The case in summary Frida Vonstad, manager of The Coring Company, was recently named the world’s second best female entrepreneur. She feels that there is a long way to go for women in the entrepreneurial world, especially when it comes to gaining the trust of investors and buyers. Only two out of ten who started a limited company in 2022 were women, according to Statistics Norway. One of the biggest obstacles female entrepreneurs face is funding. Vonstad herself has experienced being overlooked by male investors. Isabelle Ringnes, entrepreneur and communications expert, points out that women find it more difficult to access capital than men. Monica Aasen, head of the Girls and technology project at NHO, believes the solution is to recruit young girls into technology subjects already from school age. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAi. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. – We are so incredibly grateful, says Frida Vonstad from Mo i Rana. She is not just anyone in Gründer-Norway. Volstad has been named one of Norway’s leading tech women, received a job offer from NASA and solved an Achilles’ heel in the mining industry. Recently, the company she leads also made it big in the She Loves Tech competition held in Singapore. Vonstad’s company – The Coring Company, which develops software and hardware for mines and contractors – finished in second place among around 14,000 other entrepreneurial companies. – Being voted the world’s second best start-up from little Northern Norway is really big for us, says Vonstad. But the road to prices and sought-after job offers has been demanding. Especially as a woman. Vonstad is general manager of The Coring Company. This is a start-up company that works with both hardware and software for mining and contractors. Photo: The Coring Company – Hush me – There is still a way to go to support young female entrepreneurs, says Vonstad. Of all those who started a limited company in 2022, only two out of ten were women, figures from Statistics Norway show. One of the biggest hurdles winners in start-ups face is funding. As an entrepreneur, you depend on getting financial support for your projects, and then you usually need an investor. – Among other things, I met an investor who sneered at me during a meeting, and rather asked the men to explain the technology, says Vonstad. Then she struggled to keep the smile that she depended on to be able to get money for the project. – It was very challenging to stay calm and in a good mood, says Vonstad. She was left with a feeling of being a spectator in a meeting where she was supposed to be the protagonist. – Events like this show what attitudes exist in the industry, she says, and receives support from Isabelle Ringnes 0.1 per cent of the capital goes to women Isabelle Ringnes is the founder. She works full-time with communication and influence work within technology and diversity. Photo: Kristoffer Myhre – To be successful as an entrepreneur, in most cases you have to have access to capital, and studies show that it is more difficult for women than for men, says Ringnes. A study shows how investors rated a video presentation of a real start-up company. – The results showed that 68 per cent of the investors who heard the pitch from a man would invest, while only 32 per cent would invest when the same pitch was presented by a woman, says Ringnes. – That says something about how difficult it is for female entrepreneurs to get through the eye of the needle. Kristoffer Myhre According to Ringnes, women also take longer to get capital, and that means lost time for the business’s development. – They also get less access to the amount they request. And part of that imbalance is probably due to the fact that the investor market is heavily male-dominated, she says. – Why is it so important that we get more women in the technology world? – We will have a more inclusive world if we get more women involved in the technology industry, also because technology is hugely important in all sectors. No one is exempt from the influence of technology. – The girls are lagging behind Monica Aasen believes a solution to this is to get hold of young girls from school age onwards. Monica Aasen believes that Girls and Technology is part of the solution to more gender balance in the technology industry. Photo: NHO / Moment Studio – When we look at the application numbers for technology, we see that the girls are lagging behind. Especially in heavy technical subjects such as space physics, civil engineering, maths and the traditional artisan subjects. There is one in five women. Aasen leads the project Girls and technology at NHO. It is a national recruitment project funded by the state, which aims to contribute to more women in the technology industry. They focus on girls of secondary school and upper secondary age. That is, before they possibly make an educational choice. – We want to influence the opportunity space that we see they have because we see that gender stereotypes and traditional choices are still made. – We think this is because there is not enough knowledge out there about what technology education and work are. Need more competitions Vonstad himself has a technological background with a doctorate in geotechnical engineering from Oxford University and University College London. She believes that competitions such as She Loves tech can contribute positively to more women becoming entrepreneurs. – We can relate to each other’s problems and challenges, says Vonstad. Here is Frida Vonstad with the women who participated in the conference and competition She Loves Tech. Photo: The Coring Company – I believe that establishing global communities, where we can lean on and learn from both each other and the mentors and supporters who participate, gives us a significantly greater chance of positive attention and support from investors. She believes the solution is to encourage more women. – We must to a greater extent encourage women to choose education and careers within technology and leadership in Norway.
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Difficult for female entrepreneurs to get hold of capital: – There is still a way to go – news Nordland
