The Next Women NL

Today we've officially announced the start of our new fund, the LUMO Rise Fund. We continue to invest in European #startups focused on the development and application of #emerging digital technologies for a greener and stronger society. The capital allows us to diversify regionally and provide follow-on financing to increase the financial, social and environmental return on our investments. Over the next four years, LUMO Labs will invest in 30 to 35 #impactdriven digital technology startups with the LUMO Rise Fund. LUMO Labs focuses on emerging digital technologies that are pivotal for achieving the United Nations #SustainableDevelopmentGoals: Good Health and Well-being (UN SDG 3) Quality Education (SDG 4) Sustainable Cities & Communities (UN SDG 11) Climate Action (UN SDG 13) and Digital Security are added to the existing focus areas. Financial institutions, #familyoffices and high net worth Individuals, from the Netherlands and other European countries have already committed capital to LUMO Rise Fund in the past month, as have Dutch regional development agencies BOM (Brabantse Ontwikkelings Maatschappij), Oost NL and NVNOM/Investeringsfonds Groningen (IFG). Several more public and private parties will join in in the next twelve months. #goodthingsarecoming Through its first fund, LUMO Labs invested in 23 impact-driven technology and digital #deeptech startups such as HULO.ai, Roboat, AirHub, Tap Electric, Autoscriber, alphabeats and Healthplus.ai. #fundraising #impactinvesting #teamwork #DEI #bestteams Meron Mekonnen, Dagmar van Ravenswaay Claasen, Pim Hollestelle, Jorge Blasco, Martijn Rutten, Federico Pisano, Britta Gruenig, Professional Certified Coach, Henk de Jong, Lorna Goulden, Andy Lurling, Sven Bakkes, Thomas Hannes, Beyond Weather, CityLegends, Enliven Empathy, alphabeats, Aiosyn, Protyon, chunkx, Cordys Analytics, Enatom, Fimo Health , FruitPunch AI, Linksight, Maaind, MedicalVR, Metacampus, Whispp https://lnkd.in/eEbgXzTv

It might come as a shock, but a major reason female founders receive significantly less funding than male founders is simply the type of questions they’re asked during pitches 😱     Last year, I attended AWS’ “Pitching Better” workshop, which aimed to help female founders overcome gender bias in #fundraising. Professor Laura Huang's research from Harvard Business School revealed that female founders are asked starkly different questions in Q&A sessions with VCs than their male counterparts. 📍 Female founders are asked 66% prevention questions. These questions focus on potential risks and losses, emphasizing everything that could go wrong with the venture. 📍 In contrast, male founders are asked 67% promotion questions. These questions focus on growth potential and gains, emphasizing everything that could go right with the venture. For example, male founders are asked, “How will you acquire more customers?” while #femalefounders are asked, “How will you retain your existing customers?” This approach unfairly associates women with losses and men with gains. Naturally, entrepreneurs’ responses correspond to the questions they are asked. Prevention questions elicit prevention answers, while promotion questions elicit promotion answers. This automatically puts female entrepreneurs at a disadvantage. They can only demonstrate how they won’t lose investors’ money due to the prevention-oriented dialogue, while male founders get to showcase their startup’s potential for success and maximize investor gains with the promotion-oriented dialogue.  With such prevalent #genderbias, is it any wonder women receive less funding than men? However, there’s a silver lining to the study. 💡 It shows that entrepreneurs who switch focus by responding to prevention questions with promotion answers raise significantly more funding than those who stick to prevention answers. 📌 As a female founder fundraising, here’s what you can do: 1. Identify if you’re being asked prevention questions. 2. Frame your responses as promotion answers. I know it feels unfair to have to adapt when you’re the one facing discrimination. It’s like teaching daughters to defend themselves instead of teaching sons to treat women right. Ideally, investors should recognize and eliminate these unconscious biases and treat entrepreneurs fairly. Unfortunately, this won’t happen overnight. Until then, as a female founder, learning to overcome these unconscious biases is critical for your startup’s survival and growth. For the investors reading this, you have the opportunity to level the playing field by approaching Q&As fairly and ensuring deserving startups get the funding they need to grow and thrive 🌈

