Re-framing metrics in a gender/diversity programmatic context
If you work in economic development you are no doubt familiar with the necessity for tracking and marketing programmatic metrics. Perceived success is so historically tied to outcome yardsticks such as number of companies formed, employees hired, and funding that one may wonder what there is to debate? However, as organizations increasingly look to improve their inclusivity it can be beneficial to consider re-framing some preconceived notions about what “success” looks like.
Two and half years ago I became the founding Director of the Collaboratory for Women Innovators. In this role I am often asked “How many companies have you helped start?” It is a valid question. However, the answer, in my opinion, requires context in order to best understand the impact we are having.
For example, the Collaboratory is housed within a university-run incubator and one of our goals is to increase the number of female founders accepted into the incubator. I am often asked “how many female-led companies have you had transition into the incubator?” Well I am proud to say that this past year we had our first female-founded tech company accepted into the incubator. So, the short answer to this question is one. One does not sound like a big number. In fact, without context, it does not sound impressive at all. However, when I share that when the incubator opened there were not any female-founded companies, that statistic starts to have more impact. When I further share that of the first 100 or so companies in the incubator over a seven-year period, there were less than 10% female founders, that statistic becomes further contextualized ie: now I am saying that we have helped increase the female-founder ratio in the incubator by over 10% - a much more impressive sounding statistic!
If you hold an event and only a handful of people show up, that can be disheartening. You may question whether there is a need for the topic, or if you are targeting the right people. While reflecting upon the response to your offerings is prudent, it is also important to recognize that it can take time to build a brand, and this can be particularly challenging for brand activism. It may be necessary for some to hear the call multiple times before having the capacity to respond and show up. I have worked with various organizations across the gender space and from our collective experiences I will share that this is not uncommon. Recognize as well that oftentimes the ones who do show up can serve as your most powerful ambassadors. Early on in our launch I held informal monthly meetings for female CEOs. I remember one month only 3 women showed up, despite a longer list of confirmed registrants. Three does not seem like a big number, and admittedly it’s not. However, that meeting turned out to be a powerful opportunity for those founders to connect, interact and share resources in a more intimate setting. Two of those women subsequently became strong allies of our program and continue to provide enormous value to our ecosystem. In addition to being brand ambassadors for the Collaboratory within the community and refer other women to us, they went on to participate in our more intensive programming which translated into them becoming more traditionally coveted programmatic “metrics”. So it’s important to remember that when you are trying to move the needle, even small numbers can translate into big ratios. Also, don’t ignore more qualitative formats such as testimonials, in helping to tell your story. Anecdotal evidence can provide powerful opportunities to share your successes. Here is an example of a video spotlight story we did of one our clients Robyn Crawford of Eden Books.
But, I am happy to share that at the Collaboratory we continue to grow our programming offerings and client base and do have strong metrics to help demonstrate our success. Since launching in Spring 2018 we have helped over 60 women start or scale their companies. In addition, we have hosted 40 plus events serving over 1200 participants. We have been thrilled to see our clients receive their first seed investments, scale and hire employees, and even get acquired! In addition our clients have received over 4 million in private and public funding!
As we collectively work to improve inclusiveness across various disciplines we need to learn to re-frame our methodology to better support and highlight our successes. This is important not only to garner support from potential external partners and collaborators but also to help maintain our own motivation and perspective, particularly in the early stages of operation.
I would love to hear your feedback on this topic and/or your experiences regarding your own programming metrics regarding inclusion! For more information about the Collaboratory visit our website.