I am Kelly Hoey. You may know me from my blog, Innovator Insights, a collection of reflections and advice on networking, community building, and entrepreneurship. I am also a regular contributor to Inc.com, a speaker, angel investor, and author of the forthcoming book "Build Your Dream Network," to be released in January 2017 by Tarcher Perigee. Today, however, I want to talk about BroadMic, a broadcast that launches March 1st.
BroadMic is dedicated to emboldening the next generation of female entrepreneurs and innovation leaders to think big, different, and broad. We're going to change the narrative about what it means to be an entrepreneur, away from the all too common stereotype of a white male, hoodie-wearing, unicorn-hunting Stanford engineer and towards one that celebrates diversity and amplifies the voices of the tech minorities. Hence BroadMic's motto: "Think Broad." I am often asked to address gender inequality in my articles and speeches. So, here it is in a nutshell, folks: gender inequality is a macro economic issue, not simply a social or moral or women's issue. Now is the time to unleash this powerful entrepreneurial force to improve the global bottom line and to motivate the next generation of economic leaders. Women are a powerful entrepreneurial force, not just a large consumer market to be tapped or binders full of women to be hired.
A 2015 McKinsey Global Institute report, "The Power of Parody," indicates that the global opportunity cost from holding women back amounts to a massive number: $12 to 28 trillion or 11 to 26% of annual global GDP. Let me say that again: $12 to 28 trillion a year. Just for frame of reference, listeners, the US GDP is $18 trillion a year. Those are incredibly powerful numbers. Think about the missed financial opportunity on the global scale. However, there is a persistent bottleneck in venture capital funding for female founders. Only 4% of female founders, or 17% if you count mixed gender founding teams, actually receive venture capital funding. Compare this appalling statistic against the backdrop of the rapidly accelerating rate of women starting businesses, and you can see a glaring disconnect. Women are starting 1,200 new businesses a day, a rate 1 1/2 times the national average, more than double the rate from three years ago. African American women are starting businesses at a rate of six times the national average.
You don't have to be a rocket scientist to see the glaring disparity between the high rates of women starting businesses and the limited capital available to them. To quote Laura Flores, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Panama to the United Nations, "We can't move forward with 50% of the population." Right, so what are we going to do about it? My own motto is, "Invest in the change you want to see in the world." It guides how I invest, where I spend my mentoring time, the partnerships I choose, and how I exercise the power of my purse. It is why I am hosting BroadMic. BroadMic will showcase the most accomplished female investors, thought leaders, and entrepreneurs. Why? Because role models are as essential to equalizing the entrepreneurial playing field as money, and science shows that engaging people in conversation about what success is and the path to get there is as important as having the role models.
As Marie Wilson, founder of The White House Project, has said, "You can't be what you can't see." BroadMic will be speaking with entrepreneurs who are bold and unconventional. Whether using big data to disrupt enterprise technology or the wedding industry. And so you will hear how she did it as they reflect on their own career ambitions and entrepreneurial aspirations, because there are so many amazing success stories out there to be shared. We want you to hear that women are acting, leading, and changing the world. Pollyanna? No, just changing the narrative. Every week we will feature a powerful female who will share inspirational stories and practical advice about how she invests, creates, and disrupts. Think of it as the picks and shovels you need to succeed at every stage of your business.
Season 1 will launch on March 1st and air throughout the month of March, happily in tandem with Women's History Month. Our guests include entrepreneurs Heidi Messer and Carley Roney, investors Susan Lyne, Joanne Wilson, and Jessica Peltz. TechSpeak for Entrepreneurs founder Nelly Yusupova, Tami Reiss, creator of Just Not Sorry and technology thought leader and venture capitalist Jalak Jobanputra. I want every single listener to be inspired, to take action, and to think broad. No more white papers, no more studies, no more theses about change. Let's act.
