The Top 25 Female Founders of the IoT Startups
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
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:
- Women must help women in order for us to move forward. This is not about competition but helping one another succeed. Alicia Asín
- We must be radically generous with the next generation. They need us as role models. Anina Net
- 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
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Happy International Women's Day !
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
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!
- 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
- Tamara McCleaery - Creator of RelationShift - Social media extraordinaire and passionate supporter of Women in Tech.
- 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.
- 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
- 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
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!
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!
Here's my Top 10.5 Top Aways!
- 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!
- 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.
- Exercise! Almost all of the TED talks valued working out to de stress and stay healthy!
- 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.
- 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
- Take risks. Stretch opportunities, coaching and placement in roles outside of your “comfort zone” is critical to building leadership attributes
- Have fun. Many examples of where women excel more when they loved what they were doing. Do what brings you joy!
- 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!
- Believe in yourself. Make sure you have confidence in you and your abilities and those crazy ideas.
- 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!
Girls Who Code Partnering with IBM! Summertime fun in 2015!
I'm so excited to announce that IBM is sponsoring Girls Who Code, a national non-profit dedicated to empowering teenage girls with computing skills to pursue 21st century opportunities! 
I love it! Being a mother of two girls, I know how important it is to nurture girls to embrace STEM-type skills, like coding! And, even better, the girls love it! This Summer, IBM and Girls Who Code will host a group of 20 young women each day for 7 weeks as they learn everything from mobile app development to robotics to web design and ultimately get a chance to build the app they want to see made available. Applications are now being accepted for the 2015 Summer Immersion Program. Current 10th and 11th grade girls with a passion for tech are encouraged to apply. The program is free for participants and no prior experience is necessary.
This is sure to be a life-changing experience! We hope you will spread the word about this fabulous opportunity and encourage the 10th and 11th grade young women in your life to apply today at http://www.girlswhocode.com/applynow.
Here are some tweets you can use to help spread the word! And be sure to follow them on Twitter @GirlsWhoCode!
- Awesome org @GirlsWhoCode is accepting applications for summer 2015! High School girls who love tech can apply at http://girlswhocode.com/applynow
- Learn to code, change the world! High School girls can apply now for @GirlsWhoCode Summer Immersion Program at http://girlswhocode.com/applynow
- Join the movement! @GirlsWhoCode is recruiting teen girls for the unforgettable Summer Immersion Program. Apply at http://girlswhocode.com/applynow
Join me on October 22nd for a "Bluemix Girls Night Out"!!!
Gang! I would love to see you in NYC for a "Bluemix Girls Night Out!" On October 22, 2014, IBM will be hosting a Bluemix Girls' Night Out event for Digital.NYC at our offices at 590 Madison Avenue!
The event will be a fun filled night to build skills especially on our IBM BluemixTM cloud-based developer platform. We will also be offering hands-on labs for attendees to help them better understand the benefits of cloud-based development. And of course, there will be fun and food!
If you are interested in attending this event visit www.ibm.biz/bluemixgnonyc where you can register now. If you are interested partnering with IBM to host a Bluemix Girls' Night Out event with your group, please contact my colleague Steve Johnston via email at johnstst@us.ibm.com.