether more diverse founders lead to better company performance, competitiveness, and investment returns.
How do you see initiatives like GENDEX shaping the future of digital transformation and innovation in Europe?
GENDEX needs to be useful, comparable, and sustainable. We reviewed about 30-40 different datasets and found it hard to compare them due to inconsistencies. Our goal is to create a tool that is actionable and valuable, allowing stakeholders to test their own theories and build upon the existing data.
Can you share how the journey so far has been with the project, any early discoveries and what's on the horizon?
We’ve had an initial phase of scoping out what we’re talking about, understanding identity and societal labels. We’re now figuring out where to focus and how to slim down our objectives. We want to prove the anecdotal evidence about challenges faced by diverse founders with solid data, which we hope to gather in the next few months.
If you could wave a magic wand, what would the desired outcome be for GENDEX at the end of the year?
What I'd really love to have is an investment case behind diversity. That would be the unicorn. We're not sure we'll reach it, but that would be the goal. And that would be amazing if we're able to say, if you invest in companies like this, you will have a better return. If you behave like this, your company will have a better return.
What strategies do you think are essential for maximising the impact of GENDEX?
We need to make sure that everyone is with us. The investment and startup community in Europe must be united to compete globally. We have to believe in the investment case for diversity, making it a necessity rather than a nice-to-have.
20 x 30 Summit: Leveraging the potential of women to address the advanced digital skills gap
Last week, our team attended the 20 x 30 Summit in Madrid, an event uniting industry leaders, educators, and policymakers to tackle the most pressing issues in advanced digital skills across Europe.
Stephanie von Behr moderated a panel with Maria Mezher, Mark Jordan, and Noelia Torres Baños on "Leveraging the Potential of Women to Address the Advanced Digital Skills Gap," – a topic that aligns perfectly with GENDEX's mission.
Why is this panel topic so crucial? Women, especially pregnant women and new mothers, face significant biases in the tech industry.🤰🏽Addressing these biases is essential for creating inclusive workplaces where everyone can thrive.
Steph kicked off the panel with an anecdote from Maren Bannon’s recent conversation with a male investor who admitted he would always choose a male founder over a pregnant female founder, citing fewer distractions and better financial returns. 🤦🏼♀️
This kind of bias is precisely what our mission at GENDEX aims to dismantle.🙅🏾♀️
Key Insights from the panel 👇🏾
1. Shifting Mindsets: We need to challenge and change the biases that lead to such decisions by recognising the unique perspectives and transformational potential women bring to organisations.
2.Policy Measures: Implementing effective policies that promote gender diversity and inclusion in tech up-skilling programs is critical. These policies can transform corporate cultures and reduce systemic biases.
3. Supportive Ecosystems: The panel emphasised the importance of mentorship, role models, and networking in supporting women in tech. Building these supportive ecosystems is vital for long-term success and inclusion.
Flipping the script: Fundraising wisdom from Auxxo’s Bettine Schmitz
Last week, in partnership with Founderland we kicked off our reverse investor pitch series. The goal is to create a space for founders to ask the tough questions and gain invaluable insights directly from investors.
We heard from Bettine Schmitz, founder of Auxxo Female Catalyst Fund – a Berlin based fund backing and uniting the strongest pre-seed and seed women founded startups in Europe.
Moderated by Founderland’s Alina Bassi, the session provided some great insights for founders looking to enhance their fundraising strategies. 👇🏾
💜 Advice for founders:
Identify specialist VCs that understand your niche.
Be prepared to discuss your business model and growth potential.
✨ Personal connections boost your fundraising efforts
Personal connections are key. Meet funds in person at events and networking sessions.
The best introductions come from founders or funds the VC has already invested in or worked with.
💪🏽 Preparation & transparency are key in the fundraising process
Create a well-organised data room on platforms like Notion, and include a comprehensive FAQ list to streamline the due diligence process.
Maintain transparency and avoid NDAs to ensure smooth deal flow.
Being organised and clear in your documentation can significantly boost investor confidence.
🕵🏼♀️ What Auxxo looks for in potential investments
Auxxo has a strong interest in B2B, enterprise markets, and AI strategies.
They value impact, looking for what motivates the startup team beyond financial incentives.
Emphasis on gender diversity and creating a safe space for female founders is crucial.
News, Events, and Resources 💜
What we’re talking about 👀
📈 As put by Marie Bos ‘ESG is a mess’. Capital markets controversies have shown it’s not fit for startups. Overwhelmed? Download HV Capital’s roadmap and ESG Guide for Startups in her post.
📈 “Sustainability is a team sport.” Balderton Capital’s guidebook helps startup founders with ESG. From why it matters to how to start and operationalise it. Read the full guide here.
📈 European Women in VC found that Female GPs Boost VC Returns: Funds with more women in senior management show higher returns and lower volatility. Read more in the 2023 EWVC Report.
Read all about it 🗞️
🗞️ Maria Rotilu, Europe’s first black solo GP and one of the first female solo GPs, launches a $10M fund. OpenseedVC targets early-stage operator-led startups in Europe and Africa.
🗞️ Women-led Ovom Care has closed its €4.8M seed financing round! This German startup uses AI to improve IVF success rates, addressing global infertility issues. Early data shows a 13% improvement in fertilisation rates.
Join us at these events 🗓️
Investor Reverse Pitch with BNVC | 🗓️ May 28th | 📍Virtual | Free to register
TOA Berlin | 🗓️ June 4-7th | 📍Berlin, Germany | Get 10% discount with code FounderlandTOA24 | Don’t miss our panel on June 5th on Navigating DEI in Tech!
TNW Conference | 🗓️ June 20th-21st | 📍Amsterdam, Netherlands | Get 20% discount with code FOUNDERLAND-20 |
Keep in touch 💌
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