Posted on September 26, 2014
From Silicon Valley to our nation’s capital in Washington, DC, the gender imbalance in technology and entrepreneurship is a serious issue. The media was abuzz this summer over the diversity statistics of nearly every major technology company which reconfirmed this fact. Recently named White House CTO and former Google executive Megan Smith called attention to it this month in a Washington Post blog post with Mary Grove. With women representing half of the global population, we have an important role to play in an industry that is constantly reshaping how we experience the world around us. The natural question coming out of these discussions is: what can we actually do to change the trend?
Booz Allen Hamilton, along with partner 1776, is collaborating with Startup Weekend DC for its first-ever Women’s Edition on October 3-5 at 1776 and General Assembly. Traditionally, most entrepreneurship events, including Startup Weekend, see more men participate than women. This special Women’s Edition of Startup Weekend DC aims to balance the ratio by attracting and promoting women in technology and entrepreneurship. Women and men alike will gain valuable, hands-on experience founding startups and launching successful ventures. Collaborating in teams, participants will experience what it is like to transform an idea into a marketable and scalable prototype through 54 hours of business model design, customer validation, product development, and pitching.
Committed to creating an environment where talented women in technology can build exceptional careers, Booz Allen is proud to join 1776 and Startup Weekend DC to empower the next generation of women leaders. Throughout the weekend, Booz Allen coaches will help the startup teams refine their ideas and prepare for the final pitches with participation from Karen Dahut, executive vice president of the firm’s Strategic Innovation Group (SIG), Julie McPherson, vice president of emerging technology, and Aimee George-Leary, vice president in the SIG.
Stay tuned for more updates on this exciting event.
