Women business owners, incubators,

1. What
Incubators
Need to Know
About Women
Business
Owners
Presented by: Kristin Slice, MA, Empowered Lab CommunicationsEmpowered-lab.com/inb

2. According the 2013 Census, women make
up what percentage of the total number of
business owners:
A: 20%
B: 75%
C: 36%
D: What is a women, I
don’t see gender Mr.
Slice

3. According the 2013 Census, women make
up what percentage of the total number of
business owners:
C: 36%

4. Today You Will Walk Away With
• The latest data on female entrepreneurship
• A brief introduction to gender, national
gender trends and how they affect the growth
of businesses today
• Having engaged in a discussion on innovative
ideas for incubators
• Examples of current programs succeeding at
diversity initiatives
• Best Practices

5. Women are
the fastest
growing
demographi
c of
business
owners in
the country
in
increasing
diverse

6. Between
2002 and
2012, the
number of
women-
owned
businesses in
the U.S.
increased at
a rate of
x 2 1/2
the national
average.

10. The Development of WBO’S
• Extensive research now exists on the
obstacles that women face.
• Women face similar challenges but feel the
effects more acutely, they require innovative
solutions to addressing those challenges.
• Best practices have been developed and are
currently being executed.
• International

11. The Value of Diversity
• Women entrepreneurs tend to treat their
employees better and give back to their
communities
(Criterion Institute, 2013)
• Women entrepreneurs have higher levels of
innovation than their male counterparts
(Harvard Business Review, 2013).
• More broadly, an increase in the number of
women in business leadership positions is
correlated with increased business returns and
payout ratios.
(Kaufmann, 2015)

12. Successful startups have 2x
as many women in senior
roles than unsuccessful
companies.
- Fortune, 2012

13. Gender is
the most
powerful
determinant
of how we
experience
the world.

14. Women…
• Receive 60% of undergraduate degrees and 60% of
graduate degrees
• 36% of business owners
• Control household spending decisions and have
$11.2 trillion in spending
• Driving innovations that meet previously unmet
needs and bring new values to business.

15. What are your biggest
concerns about women
and diversity in your
program / incubator?

16. How can incubators
improve the pipeline of
diverse candidates?

17. How do incubators
have to evolve to
effectively serve an
increasingly diverse
population of
entrepreneurs?

18. Best
Practices
Address
programmatic
considerations
and marketing
strategy.

19. Best Practices: Marketing
• 86% of women rely on peers or colleagues for
business advice and resources.
• Consider your current marketing through a
gendered lens.
• Be aware of the “Bro-grammer” incubator stigma.

20. Best Practices: Programmatic
• Staff training on diversity and gender awareness
• Consider diverse business tools and resources
• Review your current tools and programs and the values
they expose
• Consider the diversity of your staff and their
communication skill sets
• Understand the latest research on women business
ownership and how to effectively work with women
business owners – avoid stereotypes

21. WIN
Flagstaff, AZ
Small discussion
groups on hard
topics
Education, not
networking
Open to all
decision makers

22. Empowered PhXX
Connect directly to
women networking
leaders through
innovating
community
development
model
Counseling Skills
Diverse Resource
and Referral List

25. 10,000 Small Businesses Goldman Sachs
Theory and Application Versus a Specific Tool
Focusing on Peer to Peer
Mindset and Behavior Changes

26. “When you see women
differently, you see the world
differently.”

28. Connect with Empowered Lab
Communications
Download Best Practices for Incubators to Attract
and Serve Women
Empowered-lab.com/InBia
Listen to our Elements Podcast
www.empowered-lab.com
@KristinSlice
Kristin@empowered-lab.com