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From equality to empowerment: a conversation with the Startup-Grande-Dame, Selma Prodanovic

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From equality to empowerment: a conversation with the Startup-Grande-Dame, Selma Prodanovic

patricia-borlovan

Patricia Borlovan

· 4 min read
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interviews

From equality to empowerment: a conversation with the Startup-Grande-Dame, Selma Prodanovic

patricia-borlovan

Patricia Borlovan

· 4 min read

Today, we want to introduce you to a guest we’ve been so excited to have with us.

Join us in welcoming Selma Prodanovic, the Vice President of EBAN — The European Business Angels Network, and a very passionate angel investor who advocates for gender balance in startup funding and venture capital.

Selma is also a keynote and TEDx speaker who loves sharing her abundant professional experience and exciting personal story with audiences worldwide.

Meet Selma Prodanovic — The Startup-Grande-Dame

Selma has been named The Startup-Grande-Dame by the media and has been one of the most influential voices in the venture capital industry in 2022-2024.

As Vice-President of the European Business Angel Network (EBAN), she leads Europe's early-stage investing ecosystem and has initiated the EBAN Manifesto for Gender-Balanced Investing, aiming to triple the number of female angel investors in Europe by 2030.

Selma is also a TEDx Speaker, and her most recent talk at TEDx SarajevoWomen — Invest like a girl has been highly appreciated. She is also the founder of the global SDG platform 1MillionStartups and the Austrian Angel Investors Association — Invest Austria, while she launched a dozen successful brands with her boutique advisory Brainswork.

Living the Austrian dream

Selma's journey started in Sarajevo, but her childhood took her all over Europe and North Africa, making her a true citizen of the world. Vienna, Austria, has been her welcoming home since 1981, offering her a sense of belonging and the opportunity to flourish.

Selma recognizes the unique strengths and experiences that individuals from international & diverse backgrounds bring to society, drawing parallels to Silicon Valley's thriving spirit of innovation fueled by its multicultural makeup.

Beyond her appreciation for Austria's welcoming environment, Selma cherishes the European approach to pursuing one's dreams. She contrasts it with the "typical American Dream," leaning over the European model that she finds more personally appealing.

She is a firm believer in Europe's untapped potential for innovation, acknowledging the continent's strengths in innovation patterns. However, she recognizes Europe's current shortcomings compared to Silicon Valley, particularly in market size, speed of innovation, and access to late-stage funding.

Instead of focusing solely on these limitations, Selma advocates for a shift in perspective. She emphasizes the importance of leveraging and building upon Europe's strengths. In her view, this approach contrasts with the rapid-paced venture capital environment prevalent in the US, which she believes may prioritize speed over long-term sustainability.

“The world is not doing well, and if we want to change, we need to change the ingredients, the strategies, and the way we look at certain things.”

Rather than replicating the American model, Selma suggests Europe should embrace a more measured approach and foster a more holistic and potentially more sustainable path towards a thriving innovation ecosystem.

The state of gender balance in European startup funding

Selma highlights a concerning gender discrepancy in startup funding, with 90% of investments going to male-founded ventures and only 2% to female-led ones. This inequality is not only unfair on a personal level but also detrimental to economic growth.

Beyond the economic arguments, Selma emphasizes the crucial role of inclusivity in tackling challenges in our current society. By failing to tap into the full potential of the entire population, society is hindering its ability to find innovative solutions.

“If there is one number that we need to remember, it is what I call the 90/2 ratio, which is 90% of the money goes into male-only startups, where 2% of the money goes into female-only startups worldwide.”

In essence, Selma's message is clear: true innovation needs inclusivity, and integrating more women into the startup ecosystem is necessary for progress.

What does gender imbalance look like day-to-day?

Selma shares that even though things regarding women's roles in business haven't changed much in the past 20 years, there's a new wave of hope.

Since 2020, there's been a noticeable rise in women starting their businesses and investing, and programs aimed at supporting them are popping up. She points out that we need to start recognizing and talking about successful women in the business world and showing more success stories as role models to inspire other women to join this world.

It's about changing how we think about women's contributions to go from being seen as a problem to being seen as a solution. Selma encourages us to look at the potential and solutions women bring to the table, embracing an entrepreneurial spirit that focuses on solving problems.

