Smarter Systems: How tweaking your diligence process can unlock overlooked opportunities
Channel: Sankalp Forum
Date: 16/11/2022

According to PitchBook Data, Inc, in 2021, 85% of all VC dollars invested around the world went to startups with only men on the founding team, a number that has hardly budged in the past decade. Village Capital and IFC research found that gender bias could be a reason behind this funding gap, as startup and founder differences could not explain the gap among startups. 
Building on this past work, Village Capital, in collaboration with a consortium of partners – including IFC, the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative, and academic researchers – conducted a randomized controlled trial where we found three strategies that increased the accuracy of assessments, reduced gender bias, and addressed the undervaluation of women-led startups by making assessments more consistent, comprehensive, and data-driven. 

Now, we’re excited to share how investment organizations and accelerators can embed these three practical steps into their evaluation and selection processes to reduce gender bias – and help unlock more capital for women-led ventures to help close the gender financing gap.