Bonnie Y Chan is spearheading a major rule change to make Hong Kong’s listed companies more diverse. Worldwide, women occupy less than a quarter of C-suite roles. Learn more in our Global Gender Gap Report 2024: https://ow.ly/5hW450SqU4b #HongKong #HSEX #GenderGap24 #GenderEqual #GenderEquality #Diversity Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX) How can we close gender gaps in economic participation and leadership? Follow #AMNC24 for the latest insights from our Annual Meeting for the New Champions from 25-27 June.

📊 Did you know? Despite receiving significantly less funding, women-founded startups outperform their male counterparts! 🔥 A study by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and MassChallenge reveals some jaw-dropping stats: 💼 Women-owned businesses generate more than twice as much revenue per dollar invested. 📈 Women-founded startups see a 10% higher cumulative revenue over five years. 💸 For every dollar of funding, women-led startups generate 78 cents in revenue, compared to just 31 cents by male-led startups. This data underscores the incredible potential of investing in diverse founders. Let's break the bias and support women entrepreneurs for a more inclusive and prosperous future. 🌍🚀 ♻ Reshare this to make it visible for others. Thanks to Emmie Faust for bringing it to our attention. Stephanie von Behr Sophie Webber Alina Bassi Deborah Choi Hana Ali Verrome Rosbach Brendan Rowan Tanya Suarez Ph.D. Founderland IDC4EU BluSpecs European Commission

Calling all tech founders in the EU/UK...we need YOUR voice! 🗣 Our partners at EURO_GENDEX (a new initiative under the European Innovation Council’s Horizon Europe program) have launched a survey, and they need to hear from you! 🌟 Their mission is to improve and expand the diversity of talent across the entire European tech ecosystem to drive world-class performance and growth. GENDEX will help policymakers and investors to make better-informed decisions by providing data and insights into the journey of diverse founders, particularly women, from pre-seed to IPO. 💪 Their survey aims to collect relevant information on how diversity impacts the fundraising journey for start-ups and scale-up founders in the European innovation ecosystem. It should take no more than 15 minutes to complete, and answers will be confidential and reviewed only in aggregate form. 👉 Take the survey here: https://lnkd.in/eXgbgKki #GenderEquality #Diversity #Inclusion #Leadership #GENDEX #SystemicChange

❗Female founders, grab my list of VCs and accelerators organized by location, dedicated to supporting you. These organizations are creating innovative funding approaches and have backed some of my clients. I'll update this list monthly to help with your fundraising efforts and connect with the right investors. → VCs in the US: Emmeline Ventures Reinventure Capital Female Founders Fund BAD BITCH EMPIRE Capita3 Halogen Ventures Amplifyher Ventures Seed to Harvest Ventures Fuze˖Fund → VCs in Europe: Fund F by Female Founders Bethnal Green Ventures Mustard Seed Partners  Ada Ventures  Pink Salt Ventures  Sie Ventures  Unconventional Ventures → Global Accelerators: Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women Founder Institute - Female Founder Initiative → Accelerators in Europe: FemTech Lab Seedcamp ZINC SISTA Key Fundraising Tips: ⭕ Expect challenges and rejections, it often takes 100 nos to get a yes. ⭕ Develop a funding strategy that suits both your business and personal needs. ⭕ Understand the differences between raising VC funds and alternative methods like bootstrapping. ⭕ Utilize your network for warm introductions to potential investors. ⭕ Build significant traction to enhance your funding chances in today's market. ⭕ Stay resilient, protect your mental health, and keep pushing towards your goals. If you're a VC, accelerator, or incubator that supports female founders and would like to be featured in future lists, please drop a comment or send me a DM. _____________________ 👋🏻 Hi there, welcome! ✨ I'm Sarah. I help women founders develop winning business models, gain market traction, and secure funding through my FundHER accelerator program. As a woman founder, follow me here on LinkedIn for insights and support to help you launch, grow, and fund your startup.