Ingrid Vanderveldt encourages women’s entrepreneurship

Founder of project Empowering a Billion Women by 2020 visited PUCRS and Tecnopuc

Ingrid Vanderveldt is the founder and CEO of the Empowering a Billion Women (EBW) by 2020 movement and served as the first Entrepreneur-in-Residence for Dell, as she oversaw entrepreneurship initiatives around the globe. In her visit to Brazil, she paid a visit to Tecnopuc and delivered a lecture on women, entrepreneurship and the future of innovation.

Ingrid who is now a successful entrepreneur and investor, shared the most difficult moments of her professional life with the public and stressed to all the women in the audience that failure is part of the road to success. “If you don’t fail doing things that don’t work as you try to find out what works, you’re probably not innovating enough. Investors like persistent people, who try again and move on.”

Her visit to PUCRS has been promoted by the Consulate of the USA in Porto Alegre. The US Consul Mrs Julia Harlan, the Head of the Press, Education and Culture Division, Mr John Jacobs and the Consulate’s Public Relations, Mrs Kerley Tolpolar joined Ingrid in her visit.

Failure is part of the road to success

As she targeted an audience comprising mostly of women, Ingrid began telling the story of her life. “While I was setting up my third business, certain that I would find investors, I invested all the money that I had made in my other companies until I realized that I had no more money to keep it open. I lost everything I had conquered, even the fully furnished house I had bought. I lived in my car with my cat and the few clothes I had saved. It was both the darkest and the most extraordinary moment of my life”, said she.

Ingrid highlighted the importance of having a great mentor and a good support system. “If you don’t have confidence and don’t believe in yourself, it is helpful to have someone who knows you telling you what needs to be done and that you can make it. A friend of mine who is now working for me was very important for me back then. She saw me in my car and told me to move in with her until I bounce back. She also told me to pretend everything was alright and that nobody needed to know. For two weeks, all I wanted was to drink wine and sleep. So, I forced myself out of bed, got myself together and negotiated contracts”, said she.

How to make the impossible possible

An important factor if you want to be successful in life is to create a plan, set deadlines and meet them. “I finally got my first contract, then the second, the third and suddenly I was back on track. It took me a while, but I made it.” In this tone, Ingrid spoke about how to make the impossible possible in the business world.

Intent on getting a billion women all over the world to have a cell phone to get access to technology and, consequently, provide empowerment, she turned to Dell. “When you have 15 minutes to sell your great idea, you need to have specific numbers that show how successful your business will be and that get investors to say yes. Be ready for an investor’s proposal and to say yes”, warned she.

Ingrid stresses the importance of understanding what is important for investors, the needs of the company and its goals. “What can you do to put forward the idea that you love? Think about how innovation can help a company, and an investor reach their goals”, suggests he.

Minther

EBW builds technological innovations geared towards education, mentorship, community and partnerships in the provision of services for women. One of the tool is the newly-launched Minther, a network of financial resources for entrepreneurial women, to help them focus on their business. “74% of small and medium-sized companies fail due to the lack of financial training”, claimed Ingrid. The platform generates reports that tell us how to optimize the financial aspect of the business and to bring companies, investors and opportunities together.

Interview

What are the greatest challenges women have to face as entrepreneurs?

There are three things women fight against: the first of things is the lack of confidence. The second is the unavailability of mentors – 80% of women prefer to have another woman as a mentor, but there aren’t many women who could do it. The third is the poor access to opportunities and money. At EBW we’ve been working to solve these problems: to build confidence with training and mentorship; to have great mentors that teach with the aid of technology; and the support of the platform Minther to give access to opportunities and money.

In addition to formal training, what other things can help them overcome these barriers?

There are many women in the USA who, for instance, would love to work with Brazilian women and learn from them with the support of a mentor. It would be beneficial for both Brazilian and US women. When we establish our relations, new market opportunities arise. So, I would suggest women to go online and get connected. Come to EBW 2020! We have online communities where women interact with one another.

How can women entrepreneurs from Brazil make a global collaboration?

One of the reasons why the US consulate brought me here was to give opportunities for Brazilian women and see how we can work together. We have offices all over the world and technology has made it possible. When women realize the strategies they can use at the international level, this will teach them how to grow.

How different are men and women in terms of entrepreneurship?

They are totally different. If men see an opportunity that will improve their lives, out of which they will make more money, they will go for it. Women, on the other hand, will make sure that everything is alright, that they are around the right people and that they know what they are doing. Though it might be safer, they may feel discouraged from their own business because they don’t take their chances. And all I have to say is: Don’t give up! Go on! Most of the time, men don’t know what they are doing: they just don’t talk about it.

What is the role of women in the future of innovation?

Not only are women those who are leading the future innovations but they are the innovation of the future. They try new things for the first time. Do you want to see innovation? Check out what women are doing.

How important is it for universities to have startup development agencies, such as Raiar at PUCRS?

This is a safe environment to start trying your ideas. You can do it in a setting that offers mentoring services and opportunities to get access to resources. It is a great way to try out new ideas and grow higher.