"Like climbing an eight-thousander!"

Ursula Helml is responsible for DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) at the Upper Austrian incubator tech2b with the clear goal of bringing more women and diverse teams into start-ups.

Bursting with ideas. Get going, take off and change the world - start-ups are usually full of positive energy and opportunities for ground-breaking change. If you then take a closer look at the very young companies, you still predominantly come across the male part of society. Why is that? And what can a technology incubator do to promote more gender diversity?

It is reluctant

First things first: innovative ideas arise in all creative minds, regardless of gender. But what do the latest figures say? Just a few weeks ago, the Female Start-up Funding Index 1st Half Year 2023 was published by Ernst and Young, FUND F and Female Founders (Sheconomy reported). The most important results: Female start-ups account for 36 percent of new start-ups in Austria. According to DEI expert Ursula Helml from tech2b, the main reason why start-ups are still predominantly founded by men or male teams is the so-called "confidence gap". This refers to the lower self-confidence of women when it comes to giving their professional ideas space and founding a company. "Unfortunately, women usually find 100 reasons why it wouldn't work, whereas men develop their ideas quickly and get started." Another reason: women still see themselves as the main person responsible for the family and often take on most of the care work.

Investments: Women lagging behind

To make matters worse, investments in domestic startups almost exclusively benefit all-male founding teams: according to the latest EY study, the founding teams of 82% of financing rounds in the first half of 2023 were all-male. In 15 percent, the founding teams consisted of male and female founders. There were only two financing rounds for all-female founding teams in the first half of 2023 - that corresponds to around three percent. "Unfortunately, the unconscious bias of investors plays a major role here," says Helml.

"We want to find out what motivates women to start up, what topics interest them, what framework conditions they are confronted with and where they need support." Ursula Helml, entrepreneur and DEI expert from tech2b

A steep and long road

Throughout the start-up sector, there have long been efforts to include more women as founders and to promote diverse start-up teams, as Ursula Helml explains: "Diversity is not a sprint. It's not a marathon either. Diversity is like climbing an eight-thousander". What does she mean by that? The direction is right. In some places it goes slower, in others faster.

How does tech2b specifically promote diverse start-up teams and women?

Through targeted measures such as relevant networks, empowerment and more visibility. "As an incubator, we want to offer female founders a strong network. One example of this is SHEtech2b, where we connect female founders and start-ups with each other and bring them together with inspiring role models and successful entrepreneurs," explains Helml. Efforts are being made to raise awareness of the needs of women in the start-up sector: "We work closely with universities and universities of applied sciences to initiate projects and have a presence there. We want to find out what motivates women to start up, what topics interest them, what framework conditions they are confronted with and where they need support," says the DEI expert.

"Our awareness measures are designed to help women realize their full potential and actively shape the start-up world."
Ursula Helml, entrepreneur and DEI expert from tech2b

Promote and be promoted

In addition to these measures, tech2b advises female founders specifically in their search for funding bodies and offers its own scholarships. Another major goal of the incubator is to help women gain more visibility. To this end, tech2b works closely with mentoring programs and initiatives such as "Female Founders" in Vienna. In addition, female founders are specifically sent to programs such as "Lead Forward". In order to provide them with the best possible support, they provide various tools and resources, including training on key topics such as financing and sustainability. Another important partnership is with Claudia Nowak from "Women on Stage" and her project "Rampenfrau" to ensure that female founders have the necessary skills for a successful performance.

Successful start

As examples of best practice, Helml cites founders such as Jasmin Rath from Planterista, Eva-Marie Infanger from MatheArena and Anita Schweiger from Creonect, who have developed impressively during the incubation program and have gained increasing self-confidence thanks to collaborations and media presence. Many of the founders become a natural part of panels and discussions with investors. Helml: "We are actively committed to encouraging women and female students to become part of the start-up scene and share their ideas. Our awareness measures are designed to help women realize their full potential and play an active role in shaping the start-up world."

(c) tech2b