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The Gender Index at the Diana Conference 2023
Data from The Gender Index Report 2023 has been presented at a prestigious international research conference on women’s entrepreneurship.
The Diana International Research Conference[1], organised by Babson College, gathered a collaborative network of researchers, female entrepreneurs, policy advisers and influencers from more than 60 countries.
The theme for the 2023 conference, which took place between 3-6 June at Babson College in Massachusetts, US, was, “Women's Entrepreneurship: Exploring Diversity of Experiences and Impact”.
Dr Naomi Birdthistle, Professor of Entrepreneurship and Business Innovation at Griffith Business School in Australia, presented The Gender Index 2023 report and the data behind it, powered by the mnAi platform.
This was a huge honour for us. The conference chairs received 130 abstracts from 26 countries and our [2] abstract was selected for an innovative roundtable presentation on an international stage.
The topic was, ”How entrepreneurial diversity impacts the funding success of SMEs in the UK” and showcased the UK leading gender disaggregated data gathering, analysis and interpretation.
Our data demonstrated the ongoing challenges for female-led companies accessing all forms of external capital, and highlighted that Generation Z is closing the gender gap with a national average of 21.7% active female-led companies, against an overall UK average of 17.3% active female-led companies.
Dr Birdthistle said: "I presented The Gender Index findings at a roundtable event at the DIANA Conference, at Babson College, Boston, and people were very engaged. There were lots of questions, including whether female-led companies are more concentrated in particular sectors. It was an honour to speak at the conference and share such important data."
Our Chairman, Jill Pay, said: “It was a huge privilege to have this opportunity to share The Gender Index with an international audience at this major conference on female entrepreneurship. I am very grateful to Dr Birdthistle for her enthusiasm and for delivering the presentation so effectively.”
John Cushing, CEO and Founder of mnAi, said: “The Gender Index, powered by mnAi, is the world's first national gender disaggregated database. Its purpose is simple - to provide free-to-use information and insight and create a standard measurement that government, academia and corporates can use to generate new research and crucially, track and measure progress. I am thrilled that the response from DIANA delegates was so enthusiastic and am very grateful for Dr. Birdthistle presenting The Gender Index at such a prestigious event.”
[1] The Diana Conference is named after Diana, Princess of Wales, who was a strong advocate for women's rights and empowerment
[2] Authors: Naomi Birdthistle, Antoinette Flynn, John Cushing, Jill Pay, Stephen Roper, Eleanor Shaw