SG Global 2020 Town Hall: Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

For the past ten years, founders, innovators, VCs and investors have descended upon Silicon Valley to connect with, learn from, and be inspired by the best and brightest in the tech industry at Startup Grind's Global Conference. And as innovation and investment grows, funding is concentrated to Silicon Valley and New York and minority groups are still lagging in access to venture backed capital and equity in funding. Why is that? If there is not a lack of available capital and there is not a shortage of minority startups to invest in, why is there still a disconnect if investors and VCs truly value diversity, equity and inclusion? Let's talk about it!

Welcome to the Town Hall!

We cordially invite you to discuss the issues and barriers that exist for minority founders and their ability to access capital or achieve equitable funding investment to their white male counterparts. As we listen to founders and VCs/investors, we will have a no holds barred, honest conversation, concerning how minorities are perceived and the challenges they face in the funding environment:

• Minority founders are consistently overlooked for funding and investment. Minority groups can be defined as women and persons of color. Investments in these groups compared to their white male counterparts is significantly lower in terms of number and amount of investment. The group that is disproportionately affected are black women founders.

• Minority-led startups are held to a higher standard to be considered for investment and even those that meet the standard, the amount of investment is lower than their white male counterparts. Example: Wework has been allowed to fail and was given (and still is) large sums of VC investment and has yet to turn a profit or even prove profitability.

• The ability to pursue funding is difficult because of different competing factors for this group of founders:
• Located outside of the prominent VC/Angel Investor network of cities (San Francisco, New York, etc).
• Working a full-time job while building their startup and having limited time and resources to pursue funding.
• Conventional methodology of pursuing funding (cold emailing, etc) lacks tangible results and benefits.

The conversation will be moderated by the Startup Grind Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Steering Committee.

How to Participate in the Livestream:

Join the livestream on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/175904787004093/

*Interact with us: Go to www.slido.com or download the Sli.do app and enter in code: D792 to submit your questions, comments or to participate in our polls.

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Make Friends (not just contacts)

Help Others (before you help yourself)

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To Educate, Inspire, and Connect Entrepreneurs

Our global community of 600+ chapters in 110 countries worldwide is here for you. Let us know... How may we best assist you? (I.e. - Can we help facilitate warm introductions to businesses, mentors, and/or investors to grow your startup here or elsewhere?)