Did you know that only two percent of women entrepreneurs in the U.S. make over $1M in their companies? There is a super hero that Dell is helping launch this week named “Alice,” that is going to change that stat to 98 percent!
Today at Dell World the Circular Board, a data-driven, scalable ecosystem connecting women entrepreneurs to sources of capital, mentorship, events and resources, Dell and Pivotal announced “Alice,” the world’s first artificial intelligence platform for women entrepreneurs.
Through data analytics, Alice can access resources for founders in real time, specific to their industry, stage of growth and location. As Alice populates, machine learning will allow her to predict the needs of founders to guide them to referrals, events, mentors, access to capital and ecosystems.
Dell’s commitment to the business value and social importance to women founders is why I am most proud to be the entrepreneur-in-residence at this great company. Through countless discussions with women entrepreneurs, we’ve learned that issues around access to capital, technology, networks and talent often stand in the way of their success. These four ‘pillars’ of innovation, as we call them, are where we see the most potential to change the course of their careers:
- Technology: At Dell, we believe in empowering people around the world to do what they dream, to achieve every goal imaginable, and use technology to make that happen. Women face so many hurdles when starting their own companies – but technology shouldn’t be one of them.
- Capital: Tracking down funding can be a major challenge for women entrepreneurs, whether it’s venture capital or angel funding in developed countries or having the connections to financial institutions and loans in the emerging economies.
- Networks: For many professional women, getting their foot in the door is sometimes the hardest step. Women entrepreneurs and business owners are increasingly turning to each other for help. One way we help facilitate these connections is through Dell Women’s Entrepreneurs Network ( DWEN).
- Talent: Finding the right talent to make your business successful can be a serious challenge. But by partnering with expert organizations, women entrepreneurs are better able to make logical decisions that their ventures to scale.
In the fairytale classic, Alice asked the Cheshire Cat, “Where should I go?” and he responded with, “That depends on where you want to end up.” Our goal is that Alice will provide women entrepreneurs with the resources and guidance to chart their own paths, and to not only believe in the impossible – but achieve it. Together we can change that stat today. Please tweet to #HelloAlice to tell everyone entrepreneur your best piece of advice so we can all achieve the impossible.
