Celebrating Women Who Fearlessly Shattered Glass Ceilings And Investing In the Next Generation
Male Allyship is Key to A Culture Mindshift Toward Investing In Women
Thank you to the hundreds of supporters who joined us for the Shatter Summit last week. And my deepest gratitude goes to all of our extraordinary speakers and partners. Thank you for sharing your time, talent, wisdom, and experience with our esteemed audience. For many of you who have asked, here is the replay of the Summit:
I founded the Shatter Fund in 2017 to invest in female entrepreneurs because I want to change the way that female entrepreneurs are supported, how they are funded, and how they scale their businesses. Technology is the greatest equalizer of the 21st century but without women, there is no equality. Women need to be a force behind funding. If the face of investing is shifted to be more inclusive, the economy will transform as well. That is the change I wanted to see when I launched Shatter and the change we are leading through the Shatter Fund.
That’s also the purpose of the newly formed Shatter Foundation, which I am proud to announce. The Foundation is a non-profit which connects girls in underserved communities with access to capital, networks, and markets to foster an inclusive economy and equitable entrepreneurship. The Foundation — with the key backing of Founding Sponsor, Franklin Templeton, and in partnership with my alma mater the University of Maryland, College Park — will provide girls the educational programs, tools, grants, and mentorship they need to think, create and confidently innovate. We need to be deliberate in building our pipeline of future innovators, and we need to start early.
We don’t have to look too far back in history to realize that just over 30 years ago, women were required to have male relatives co-sign their business loan applications. This all changed in 1988 with the passing of the Women’s Business Ownership Act. Although we are now at least talking about the need for equal access to capital for women entrepreneurs, and there is more awareness around this returns-driven opportunity, we are just getting started. Talk is not action. The only thing that will level the playing field for women is actual investment.
When women have a hand in developing solutions that address women’s needs, it positively impacts the bottom line. Investing in women is smart for our economy, for our country, and for the Tech industry. Companies with female founders performed 66% better than those with all male founders. It is further estimated that if female employment rates match those of men, by 2025 global annual GDP could rise by 25%.
But, there is one more critical component that is needed for women to become 100% participants in the economy, and that is Male Allyship. We need a cultural mind shift. We need participation from everyone, not just women. In order for women to no longer be “the first”, men must be active participants in this quest for gender equality across all industries. Harvard Business Review has noted when men are deliberately engaged in gender inclusion programs, 96% of organizations see progress — compared to only 30% of organizations where men are not engaged. I have personally lived this statistic. People like James Cross co-founder of Franklin Venture Partners (Franklin Templeton’s VC arm), and Chris Sacca have been early supporters of mine at Shatter Fund, and with their support, we have been able to move the needle for women, both at the fund and the foundation.
I look forward to a day when EVERYDAY is International Women’s Day and when women can simply be referred to as “athlete”, “entrepreneur”, “CEO”, “innovator”, “actor”, and no longer too far off, “President of the United States”. Yes, we are female but it doesn’t need to be a part of our title, and our male allies can help us attain this equality.
So I say, let’s go forth and shatter the norms when it comes to women and girls’ equality. Let’s roll up our sleeves to advance women in all facets of society. Let’s build a global community of wonder women for generations to come. Let’s continue to send a message that we can do anything we dream, regardless of gender or race.
Please SAVE THE DATE for September 15, 2021, for the Shatter Summit United Nations Edition to talk about Investing in Women, the most disruptive force of the 21st century, on a global scale.
Continue the Shattering and thank you for celebrating with me and my team at Shatter Summit!
Shatter On,
Shelly
#womenwhoshatter
