Social Business Sandy

BIZTECHBUZZ in the world of social, cognitive, IoT and startups

Tag: Women (Page 1 of 2)

The Top 25 Female Founders of the IoT Startups

November 3, 2016 / / 2 Comments

The Top 25 Female Founders of the IoT Startups

Sandy Carter, CEO of Silicon-Blitz, IoT Community Advisory Board

Brian Buntz, Content Director IoT Institute

iot-sandy-brian

By 2020, more than half of new business processes and systems will have an element related to the Internet of Things, predicts Gartner. And by 2022, Cisco predicts the IoT market to be worth $14.4 trillion.

The IoT is already driving a new era of innovation as data flows from sensors and devices located across the globe, creating an unprecedented influx of unstructured and structured data.

But in the end, it’s not really about big data. It is about having the right data.

Getting the most pertinent data, however, can be tough for established companies. Startups—especially those led by women—are playing a crucial role in this regard. Getting the right data into the hands of those who can use it, female founders are leading the way – whether it is in healthcare, education, fashion, construction, car maintenance, or other sectors.

There is a growing amount of evidence pointing to women’s leadership role in the domain of IoT data. Successful startups have twice as many women in senior positions than unsuccessful companies, according to a Dow Jones VentureSource analysis of 3000 venture-backed IoT companies.  The Dow Jones research also found that women-led startups use 40% less capital and are more likely to survive the transition from startup to an established company. A study titled “Breaking Through: Harnessing the Economic Potential of Women Entrepreneurs” found that women-led  businesses grew four times faster than male-owned businesses over a five-year span.

To honor the achievements of women in the IoT field, I have pulled together a list showcasing the talents of 25 females. Now this was not an easy list to pull together.  Since the Internet of Things involves working with hardware (sensors) and software (for data and analytics), it requires researching this entire spectrum of activity.  I sent notes to dozens of influencers in Silicon Valley, New York City, Singapore, India, Israel, London, Germany, and beyond.  I attended pitch competitions and IoT hackathons and was sometimes the only woman in a full room.  (There’s not a lot of women in the halls of these startup activities – but that’s for another article.)

Three major insights from all these women:

  1. Women must help women in order for us to move forward.  This is not about competition but helping one another succeed.  Alicia Asín
  2. We must be radically generous with the next generation.  They need us as role models. Anina Net
  3. Peers can be amazing mentors.  You don’t need a Unicorn CEO to teach you about your next level.  Learn from everyone.  Bryn Jones

In the end, these 25 women of IoT startups rose to the top. Let me know if I missed anyone!   If you are a female founder, please take our survey:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/926WVMZ

screen-shot-2016-11-20-at-9-39-44-pm

By Name and Twitter ID:

table

 

 

 

Happy International Women’s Day !

March 8, 2016 / / 0 Comments

Today is international women’s day.      To me, this is a significant day as it celebrates the achievement of women around the world!   Women are over 50% of the world’s population — so inclusion is very important to the world.   For instance, did you know if there was parity of women and men in the workforce in Egypt that the GDP would go up by 34%?

I am passionate about innovation and study after study shows that diversity breeds innovation.

So today, let’s celebrate and commit to parity across the world !

Sandy

 

5 Power Women Who Rocked IBM Interconnect

February 29, 2016 / / 0 Comments

I loved Interconnect this year due to the great people who I met and expanded relationships with at the event.

Here’s my highlights so that I can share these amazing people!

  1.  Amy Wilkenson – Author of Creator Code – Amy wrote the book that outlines the 6 characteristics of the most successful US entrepreneurs based on her personal research
  2. Tamara  McCleaery – Creator of RelationShift – Social media extraordinaire and passionate supporter of Women in Tech.
  3. Adriana Gascoigne – CEO of Girls in Tech – an amazing speaker and leader of the outstanding group helping to fill our pipeline and help women in tech.
  4. Connie Mester, Founder and CEO of Thrive 4-7 – is driving to help well being with an app that is designed to help chronic stress, illness or workplace behaviors so that employees can live healthier, more productive lives
  5. Jane Russenberger, Director, Genetics and Breeding, Guiding Eyes for the Blind – who is using technology to help increase the number of guiding eye dogs for those in need.

As you can see, these women are not only driving strong ROI for business, and using technology, but they are changing the world.   They touch relationships, health, business, the disadvantaged, and mental health.   I feel honored to have met each of them!

Happy International Women's Day!!! STEM jobs on the rise, but Women in STEM declining

March 8, 2015 / / 0 Comments

STEM jobs are on the rise, in fact,  there will be 1.4 million new computer science jobs by 2020.

  • These new jobs pay better, 33% more than non-STEM positions.
  • Women are the perfect candidates for these new jobs. Women hold a greater percentage of all bachelor’s degrees,
  • Unfortunately, they also hold an increasingly smaller percentage of computer science degrees with just 18 percent in 2012 as compared to 37 percent in 1984.
  • Women represent 48 percent of the workforce but only a quarter of STEM and IT careers.
  • When women are in positions of leadership, there is a 35% higher return on equity and 34% better return to shareholders.

So let’s get some more women into the roles they can be qualified to fill.

At PBWC tomorrow, a group of Senior Women will continue the work to change the game.   Tell me what you will do!!

 

What I learned from the Women of the Cloud Get Together at IBM Interconnect!

March 3, 2015 / / 0 Comments

With over 1000 women joining us for the Women in the Cloud event at IBM Interconnect, we heard Ted Talks from:

  • Lisa Seacat DeLuca – IBM’s Most Prolific Woman Inventor
  • Maria Winans – IBM’s VP of Marketing
  • Marie Wieck – IBM’s GM of Software
  • Laurie McCabe – CEO / Founder SMB Group
  • Frances West – IBM’s Executvie for Accessibility
  • me!
  • all the women FullSizeRender

Here’s my Top 10.5 Top Aways!

  1. Learn how to say No!   Not every opportunity is a good one so don’t say yes to everything.   Pick and choose those with the highest Return on Investment or Most Joy!
  2. You Can have it ALL but you have to define what your ALL is.    What brings you joy and excitement should be your bar, not what others desire.
  3. Exercise!   Almost all of the TED talks valued working out to de stress and stay healthy!
  4. Prioritize yourself.  The analogy I used was on a flight and in life, put your safety mask on first.  Then you can help others.  Sometimes it is ok to make you a priority.
  5. Have a support structure.   All of us need help and so when your daughter comes home with that last minute tea and you have a big presentation, have a support team who can sub in when needed.  You’ll need a strong support network for your personal life to meet the challenges of integrating work and life. Ask help of those around you – friends, family, and neighbors
  6. Take risks. Stretch opportunities, coaching and placement in roles outside of your “comfort zone” is critical to building leadership attributes
  7. Have fun.    Many examples of where women excel more when they loved what they were doing.   Do what brings you joy!
  8. Move from “can it be done” to “how can I get it done”.   Attitude and tone is really important but for your teams and you!
  9. Believe in yourself.   Make sure you have confidence in you and your abilities and those crazy ideas.
  10. Give yourself permission. Don’t feel guiltly about decisions  Make a decision and stand behind it. As one executive put it, “Don’t spend your time feeling guilty afterwards because you may be putting unnecessary pressure on yourself.”

10.5  Get a massage weekly!

say no