Changing perceptions starts with changing the stories we tell, which can eventually change expectations and reality.

Unconscious bias — the biggest threat we face

Selma gets real about the elephant in the room: unconscious bias holding women back in the startup world. Sure, society's expectations and ingrained habits play a role, but the hidden biases are the real problems.

For example, if you have two identical startup pitches, one delivered by a man, the other by a woman. Despite the identical content, research suggests the male presenter will likely secure more funding. This contrast arises from unconscious bias that influences how investors interact with each founder.

Unknowingly, they ask vastly different questions. Men are typically met with enthusiastic inquiries about their vision and future prospects, while women face a barrage of risk-focused questions centered on past experiences and the ability to execute. The very nature of these questions significantly impacts funding outcomes.

Selma has dedicated herself to raising awareness of unconscious bias among all stakeholders within the startup world, from investors to founders.

Only 10% of women are angel investors in Europe

In Europe, the percentage of female angel investors hovers between 10% to 13%, a huge issue we need to address according to Selma.

Angel investing isn't just about financial capital. It also involves social capital (networks) and human capital (knowledge), all areas where women, often associated with caring and nurturing, could excel. Selma says that the close, supportive relationship angel investors have with startups—providing not just funds but also mentorship and advice—is inherently aligned with traditionally feminine traits of caring and nurturing.

To address this imbalance, EBAN launched the Gender Manifesto aiming to triple the number of female investors by 2030, diversify investment portfolios with a third dedicated to female and diverse teams, and promote diversity on startup boards.

Future plans to increase gender balance

  • Integrating gender balance into all activities: This includes ensuring a balanced representation of genders in conferences (speakers, attendees), workshops, and other events organized by the European Business Angel Network (EBAN).
  • Continuing the awareness-building campaign: This involves conducting webinars, workshops, and other initiatives to educate EBAN members, especially board members, about unconscious bias and strategies to increase female participation in angel investing.
  • Encouraging and enabling business angel networks: Organize workshops and resources to help these networks create a more balanced landscape for female founders and investors.
  • Providing capacity-building programs: EBAN collaborated with the European Institute of Innovation & Technology (EIT) to deliver Angel Investing programs for both junior and senior female investors.
  • Creating and sharing resources: EBAN will continue to publish articles, and conduct research on gender diversity in angel investing, making these resources available on their website.

Startup boards are still a boys club

Selma points out another significant issue in the startup ecosystem, namely that startup boards are still largely dominated by a "boys club" mentality.

Startup boards are still a boys club

Source: Startup boards are still a boys club — Sifted.

This lack of diversity isn't just about gender; it's about the similar ways of thinking and values that come with such a homogeneous group. When company boards or startup teams are filled with people who all think alike, it suppresses innovation and the ability to tackle global challenges effectively.

Startups aiming for global impact need different approaches and viewpoints, and having a group of people with similar perspectives and ideas is not that helpful.

It’s not about being a woman, it’s about giving a chance to everybody

It's not about being a man or a woman. It's about finding the best things out there and giving everyone a fair chance to show what they can do.

It's not about taking away chances from others but making the whole startup world bigger and better for everyone. More money and more ideas in the mix mean a stronger and more exciting world of startups.

Before parting ways with Selma, we also want to leave you a few final thoughts from her.

“I dream of a world where we all together create the world that we want. No matter who you are, no matter where you come from, no matter your gender, your skills, or who you are, you have a huge potential.

If you are a founder, that means you are already solving an issue, and we need that solution. So, please understand that we need you, we want you to succeed, so that we can all benefit from the solution you are building.”

Connect with Selma:

Resources mentioned:

Want to learn more?

If you want to learn more about fundraising rounds, best practices, industry trends, and a snapshot of the venture capital market right now, prepare for your fundraising round; we’ve got you covered. Read more on SeedBlink blog.

However, if you’ve got everything in place with your funding and you’re now looking at how to implement an employee stock option plan and all things equity ownership, Nimity is here to help.

Our dedicated solution has prepared an easy-to-use platform to help you have everything in place and educational guides to understand the whole world of ownership.

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