Empowering women entrepreneurs
Hornâs WE Hatch initiative addresses disadvantages experienced by startup founders and corporate innovators
The #MeToo movement pushed a lot of issues regarding gender inequality to the fore. From the blatantly obvious (unequal pay) to problems that finally became recognizable by many men (microaggressions), society paid attention and worked harder than ever to bring about change.
In many ways, that effort was successful. But for many in the business world, including women entrepreneurs, the change didnât stick.
âAll the gains that followed the #MeToo movement, the awareness about biases, theyâve been erased,â said Gail Ball, an adjunct professor in the Horn Entrepreneurship at the University of Delaware. Ball is a veteran of the venture capital world who has served in several executive positions, including chief operating officer of The Bancorp Bank. âNot just because of COVID. They're erased because the underlying biases have never been addressed effectively. And so when you have an exaggerated event, like the COVID pandemic, you rush to what you know, and you rush to what you did before.â