Last year at SXSW Sydney, Startup Daily editor Simon Thomsen collaborated on a panel about parenting as a founder. Those who were there said it was powerful and one of the best sessions of the week. With both kids now adults and at uni, Thomsen can assure anyone in the thick of it there is… Read more »
International Women’s Day (IWD) is fast approaching, and with it comes the flood of well-intentioned but often superficial corporate gestures. Think pink logos, vague social media statements, and one-off panel discussions that barely scratch the surface of gender inequality. While organisations may be eager to show their support, many fall into the trap of performative… Read more »
Welcome to the Startup 360 with Kayla Medica and Simon Thomsen. Our weekly show is all about founder fun, finding out what makes people tick and staying human. For our third show, Kayla and Simon celebrate Mardi Gras in Sydney this weekend talking about their favourite works by musicians and writers. Kayla recommends a Japanese… Read more »
Imagine having a groundbreaking business idea that could change lives, but every time you seek funding, you hear: “It’s too early,” “Come back when you have traction,” or worse, “Prove yourself first.” This is the reality for countless women entrepreneurs across Australia and Asia. Women have different financial needs to men, however most financial products… Read more »
It’s 411 BCE, and Aristophanes is slaying his audience in the Theatre of Dionysius with a mix of laughter and tears. In his play Lysistrata, the title character leads the women of Sparta and Thebes in a bold and humorous campaign—a sex strike—to end the devastating war between their two cities. On the surface, it’s… Read more »
Nearly 50% of women have considered not attending their workplace Christmas party because of concerns about safety, poor behaviour, or harassment, according to a recent survey by Male Allies UK. Given that Australia is the worst-developed nation for workplace bullying and harassment, statistics here are likely similar or higher. If you don’t have your own… Read more »
Why is it so difficult for women entrepreneurs to get funding? As a leader in Australia’s startup ecosystem and someone who has seen the transformative power of innovation up close, I grapple with this question every day. The statistics are stark: in 2022, just 0.7% of private startup funding in Australia went to female-led companies.… Read more »
LinkedIn News Australia recently interviewed me about the underrepresentation of women in the startup ecosystem. At first glance, the statistics paint a bleak picture; according to the Q3 Cut Through Venture report, only 4% of total capital raised in Australia went to female-only founded teams, and just 13% to female co-founded ventures. These dismal numbers… Read more »
For those who missed it, the Senate Inquiry into the Impact of Perimenopause and Menopause came to a close last month, with the committee detailing their 25 recommendations to Parliament. Without a proper look-in for digital health across any of the recommendations, we’re probably in for a long hard slog to see any real change… Read more »
Jessica Baird-Walsh has founded two startups, and is an angel investor and advisor, so she knows the path ahead for women founders all too well. And that’s why she decided to to something about it, launching Capital X – a free, community-driven network of startup and tech professionals committed to supporting women founders to fund… Read more »
As a small business founder that has been bootstrapping from day one (four years and counting!), I’ve been working hard to find a small business grant I’m eligible for to help me in my very important growth stage of business. But as a female business owner in sportstech, I have discovered that there is very… Read more »
In the world of venture capital, numbers tell a story, but rarely the full story. When I recently shared thoughts on LinkedIn about gender equity in Australian VC, the flood of DMs revealed a stark truth: we’re grappling with a more complex issue than simple statistics can convey. It’s time to look beyond the numbers… Read more »
The axing of the Boosting Female Founders program this year has left a vacuum in dedicated federal funding for women. Let that sink in! As a long time senior policy adviser, advocate and mentor to many diverse female founders, I know the Government has missed something critical – how are we going to boost female… Read more »
At every conference, on every panel, year after year, the same tech leaders ponder the same question: Why don’t more women receive venture capital funding? The participants stroke their chins and furrow their brows. Perhaps, they muse, it’s due to societal gender norms that discourage women from pursuing entrepreneurship. Maybe there’s a lack of access… Read more »
Women make up just 27% of the STEM sector workforce across all STEM industries, and as they climb the leadership ranks, that number begins to drop to 23% of senior management and 8% of CEOs. On average, women still earn 18% less than men across all STEM industries. So a new podcast by Sydney tech… Read more »
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