
How to Create More Women and Minority Tech Founders - andrewpierno
I&#x27;m the head of development for a venture capital studio and I&#x27;ve been thinking about how I can use my skills to make more of an impact. I came up with building tech companies for women and minority founders for equity only (i.e. it wouldn&#x27;t cost any out of pocket money ).<p>Is this a worthwhile effort? Here are a few of my concerns...<p>- I&#x27;m white. I don&#x27;t know if this matters but I thought I&#x27;d mention it.  
- Taking equity. This will be a business. The primary reason for making it a business and not a non profit, is that I think I can raise money for it if I can show how it can make money. This means more companies will be built that otherwise would not have been and it also proves to investors that they have been ignoring a hugely talented group of people. Also, it would be an amazing company to run.<p>I&#x27;ve built a site and am accepting submissions at www.sturdyfalcon.com ( funny name, I know ) , but really do want help shaping the mission &#x2F; purpose of this project.<p>Thanks,<p>Andrew
======
imaginenore
If you're selecting projects based on the gender/race of the owner instead of
the merits of the project and the team's skills / compatibility, you're going
to lose in long term.

~~~
andrewpierno
I agree completely. I will be selecting based on merit, it's just that this
will only be open to that group of people.

~~~
imaginenore
So not on merit. That's like saying "I will create The Olympics for black
people only to fight racism".

~~~
Tan__
He just stated that he will be selecting based on merit. Other requirements
will not necessarily negate that.

------
matttheatheist
We minorities have always made top engineers. For example, here's my latest
product: www.enrad.io (and no, we don't want your money.)

If you really want diversity in the startup ecosystem, simply fund and hire
minorities...and stop merely talking about it. Seriously, stop moving your
lips and just hire some people. We're everywhere. And we're very good.

~~~
bbcbasic
Something I like about working in Sydney, Australia is that the teams I have
been in are very ethnically diverse - people from all continents, countless
countries. Also age diversity is good. Although still not as many women in
tech roles unfortunately.

I have worked for established companies though not startups but I am sure it
is the same.

------
bbcbasic
Invest in startups in foreign countries, particularly 'non-western' countries.

Find a way to help funnel some of that Silicon Valley investment money over to
other countries. Whether that is your own money or other funds. Also
politically - make other countries create a good startup environment. One
thing that springs to mind is the tax treatment of startups should be special.

------
codeonfire
Just a few questions. Are you doing this because of white guilt? Do you come
from a wealthy white background? Do you/did you have a trust fund? What about
the tens of millions of dirt poor non-minorities in the country? Do you think
there should be more women and minority tech founders than the proportion of
their respective population?

------
Chos89
Not sure how to feel about this, are there any laws that prevent minorities
and women to become tech founders? Just don't discriminate people and that
should be enough. As accepting only white males into certain programs would be
considered racist, so is this IMO.

------
Tan__
I'm not a founder, but I am a minority/female developer in New York. I have a
couple of ideas for web apps, but I don't know the first thing about business.
Anyway, if I could be of any assistance feel free to let me know.
www.tanwill.nyc

Good luck to you!

~~~
andrewpierno
Awesome, thank you!

------
awareBrah
I don't think it's a worthwhile effort in the slightest. You don't see people
as individuals, rather as categories. "I'm making an impact by helping
minority/women" "I'm white" Nothing will get better by doing this. Instead,
judge each human by their unique characteristics. People don't want to be
recognized because of these attributes, but instead because they really
accomplished something worthwhile, or did something extraordinary. Not be born
with X genatalia or Y skin colour.

