Women and Business: A Force for Good to be Reckoned With!

At the 2009 Vancouver Peace Summit, The Dalai Lama said … "The world will be saved by the western woman.”

Every day I am finding more and more evidence of the wisdom of his statement. At a time in history when financial systems have been crashing and companies are collapsing from lack of integrity, transparency and accountability. A different way of doing business – and everything – is emerging and women, as well as minorities, are stepping up for the challenge.

In recent history, investments and business have struggled. Net private domestic investment in the US plunged 94% (to only $54B) from 2006 to 2009. While private investment spending has begun to recover, gross domestic investment in 2010 began to recover, but remained 21% below its peak in Q1 2006 and net private domestic investment remained about 64% below its previous peak. And in 2009, only 3.5% of all private investment spending went toward building up the capital stock. (Data, taken or derived from the most recently revised National Economic Accounts prepared by the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis, June 2010)

During this time, women entrepreneurs and fund managers are demonstrating a new type of business leadership and savvy that truly is setting the stage for a new type of business. The numbers and data are staggering and make the case for looking to women to not only change the face of business, but perhaps even as The Dalai Lama stated, play a leadership role in changing the world.

An Illuminate Ventures report (http://www.illuminate.com/whitepaper/) found:
• Companies most inclusive of women in top management achieve 35% higher return on equity (ROE) and 34% better total return to shareholders versus their peers.
• The average venture-backed company run by a woman had achieved comparable early-year revenues, using an average of 1/3 less committed capital.
• Even these capital-constraints, women-owned businesses are more likely to survive the transition from raw start-up to established company than traditional companies.
• Despite this, in 2008 woman co-founded tech businesses gained less than 10% of venture investment while representing 30% of the workforce.

At the same time, during the period in which traditional investments were dropping, the average return on funds from 2000 to 2009 was 9% for women-managed funds compared to 6% index average. And in 2008, when the average fund’s value dropped 19%, women-managed funds dropped less than 10%. (National Council for Research on Women, 2010)

Data further shows that while women (and minority) fund managers manage less than 2% of retirement assets, they account for >40% of the top quartile of performing funds.

An article in World Pulse magazine (http://www.worldpulse.com/magazine/columns/founders-pulse/the-new-silk-road) aptly wrote:
Women manage money differently, and had there been more women at the helm of investment decisions all along, the worst of the global financial meltdown might have been averted.

The report finds that women—in charge of just 3% of hedge funds and 10% of mutual funds—are more patient and consistent with their investments. They are less apt to take overconfident risks and more likely to integrate detailed and conflicting data into their decisions. Moreover, women-owned funds are more stable and consistently outperform general funds with higher returns.

Microfinance pioneer Mohammed Yunus further demonstrated with Grameen microloans that when given the opportunity, women are more conscientious money managers, maximize/leverage resources and value money. Over 95% of the Grameen loans went to women with 95% good debts, a much higher rate of return than with male borrowers.

The case is growing. Yet despite the trend, there is still much work to be done to support and champion women business owners, leaders and fund managers as discrimination still exists (http://www.bnet.com/blog/business-research/why-women-can-8217t-raise-capital-for-their-businesses/617).

Investing in women, and girls, (http://doc.mediaplanet.com/all_projects/6574.pdf?utm_source=031704pm&utm_medium=fb&utm_campaign=usatodayinsert) could be the best thing you can do, or anyone can do for turning around the economy and getting an equal or better return on investment and in a company that not only creates an economic return, but also a social, environmental and planetary impact!

Maybe there really is something to The Dalai Lama’s wisdom. Whether, western women, or just women, in general, globally uniting to solve some of the planet’s most pressing financial, social and environmental problems – more effectively, more efficiently and more compassionately! Only time will tell, but my bet is that he is on to something!

You can find me on Twitter @pilarstella and Facebook at www.facebook.com/pilarstella1 .

April's Latest e-Giving News

Giving keeps coming up in the news as more and more corporations jump into corporate social responsibility, nonprofits get active in social media, foundations take more risks and individuals give. All of this makes more of a case for OneGiving - stay tuned! Here is the latest e-Giving news!

