When we were at the USASBE conference last weekend presenting the ACTiVATE program for an award, one woman stood up and said that she could not imagine enrolling in a woman-only program. She was a bench PhD and felt that she had learned a great deal by ‘toughing it out’ in a man’s world. I explained to her that having built my business in a very male-dominated industry I could understand her point, but from my experiences with the program through the last 3 years, I have seen a real benefit to the single-gender environment. It may not be for everyone, but for some women it made all the difference in deciding to join and succeeding in the program. Vivian Armor, one of the program’s Primary Investigators and the Director for the Alex. Brown Center for Entrepreneurship at UMBC, then pointed out that at our recent recruiting sessions, she has been asking if it mattered that the course was for women only. About half agreed that it was essential. By the end of the program, however, 100% of the participants have consistently stated that the single-gender environment was important. What changed?
The ACTiVATE program focuses on mid-career women who have already been out in the “man’s world” and been successful in it. That would lead us to believe, then, that being around all women might not be so critical. Some, like the woman mentioned above, actually feel it would be detrimental. I have to confess: several years ago I actually left a Business Roundtable because it was all women and I wanted to get male insight and advice. My perspective is different now.
While I agree that women can learn a lot from working and collaborating with men, one of the key factors in the success of this women-only entrepreneurship training was that having a single-gender environment is safe. It provides an atmosphere in which women who are already accomplished and used to being tops in their field can experiment and take risks as they learned new skills. While there are some people (insane as they are) who enjoy the discomfort of trying something new, most avoid it or at least shy away from doing so publicly. Starting a business definitely takes you out of your comfort zone. It is very different than the corporate environment and you have to rely, at least in the beginning, completely on yourself. It is not for the faint of heart, motivation, or energy.
The mutual support I have witnessed between the participants not only within the same ACTiVATE class but across all of the program’s alumnae has been inspiring. We are truly creating a New Girls Network to compete with the Old Boy’s one and we’re not alone. The Women President’s Organization provides single-gender support for women presidents with revenues over $1M. Count Me In’s Make Mine a $Million Program (for which I am a mentor) brings together women entrepreneurs who have already started a business but want to grow it beyond the magic million dollar mark. Having done that I can tell you – it’s not easy – but by bringing these women together, there is a real magic about doing it together. And it seems to be working!
An article in Tuesday’s Telegraph, a UK-based newspaper, confirms that this is not just a US phenomenon. Women all over the world are realizing that learning how to start a business within a group of other aspiring women entrepreneurs, or whatever commonalities make for an affinity group, is powerful. It doesn’t mean, however, that we should lock out the men from being involved in our business start-up or growth. It means having that like-minded support group as a base can give you an edge. The USASBE judges must have agreed. ACTiVATE won their national award for Best Specialty Entrepreneurship Education Program.
I am curious about your thoughts…agree? Disagree? If you’ve been involved with a women-only group, what was the draw for you?
