Where Are The Women VCs?
from the old-boys-club dept
This won’t come to a surprise to most people who have dealt with venture capitalists on a regular basis, but there are very few women VCs, and the numbers are actually decreasing. Since raising venture money is often about your personal network, some are suggesting that this is one of the reasons why women are having a tougher time getting their own businesses started – they don’t have as many connections within the “old boys network” of venture money. This is definitely unfortunate (though, I will say that some of the smartest VCs I do know are women). Still, you would think that this would represent an opportunity for some enterprising VCs. If qualified, women-run companies aren’t getting funded, then a smart VC firm (whether or not it had women partners) should try to search them out, as they may be more likely to find a worthwhile startup that other VCs will miss.
Comments on “Where Are The Women VCs?”
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I know several women VCs, including the one who came in to the start-up I was working at, fired the CEO, took over operational control, shopped the company a few months before firing the lot of us. So just keep in mind that being a VC isn’t all fun and excitement and requires a bit of ruthlessness (as anyone who has signed a term sheet in the last two years can attest).
The ratio of women in VCs is probably similar to the number of women in tech in general (VCs are heavily tech focused), which is related to the ratio of women who get technical/science/engineering degrees. In fact, the women (and most men) I know who are VCs were all engineers working in tech (or doctors in biotech) before making the move over.