You get the best out of others, when you give the best of yourself. ~ Harry S. Firestone

Global Giving
United Nations Special Envoy for Malaria Announces the Social Media Envoy Group - http://bit.ly/cpcqhb - UN Special Envoy for Malaria announced the formation of a Social Media Envoy group chartered with inspiring and activating social media audiences throughout the year in support of malaria control. The Social Media Envoys are using social media to keep online and offline media audiences focused on the movement, milestones and resources required to achieve the Secretary-General's goal of providing all endemic African countries with malaria control interventions.

Corporate Giving
We're Going Barefoot on April 8th. Are you? - http://www.onedaywithoutshoes.com/ - One Day Without Shoes is the day to raise awareness about the impact a simple pair of shoes can have on a child's life. On April 8th, Tom's Shoes is asking people to go the day, part of the day or even just a few minutes, barefoot, to experience a life without shoes first-hand, and inspire others at the same time.

Individual Giving
34 entrepreneurs who could change the world - http://bit.ly/9wWOYo - These entrepreneurs could change the world. By sponsoring them, you can decide which 25 will attend the Unreasonable Institute, where they will receive training, mentorship, and access to capital they need to take flight.

Nonprofits, Social Media & Giving
Several lists of nonprofit leaders & social media -
Top 25 Most influential Non-profit Tweeters - http://bit.ly/bId3n4;
Top Nonprofit Leaders to Follow on Twitter - http://bit.ly/cW1WJa;
25 of the Best Non-Profit Websites - http://bit.ly/dyVpcW.

After Facebook and Obama, Chris Hughes launches nonprofit Jumo - http://bit.ly/9ccFHe - Chris Hughes, a Facebook co-founder who helped launch the social networking phenom and then the tour-de-force online organizing campaign for Barack Obama's presidential bid, on Thursday unveiled his latest endeavor: A website to connect individuals and organizations striving to help the world.

Promoting Giving
Partying to Change the World - http://cot.ag/dmfmlJ
Wedding Favors for Charity - http://bit.ly/bmbp9t
Initiative to spark engagement & innovation in effort to end hunger - http://bit.ly/csfdt4 and http://www.wecanendthis.com/
Facebook Advertising Experiment for Nonprofit Organizations - http://bit.ly/99Afdw
Twestival Lessons for Nonprofits to Engage Volunteers and Donors - http://bit.ly/cGAWiD

Mobile
Zoetica Iphone App and Nonprofit iPhone Apps - http://bit.ly/cxtJY6 - Beth Kanter announces Zoetica iPhone application, is now live on the iTunes store.
Mobile Benchmarks 2010: How Are Non-Profits Using Text Messaging? - http://bit.ly/ddqhdo - The study takes a look at how organizations in the US are using text messaging and how subscribers are responding.
The Demographics of Text-Message Giving - http://bit.ly/c1uEW3 - Donors age 45 and younger were far more likely to make text-message donations for Haiti relief efforts than their older counterparts, according to a new study.

Giving Trends
Using curiosity to engage your community online - http://tr.im/RXxe - How are we-as interaction designers-leveraging curiosity in our designs?

Giving Measurement/Outcomes/Evaluation
Measuring the Bang of Every Donated Buck - http://is.gd/9sro6 - Ask enough people why they don't donate and a common theme emerges - fear their money will be wasted. Measuring the impact nonprofits have on the problems they seek to solve-and, in some cases, deciding whether one cause is more deserving than another-has become a pressing issue for the multitrillion-dollar philanthropy industry.

For Discussion
iPhone App or a Mobile Website? - http://bit.ly/90z40a - Which is a Better Investment for Your Nonprofit Here are five reasons why it might make more sense to initially invest in a mobile website over an iPhone App.

Thanks for your continued contributions and gifts in the world! Keep on giving back! You can follow us on Twitter @onegiving & on Facebook Pages or me @pilarstella and www.facebook.com/pilarstella.