ueda 2015 annual summit - 9/28 - empowering women in technology startups

© 2014 University of Florida

Empowering Women in Technology Startups Ewits®

By Jane M. Muir

University of Florida

September 2015


• 99.7% of companies in Florida have fewer than 100 employees

• Those same companies provide 82.4% of all jobs in the state

• 62.9% of Florida businesses employ between 2 and 9 people

• Consistent with National figures• Source: Florida Trend January 2011

Small Companies/Startups Are Key to New Jobs


Critical Components for Creating Companies• Technology – Most abundant resource

• Funding – Follows opportunity appropriately matched with an experienced entrepreneur

• Facilities – Incubators provide a space for companies to start and a venue to foster connections among critical components

• Entrepreneurs – Least abundant resource

© 2014 University of Florida4

• During Fiscal Year 2014 Universities generated new discoveries that created companies that created jobs:– $62.8 Billion total research expenditures– 6,363 U.S. Patents issued– $28 Billion net product sales– 914 startups created

• 77% operating in the home state where research originated

Technologies/Ideas are Abundant & Available for Licensing


Entrepreneurs are Scare

• Two Fundamental Approaches to Finding Entrepreneurs to Start Companies– Recruit experienced entrepreneurs

– Implement programs to grow our own• Thus, Ewits was created


• Less than 6% of venture capital is invested in women-led startups

• Women represent less than 15% of Fortune 500 CEOs• Only four percent of U.S.-based venture capital

investors are women• Gender biases are very real

• Ingrained deep in society• Women are equally biased against women• “Science professors at American universities widely regard female

undergraduates as less competent than male students with the same accomplishments and skills, a new study by researchers at Yale concluded.”

Research Shows:


• Investors preferred entrepreneurial ventures pitched by a man than an identical pitch form a woman• 68% verses 32% in study by HBS, Wharton, and MIT Sloan• Males were rated as more persuasive, logical & fact based

• Randomized double-blind by Yale rated identical application with male name as significantly more competent & offered higher salary

• In 248 performance reviews of high-performers in tech, negative personality criticism showed up in 85% of reviews for women and just 2% for men

• Harvard and CMU study reading from identical scripts to negotiate salary; found women were rated as being more difficult to work with and less nice – men were not perceived negatively

Research on Unconscious Gender Bias


• Women need to perform at extraordinarily high levels, just to appear moderately competent compared to our male coworkers

• Women’s salaries are lower than men performing the same tasks• Women's earnings were 78.3 percent of men's in

2013 in the United States• Up by less than 3% from a decade ago

Research Shows:


• Women are getting degrees at a faster rate than men• Women represent two thirds of country’s purchasing power• People prefer to work for women• Women-led startups generate significantly higher returns

for venture capitalists• Women-led startups have much higher rate of IPOs

• Dow Jones Study: “We claim with statistically significant evidence that there is a dependence between a company having female executives and its success.”

More Encouraging Research


Barriers to Entry for Women

• Life balance choices• Confidence• Lack of training• Lack of support system

(mentor, network)• Lack of role models• Self-initiative (i.e., We wait

to be asked or invited)


Empowering Women in Technology Startups®

Mission: Educate, inspire, and empower women to pursue leadership roles in technology-based companies worldwide



• Experiential learning program• Launched in 2012 by the University of Florida• Four programs conducted to date

• Nearly 200 women empowered

Program # Enrolled # Completing10-Week Program

Completion Rate

Fall 2012 56 52 93%

Fall 2013 47 43 91%

Spring 2014 43 42 98%

Spring 2015 50 48 96%


Ewits® Program Learning Objectives

• Gain a basic understanding of technology commercialization, how to start a technology-based company, and the landscape of the entrepreneurial ecosystem

• Develop skills in working effectively in a team, creating a business plan, and delivering an investor pitch

• Expand awareness of opportunities, resources, and networks available for technology startups

• Gain confidence to pursue leadership roles in technology-based companies

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• Prequalified 7 patented technologies• Cross-functional teams with an

experienced woman entrepreneur mentor

• Provide entrepreneurial training over ten weeks

• Participants develop a business plan and investor presentation

• Replicating the program around the country

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Ewits® Program Schedule

Sessions (3-hour sessions once weekly):•Session 1: Technology Matching and Mentor Introduction•Session 2: Understanding the Value Prop and Forming the Team•Session 3: Market Analysis and Strategy •Session 4: Commercialization Strategies and IP•Session 5: Financials •Session 6: Company Presentations •Session 7: Corporate Structures •Session 8: Sources of Funding •Session 9: Work Session (Business Plan and Pitch Slides)•Session 10, Investor Pitch Competition

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Target Audience

Eligibility criteria for participants: • College degree, preferably advanced• Early in career• Preferably employed, pursuing degree, and/or post-

doc• Experience (broad for diversity across teams)• Attendance in person

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Breakdown of Degrees

Including:• Science• Engineering• Computer Science/IT• Business• Marketing• Communications• …and more 18


