The proportion of women in startups is increasing. Female founding teams differ significantly from male ones in one crucial factor.
The German Startups Association has published the first Female Founders Monitor. The study examines the contribution of female founders to the German startup ecosystem. The data for the study comes from the German Startup Monitor 2017.
The proportion of women among all startup founders is 14.6 percent. Eight percent of all startups examined were founded by all-female teams. One in five founding teams has both female and male members. Overall, women are involved in 28 percent of all surveyed startups.
Women tend to be lone fighters
The study finds a crucial difference between "female" and "male" startups: Men usually found companies in teams, with an average size of 2.2 people. Female teams, on the other hand, average only 1.3 founders. In other words, female founders are more likely to be lone wolves than their male counterparts. The former Federal Minister of Economics Brigitte Zypries says:
"Without women, Germany wouldn't be a global leader in business. It's therefore crucial that women receive greater support and encouragement to take on leadership responsibilities in the professional environment. Startups are often more advanced in this regard than traditional companies. But there's still a lot of catching up to do here, too. The Female Founders Monitor 2018 aims to encourage more young women to pursue self-employment. As solo founders or as part of a team."
Janina Mütze and Stephanie Renda, Chair of the Startup Entrepreneurs Network, commented:
"It's about seizing the opportunities presented by digital transformation and societal changes, such as the sharing economy. The conditions for starting a business have never been better—although they could still be better."
The full study is available for download here.
