It has been over 50 years since the President’s Commission on the Status of Women was established under President Kennedy’s New Frontier and led to the official end of discriminatory policies affecting women in the workplace (most notably, through the Equal Pay Act of 1963). Despite the relatively vast period of time, women today earn 23% less than their male counterparts, and hold only 4.6% of Fortune 1000 CEO positions. Further, this inequity is translated into a 40% lesser chance at receiving funding for female-led startups.
“When you look at the statistics in the US about women-led businesses and where we are as a gender, we have a lot further to go…,” said Katiri Zuluaga, the Community Manager at Springboard Enterprises.
When Zuluaga joined Springboard Enterprises, she was dead-set on bridging the gaps between the business opportunities for men and women. Formerly a Department of Defense Civilian, she was exposed to individuals in the Middle East who wanted to create business opportunities for themselves, but rarely encountered women seeking these opportunities. After joining Springboard, she was surprised by these inequities that still persist for women entrepreneurs in the U.S.
Springboard Enterprises commits itself to helping women entrepreneurs find the support and funding that they need to successfully grow their startups. Their accelerator program focuses specifically on connecting female founders to the necessary growth experts, coaches, and venture capital networks to ensure their product development and expansion.
Below, Zuluaga talks about how Springboard is helping female entrepreneurs find funding, what the company has accomplished for women-led startups, and the importance of community to their company. Here’s the video.
