The Real F Word, Female Founders in Focus

Female founders get less than 2% of all VC funding. Svitlanka Sergiichuk Romaniuk of NeoFin and Alexia de Broglie of Your Juno each discuss with Denise why the numbers are so low, things women can do to bring them up (hint: it looks like therapy and sisterhood!) and how investing in building strong founder relationships will build stronger companies with better culture and communication.

 

Key Takeaways.

• [0:00] Denise Johansson puts Svitlanka Sergiichuk Romaniuk, co-founder of NeoFin and Alexia de Broglie, co-founder of Your Juno, in the hot seat.
• [2:39] Wanting “more” is a through-thread for founders.
• [4:31] Female founders have it hard enough: Find the right partners and stick to your principles.
• [6:11] The U.S. is beginning to develop a good number of female foundership programs in FinTech.
• [8:51] Because there are so few, current female founders and leaders in FinTech need to shine bright to lead the way.
• [10:29] Stop with the imposter syndrome already!
• [11:17] Why helping to maintain a strong sisterhood of support will bring more women up into leadership positions.
• [19:38] You don’t have to leave your job and build the plane while you fly it, and founding a company isn’t a set path.
• [21:51] Investing in executive coaching with co-founders increases any venture’s stability.
• [25:17] Executive working relationships in startups will naturally build company culture.
• [26:30] Pre-seed funding is not so much about the product as it is about the founding team.
• [28:54] Founders need to pick investors just as much as the reverse, it is a long-term relationship.
• [30:49] Using the communication tools available should not be scary. Reach out (or answer the phone!).
• [33:19] Founders are subjected to a toxic idea of hustle culture. Having a family is possible, having it all is possible.
• [36:32] We do not all have the same 24 hours in a day.
• [38:58] Denise signs out until the next time she puts an industry leader in the hot seat.

 

People.

• Guest Svitlanka Sergiichuk Romaniuk, co-Founder of NeoFin, an intuitive SaaS that allows to fully automate all credit/loan operations.
• Guest Alexia de Broglie, co-Founder of Your Juno, giving women and non-binary people financial knowledge and confidence to build their wealth.
• Host Denise Johansson, co-CEO and co-Founder of Enfuce, a female-founded fintech helping drive business growth, solve customer challenges and extend financial inclusion.

 

Links.

• Enfuce

 

Guest Quotes.

• Being a female founder is not easy, and being a Ukrainian female founder doesn't make it easier. But the most important part of being a founder is sticking to your principles when choosing your business partners. — Svitlanka Sergiichuk Romaniuk, NeoFin, InTheHotSeat
• There are quite a lot of programs in the US that are embracing female foundership, especially in FinTech, that I'm happily going for! — Svitlanka Sergiichuk Romaniuk, NeoFin, InTheHotSeat
• Modern times provide so many opportunities for female founders. Keep going and keep growing. The opportunities are out there, they're just waiting for someone to pick them up. — Svitlanka Sergiichuk Romaniuk, NeoFin, InTheHotSeat
• People look at founding a company as binary: You quit your job and you're now on this massive journey of building a company. Just break down this task into manageable chunks where you don't have to sacrifice a lot to take the next step — Alexia de Broglie, Your Juno, InTheHotSeat
• We have actually gone through a lot of executive coaching and that's something that I would recommend to any founder relationship. I think the number one reason why startups fail is because founders fall apart. — Alexia de Broglie, Your Juno, InTheHotSeat
• With pre-seed funding, what they're backing is the founders. It's not how much traction you have, or your financial model. It's more about how much conviction do the founders have, how do they get along, what is their background? — Alexia de Broglie, Your Juno, InTheHotSeat
• One of the big mistakes that I see women make is that they want to be right. We've been told so many times throughout our upbringing that we're wrong and that we're too loud, too this, too that, we need to be right. — Alexia de Broglie, Your Juno, InTheHotSeat
• Make sure that you're in the right types of conversations and in the right rooms with people that have similar ambitions to you.  — Alexia de Broglie, Your Juno, InTheHotSeat

Denise Quotes.

• When Enfuce went into seeking funding for the first time we were making profit by that time. And that is unique. VCs don't come by that very often. — Denise Johansson, InTheHotSeat
• Imposter syndrome is something that I encounter when I talk to young women. I’m always trying to get them to tell their own value. Why? Why wouldn't you be the best for this? — Denise Johansson, InTheHotSeat
• My message to all female founders and executives out there! If a woman reaches out for your advice, it's your sisterhood obligation to find that short amount of time and just give some inspiration forward. — Denise Johansson, InTheHotSeat
• Nothing will come for free for anyone. It doesn't matter if you are male or female. Every successful founder that you see out there has worked hard to get there. — Denise Johansson, InTheHotSeat