#40Forward
March 18, 2014 / Share:
Hopefully by now you have seen the news that the EC is participating in the Google for Entrepreneurs #40Forward program. If you say you haven’t, then you are lying, cause I just told you in the previous sentence.
A lot of people have asked what it is, how they get involved, and what is the EC’s involvement. This blog will outline some answers to those questions, as well as give you the breakdown of the plan the EC has for the next month.
What is #40Forward?
Google for Entrepreneurs is providing program assistance and $1,000,000 total in funding across partner organizations (meaning that the 40 groups chosen will all get some portion of the $1,000,000) that are increasing the representation of women entrepreneurs in their startup communities.
The EC is one of those groups and we have pledged to try and increase female participation in our community by 25% this year. It’s a lofty goal, but something we are dedicated to making it happen.
How Does the EC Plan to Engage More Female Entrepreneurs?
We first want to say that we certainly don’t have all the answers, so a big piece of this puzzle is YOU. We are looking for suggestions and feedback on all items we take on during this initiative. The EC has tried many different approaches in the past to engaging more female entrepreneurs. Some have worked well, some not so well. But, we live and we learn.
For the Month of March, during the #40Forward Campaign, we have broken down the media we will be creating into 3 subject categories:
1. Encouraging female participation in general entrepreneurship.
2. Encouraging female participation at the EC
3. Providing entrepreneurial resources to female entrepreneurs
We really like numbering things, so this approach made sense.
During this time we will have blog posts, social media interaction, Google Hangouts, written interviews, and many other things that we believe will help educate us all on our journey towards increasing female participation in entrepreneurship. Also included will be programs the EC is working with and developing surrounding the #40Forward funded initiatives.
How Do I Get Involved?
Throughout the rest of March, and looking out the rest of the year, there will be a great deal of opportunity to get people involved with specific parts of all programs. Just keep an eye out and let us know what you’d like to do, what you think, and what else you’d like to see.
If you have any questions surrounding this event , please feel free to contact me at jared.marquette@ec.co.