Accelerator backs tech-for-good women

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A new accelerator to help female tech-for-good founders build their social ventures is unveiled this week – with applications for its first cohort of 20 women now open for applications. Julian Blake reports.

The new We in Social Tech accelerator is supported by Deutsche Bank through its Made for Good social enterprise programme, and delivered by not-for-private-profit enterprise agency Nwes London.

DigitalAgenda is proud to support We In Social Tech – and joins a panel talk in London on Thursday 1 November. Event details below.

The new London accelerator, located in Haringey’s Wood Green Works, will back a total of 60 women-led UK tech businesses with a social purpose, across three cohorts “to make a step change in their enterprise” throughout 2019/20. It will:

• offer three six-month support programmes over two years, including business growth plans, investment and finance readiness, peer learning groups and free co-working space
• provide an estimated 720 hours of both tech industry and Deutsche Bank employee mentoring
• create a thriving professional network of tech experts and provide pathways to develop business relationships.

The programme offers one-to-one mentoring from two mentors – one drawn from of its group of 20 mentors and one from Deutsche Bank. The programme will not take any equity or intellectual property.

“Women entrepreneurs (We) in the technology sector face greater challenges and obstacles to success than men,” explains We In Social Tech. “Research shows that women are sorely under-represented, with less than 7% of tech jobs in Europe filled by women.

“There is a lack of role models, gross pay inequality, as well as challenges in raising finance. In wider entrepreneurship terms, women are still in the minority despite having the potential to make a huge impact. Through providing structured and bespoke support to female-led businesses we can work together to remove these barriers,” it adds.

“Technology and innovative business models have the potential to solve some of the world’s most pressing environmental and societal problems,” the organisation says, but it says “tech for good holds some unique challenges for entrepreneurs. They struggle to build sustainable business models that delivers user, social and financial value at scale, and it can be a challenge for social enterprises to position themselves as viable investment opportunities to investors.”

The new programme is open for applications until 19 November, at weinsocialtech.co.uk/#apply

We In Social Tech launch
Thursday 1 November, 9.30-11.30am
Auditorium, Deutsche Bank, 10 Upper Bank Street, Canary Wharf, London E14 5GH

Deutsche Bank corporate social responsibility director Nicole Lovett introduces We are Social Tech. Alongside Encouraging Enterprise regional director Richard Salmon, and bodydataspace/Women Shift Digital founder Ghislaine Boddington gives an overview.

DigitalAgenda director Julian Blake joins a panel discussion at 10.20am, called ‘value and values – supporting sustainable tech business and contributing to the greater good’, alongside Stemettes head Anne-Marie Imafidon MBE and Other Valleys/Ada’s List co-founder Anjali Ramachandran.

Register to attend the 1 November launch here.

weinsocialtech.co.uk
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