Now is the Time to Invest in Women

Mothers, wives, daughters, oh my...

Women are major contributors in the area of innovation and technology that shape how we live, work, play and everything in between. They are transforming how we live and are moving the world forward. A future where consumption - content, resources, and commerce are transforming in ways never imagined. WOCstars are delivering groceries in glass bottles to eliminate plastics, financing films in just days and online, converting food waste for soilless farming, and making smart cities even smarter.

If you don’t agree or don’t know what I’m talking about just look around you. Women are the engine behind much of the world’s technological solutions that we benefit from everyday: 

• Caller id

• Call waiting

• CCTV

• Fiber optic cables

• Touch tone phones

• Plastics into biofuel technology

• Solar powered water purification

And even the little button you use to call your flight attendant are all innovations of women. Specifically, Women  of Color - Asian, Black, LatinX, LGBTQ, etc. (Check out a quick 1min video for other examples)

Investing in women is at its lowest level.

I am privileged to be surrounded by WOCstar innovations and entrepreneurs everyday and get to invest in their dreams, solutions and more importantly in the women themselves on behalf of my investors. Unfortunately, funding to females is worse than it has been in three years. Specifically, firms invested a total of $434 million in Q32020 which amounts to a 48% drop in funding according to PitchBook data. The data in that report also reports that 2021 funding to female-led companies is hovering around 1.6%.

I repeat - despite all the contributions of women, despite many women being entrepreneurial, solutions-oriented and problem-solvers by nature.

• Despite Black Women being the fastest growing startup segment pre-Covid

• Despite the $507 Billion that Black Women could have added to the U.S. GDP

• Despite over $90B+ being committed to diversity and inclusion over the last 18 months.1

Said differently, men continue to benefit disproportionately compared to women despite how much we achieve, outperform or build  or any of the other “reasons” given for not investing in a female fund manager or founder.

Good News Ahead.

Not to despair, this spells opportunity for smart, forward thinking, inclusive people like yourself.  Let’s not give any more energy to what’s being withheld and denied to women. I’ve done it and it is exhausting, unproductive and at times soul-crushing.  I chose instead to focus on positive, curious, inquisitive, people and positive inclusive forward motion.  My life purpose is crystal clear --- invest, build and give voice to WOCstars by collaborating and championing with women and allies.   A no a**hole policy is serving me well too.

Let’s continue to collaborate and build companies together. Let’s innovate and advance technologies and new products and services by harnessing talent, experience, and resources from across the globe.

Here’s three (3) quick things you can do next week to activate your values:

1. Support a WOCstar Business - Purchase services or goods from a women entrepreneur, recommend her company to your employer, network and friends.

2. Read books by WOCstars - Digital Body Language: How to Build Trust and Connection, No Matter the Distance by Erica Dhawan

3. Spread the Word and your Values - Repost and share this article amongst your network.

Let’s create the future we want in an equitable way and with dignity for one another and our planet.