Ewits® Program Outcomes• Survey sent February 2015 to first three Ewits cohorts• Response rate of 37% (52 of 137)• Reported outcomes:

o 38% (20 of 52) reported improved job status change since completiono 19% (10) moved into jobs in the technology sector – with 30% (3) of

these starting their own companies• 3 now employed at technology startup companies• 4 now employed at technology companies (non-startup)• 3 started technology businesses

o 21% (11) reported actively seeking funding after program o 17% (9) reported applying for funding after program

• 2 SBIR/STTR• 7 other grant funding


Empowering Women in Technology Startups®Janalyn Peppel, B.S.Head of Market Development, embr labs - Embr Labs, a startup spun out of MIT, hopes to make the average worker more comfortable in their cubicle with a “thermoelectric bracelet” called the Wristify that straps onto your wrist and heats your skin. After participating in Ewits™ Janalyn moved from Gainesville to Boston to join the company; something she never would have done had she not participated in the program. “It was energizing. We worked through obstacles, made tough decisions, explored areas that were unfamiliar and, ultimately, learned that as a team we could figure out whatever we needed to keep moving forward. We also formed strong friendships within our group. Throughout the program, they encouraged us to stretch our limits. Just the exposure to new ideas has given me the confidence to take on new challenges.”

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Laura Adamson-Small, Ph.D.COO, MyeloJAK

Co-founded MyeloJAK Biomarkers with Dr. Sayeski in 2014. MyeloJAK Biomarkers is a biotechnology research and development company aimed at creating improved diagnostic tools for patients with myeloproliferative neoplasms.

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Stephanie George

Former CEO, TAO Connect – Ewits™ mentors, while experienced business women, always comment that they believe they gained as much from the program as did the participants. After serving as a mentor, Stephanie became CEO of TAO Connect. TAO is an innovative online platform of tools that allows mental health therapists to deliver effective treatment to students anywhere, anytime. While she has since moved on to another opportunity, the program gave her the confidence to assume that role.

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Participant Comments– I had a great group of intelligent, resourceful women who each

brought so much to the table. I enjoyed working with people different from myself!

– Very thankful for this opportunity. Learned a lot and enjoyed every moment of it even though I felt overwhelmed at times.

– The program was excellent and the results exceeded my expectations. I was hoping to learn at least something, but in fact, I learned much more than I expected. I have also communicated with people with business backgrounds and this was very interesting.

– I gained an overall understanding of the processes involved in starting a business and the confidence to pursue business ideas while learning about other shared experiences in the business & technology field


Participant Comments

– Now I really have an idea what it means to start a business, how to write a business plan and what it takes to get there

– The program has worked. I am now interested in helping to create a start-up company and plan to talk further to all of you about possibilities of what is out there for me. I am not a scientist, but I know a lot of other stuff that I could utilize to make a new company a success.

– This is a great program. I saw a lot of growth and confidence in the women on my team. Please continue to grow this program. I am honored to have been a part of it.

– Not only did I learn a lot of helpful information, but I grew in self-confidence and self-esteem


The Future Looks Bright for Ewits®• 3 pilot programs in 2016• Reach at least 50 women in 50 cities in 50 months

“50 Women, 50 Cities, 50 Months” Initiative• 2,500+ women empowered nationally through 2020

Vision: A world in which gender issues are neutralized


Key Players: Critical to Program Success

• Steering Committee = community leaders, key stakeholders, program sponsors

• Participants = college-educated professional women• Mentors and guest speakers = female entrepreneurs,

business executives, business leaders• Judges = VC investors, angel investors, serial

entrepreneurs


Ewits® Steering Committee

• Guide program planning and implementation• Build a network of advocates within the community• Secure funding to support launch and expansion• Help with outreach and impact• Identify and access opportunities


Resources Available to Implement Ewits®

• Proven experiential learning program and roadmap for successful implementation

• Access to video presentations and supplemental reading materials

• Comprehensive toolkit, including train-the-trainer resources

• Collaboration and support from the UF Ewits® Leadership Team


Training Resources for Pilot Programs

• Shared workspace and repository for documents and exchanges

• Full-day training program for Program Coordinators• Recurring teleconferences with UF Ewits® Leadership Team• Training Manual for Program Coordinators• Access to videos and supplementary reading materials• Project plan with key tasks and timelines (checklist)


Diversity Drives Innovation• Greater diversity leads to greater innovation • The tech industry is global and it needs to represent and

understand consumers as a whole • We need more women solving problems and starting

companies to:• power the growing tech industry, • drive the economy, and • help shape our future


Thank You!

Jane M. Muir

Director Florida Innovation Hub at UF and UF Tech Connect

Associate Director Office of Technology Licensing

747 SW 2nd Ave | Gainesville, FL 32611-5500Ph. 352-846-1646

www.ewits.orgwww.otl.ufl.edu

www.floridainnovationhub.ufl.edu

Immediate Past President AUTMAssociation of University Technology Managers

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ueda 2015 annual summit - 9/28 - empowering women in technology startups

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