The key to unlocking innovation

What do we need for innovation to really flourish? Nicola Hazell, Head of Diversity and Impact at BlueChilli, explains why diversity is the key.

Innovation is not something that is, it’s something that happens. As is the case for anything that happens, a certain environment is required.

Where there is space for new ideas to not only be shared but to also be challenged, innovation can happen. When we allow ourselves to feel uncomfortable, to think differently, to colour outside the lines, innovation can flourish.

It should come as no surprise then that diversity is the key to unlocking innovation.

Indeed, diverse views and ideas are essential to drive the kind of disruptive, creative, critical thinking required to take our economy forward. But right now, Australia is at risk of growing a so-called innovation-economy that fails to tap into the diversity of our population, and in particular, leaves women behind.

Women make up more than 50 per cent of our population. Yet in the startup ecosystem – where the most innovative, high potential businesses of the future are being created – women remain grossly under-represented. According to the 2015 Compass report, women make up 18 per cent of startup founders globally. In Australia, varying reports indicate women represent between 14 per cent and 24 per cent of startup founders, and when you look at those attracting investment, the stats are as low as 4 per cent. While the data on gender may be somewhat patchy, the message is consistent – women are missing out.

When we consider the clear international evidence on the economic value of female participation – i.e. that as much as $28 trillion could be added to global annual GDP by 2025 if women played an identical role in labor markets to that of men – it’s obvious that Australia’s ambitions of driving innovation and growing a thriving startup ecosystem will never be met if we don’t address the massive gender gap.

Closing the participation gap in the startup economy requires a concerted cross-sector effort at many points along the pipeline. Those who play a role in supporting startups to get started, to grow and to scale, must ensure their programs are designed to attract, include and support female founders.

As the recent report by Chief Executive Women showed, resting on the laurels of “merit” does not work, as merit itself is blinded by personal perceptions which limit our understanding of potential to what we have seen or experienced before. To improve gender equality in tech and entrepreneurship, we need to design for it. This means creating spaces for women to learn about the opportunities available, to develop key skills, to identify in themselves the potential for leading globally scalable companies, and to see in others examples of how it can be done.

To date, such spaces have been limited. But the community of support is rapidly growing. From grass-roots organisations seeking to inspire and engage women and girls in tech, and hackathons providing a launch pad for women entrepreneurs; to programs helping female founders become investment-ready, and meet-ups designed to bring women to the VC table – the effort for equality is building. In my own organisation, BlueChilli, we are preparing to launch the SheStarts accelerator program and campaign, working in collaboration with corporate and ecosystem partners to specifically turbocharge female participation and leadership in the startup economy. This collective effort is an indication of the value seen in driving gender equality.

But to truly move the needle, we need to attack the problem from every angle. Government has a key role to play, not only through direct investment in scaling programs that engage, support and champion women, but also through the design of government policies and initiatives intended to support the broader innovation economy. For example, there is a real opportunity to make a direct impact on the gender gap by ensuring programs within the NISA take a proactive approach to gender equality, where they are specific programs for females or not. By requiring all applicants to demonstrate a ‘non-negotiable’ approach to female participation and inclusive design, government can ensure the significant investment in innovation results in a more diverse (and thriving) startup ecosystem.

Without intentional design for diversity, the startup and innovation economy will remain an uneven playing field – creating a huge missed opportunity for our national prosperity and global competitiveness. The ideas and perspectives of female entrepreneurs and innovators offer vital opportunities for the development of new products, services and creative solutions to major global problems. As Australia looks for ways to create a more inclusive innovation agenda, driving gender equality must be embedded as the central plank of the national strategy.