We need women-led startups to succeed as fast as men

It’s great that women are increasingly leading startups but it’s coming at a cost, with women paying themselves less in the process. Melissa Browne has three suggestions. 

In 2015, Startup Muster conducted a survey and discovered the percentage of startups founded by females had risen from one in six in 2011 to one in four in 2014.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported in that same year, 34% of businesses operators were women. This represents an increase in business ownership by females of more than 46% in the last 20 years.

So it’s fairly clear that women are starting businesses faster than ever.

What concerns me, however, is that generally we’re not doing it as well as our male counterparts. A 2015 ABS study reported that in 2012, women were earning on average $423 per week compared with $890 for men for an unincorporated business and $998 as compared to $1,451 per week for an incorporated business. Female business owners were also likely to have less money per week from all sources then their male counterparts and other employed women. Read more

Melissa Browne - Smart Company - 12 Apr 2017