TRACEY LINDEMAN
Special to The Globe and Mail
Initiatives to increase the number of women in the notoriously male-dominated startup world are catching on around the world.
There are accelerators – such as the S Factory in Santiago, Chile; Upstart in Memphis, Tenn. and Prosper in St. Louis, Mo. – that give women-led startups mentorship and up to $50,000 (U.S.) in seed investment. Co-working spaces for startups with at least one female founder, such as WMN in Israel, exist too. In Canada, the Waterloo-based Communitech’s Fierce Founders programming offers women entrepreneurs hands-on training and funding of up to $30,000 (Canadian).
Then there are the investors and organizations that fund women-led startups, the informal support groups for women and the women-only networking events. 

Globe and Mail Article by Tracey Lindeman

Initiatives to increase the number of women in the notoriously male-dominated startup world are catching on around the world.
​
There are accelerators – such as the S Factory in Santiago, Chile; Upstart in Memphis, Tenn. and Prosper in St. Louis, Mo. – that give women-led startups mentorship and up to $50,000 (U.S.) in seed investment. Co-working spaces for startups with at least one female founder, such as WMN in Israel, exist too. In Canada, the Waterloo-based Communitech’s Fierce Founders programming offers women entrepreneurs hands-on training and funding of up to $30,000 (Canadian).
​
Then there are the investors and organizations that fund women-led startups, the informal support groups for women and the women-only networking events.
In a sector where just 12 per cent of venture-capital money is invested in women-led startups, it’s easy to assume that women would be relieved to finally have access to more opportunities.

Read more here  

Organized by Jeanine Swatton, Becca Lopez, Peter Bloom and Salima Fassil, Silicon Valley Women in Technology is a group where women can get together socially and meet other women who share their passion for computers and technology. They will meet up at events like She's Geeky or attend tech seminars. Follow the link for more information on future Meetups. http://www.meetup.com/Silicon-Valley-Women-in-Technology/?scroll=true#upcoming

Wall Street Journal Article by Susan Duffy


We’re right to be alarmed by the stunning amount of fem-fueled entrepreneurial potential being left on the table. At Babson College Center for Women’s Entrepreneurial Leadership, we believe the opportunities ahead far outweigh the challenges. There are three critical lessons we’ve learned from our experience working with entrepreneurs that can create greater gender balance and by extension, extraordinary economic and social impact.

http://blogs.wsj.com/accelerators/2014/08/19/susan-duffy-3-lessons-learned-in-creating-gender-balanced-entrepreneurship/

National Women's History Museum launched its newest exhibit, "From Ideas to Independence: A Century of Entrepreneurial Women," which celebrates and chronicles the legacies of entrepreneurial women, who forged through challenges 
and setbacks to create their own paths to economic and professional independence and open their own businesses. 

View Exhibit

This month’s tips come from Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg’s new book, “Lean In”. The book discusses not only empowerment in the workplace, but also serves as a career guide from one of Silicon Valley’s most powerful people.  Below are four examples from Sandberg of how women can overcome obstacles. To lend an entrepreneurial perspective we’ve included insights by Start ‘Her Up founder, Jill Fishbein.

Just wanted to share this article from today's Silicon Valley Business Journal: Women-owned businesses up 56.6%

As your company begins to gain ground, you will soon be considering how to incorporate. A question to ask yourself: what is your company identity? You may be a company that is offering a service to its customers. Or, your company may be doing more than just providing that service and making a profit—your company’s ultimate goal may be to offer a public benefit, making a positive impact on society or the environment.  Many companies have moved towards some form of a hybrid corporate identity, and California has kept up with the movement by offering two new types of corporations: the Benefit Purpose Corporation, and the Flexible Purpose Corporation. While both corporations aim to accommodate companies who want to identify themselves by the social benefits they create, the two corporations differ not only in identity, but also in purpose.

As your company starts to grow, and you begin to hire individuals to help you keep up with expansion, there is the daunting task of determining whether you should be hiring individuals as employees, or as independent contractors. Why does it matter? I’ll tell you why: the IRS cares, and so should you. If you misclassify your new hire, you will be liable for employment taxes for that worker. To avoid the unpleasant series of consequences, we offer guidance to avoid this misstep.