How Improving the Gender Gap and Diversity Strengthens Entrepreneurship, Growth and Employment at Tech Companies

In this webinar, OPEXEngine CEO Lauren Kelley was joined by guest moderator Susanne Althoff, author of Launching While Female, and a distinguished panel of founders, CEOs, partners, and entrepreneurs for a lively discussion that focuses on how tech companies can create a more inclusive and diverse environment, across all departments, for people of color and female entrepreneurs and executives.

Panelist

Rochelle Nemrow, entrepreneur, founder, and former CEO, FamilyIDTanya Bakalov, serial entrepreneur, founder, and CEO, HelloTeamTom Hopcroft, President, and CEO, Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council (MassTLC)Maia Heymann, cofounder, and General Partner at ConvergeMelissa Leffler, VP of Engineering, Drift

Topics covered by our esteemed panel of leaders include:

• The value of diversity to innovation and bottom Lines
• Where companies are falling short in this area
• The quantifiable performance improvement that is shown when more diverse entrepreneurs are funded, join corporate boards and become executives
• Strategies to flip the narrative and affect corporate change

For more information and support, here are resources suggested by the panelists:

Pitchbook - Data on VC funding for women foundersHBR article - 4 Ways Men Can Support Their Female Colleagues — RemotelyBoston Globe op-ed - Supporting underrepresented entrepreneurs is our best hope for jump-starting the economy, by Susanne AlthoffAll Raise an organization focused on amplifying female voices, accelerating their success, and creating a tech culture where women are leading, shaping, and funding the futureBoston Women’s Workforce Council – Eliminating the Gender/Racial Wage Gap: Interventions that WorkThe Boston Club - The Boston Club is a community of executives and professionals invested in elevating women to leadership positions across all walks of businessThe Commonwealth Institute – Women’s Leadership Development & Advancement in MA: A Pathway to EquityEos Foundation – The Women’s Power Gap InitiativeInnovation Women - Their mission is to provide equal visibility opportunities for women, supporting career development, business success through leadership and diversityMassTLC - Additional resources on women’s initiativesConnexion - Their mission is to develop Hispanic/Latino leaders into strategic and innovative executivesGetKonnected - Hub for cross-cultural business connections in Boston and beyondLatinc - The largest online network of Latinx students and professionals to collaborate and discover career development resourcesThe Partnership - They work with organizations in all sectors to build racially and ethnically diverse leadership pipelines