Increasing the number of women entrepreneurs in the technology sector is recognised as a key challenge facing the UK’s economy. Rising to the challenge are CMI and Cambridgeshire County Council, who have joined forces and resources to organise “Opening Doors to Enterprise”, the first Women in Technology Conference on Friday, 2nd December 2005 at New Hall, University of Cambridge. Additional sponsors include the East of England Development Agency and the Bank of Scotland, Greater Cambridge Partnership, GO-East, East of England Business Link and Fujitsu.

Women are significantly less likely than men to start a business, and this inequality in innovation is holding back the economy. If women matched the number of male business start ups, there would be an additional 150,000 start-ups in the UK each year. If the UK had the same level of female entrepreneurship as in the US, the UK would gain an estimated 750,000 companies. The Women in Technology Conference will provide a much needed forum where existing and aspiring women entrepreneurs, business leaders and service providers can discuss the barriers to enterprise and identify the keys to facilitating more women-led start-ups.

Speaking at the one-day event will be some highly successful female entrepreneurs and business leaders including Sherry Coutu, Founder of ISI Emerging Markets and Interactive Investor International, and Candace Johnson, President of Europe OnLine and recently named by CNN and Time Magazine as one of the most powerful business women in Europe. The speakers will share their extensive business experience in interactive panel sessions and dynamic workshops, allowing delegates to gain invaluable insights into growing a business from idea, to incubation, to exit.

By bringing together the region’s women entrepreneurs, business leaders, venture capitalists and service providers, the organisers hope that the conference will pave the way for the establishment of a Women in Technology network for the East of England.

The idea of a network first arose when Ian Stewart, Chief Executive of Cambridgeshire County Council, was introduced to the Women’s Technology Cluster (WTC) in San Francisco while on a mission to attract US investment to the East of England. The WTC is a network of hi-tech companies, service providers and successful female entrepreneurs. Since its foundation in 1998, the WTC has helped launch over 150 female-led businesses by providing the bespoke training, mentoring and access to venture capital that aspiring entrepreneurs need.

“We hope that the Women in Technology Conference will inspire women working in the technology sector to create their own WTC right here in the East of England,” says Ian.

“Our technology base makes the East of England the logical place to establish the UK’s first WTC. We know there are ambitious, business-minded women out there with innovative ideas and business plans. This is a venture with the potential to progress into something of national significance.”

Indeed, the Women in Technology Conference has already received messages of support from the UK government.

“I believe passionately that raising the profile of women in business and encouraging more women to start businesses is absolutely essential for the economy of the UK”, says Jacqui Smith MP, Minister of State for Industry and the Regions and Deputy Minister for Women and Equality.

“If women in the UK started businesses at the same rate as men, we would have 150,000 additional start-ups each year. The Strategic Framework for Women’s Enterprise, launched by the Government nearly two years ago, recognises that we need to transform the way we provide business support to women. This requires the kind of partnership approach exemplified by the Women in Technology Conference. I value the energy and focus which the Conference will bring to the women in business agenda, and believe it will provide an invaluable resource for female-led hi-tech business in the Eastern region.”

Notes for Editors:

• The Cambridge-MIT Institute (CMI) is a pioneering partnership between two world-class institutions: the University of Cambridge in the UK and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the US. Established in July 2000, it receives funding from the UK government and industry partners to carry out education and research to enhance the competitiveness, productivity and entrepreneurship of the UK economy.
• Cambridgeshire County Council serves a population of 558,000 people, and was awarded an excellent rating by the Audit Commission in December 2004. Cambridgeshire is the fastest growing county in the UK, to which its history for innovation and technology has been a significant contributing factor. The Council’s vision is to improve and sustain the quality of life for residents and businesses in Cambridgeshire, and it recognises the contribution more women entrepreneurs will make towards achieving a robust local economy.
• East of England Development Agency (EEDA) is the driving force behind sustainable economic growth and regeneration in the East of England. Its vision is to improve the region’s economic performance and ensure the East of England remains one of the UK’s top performing regions. EEDA is one of nine regional development agencies created in 1999 to transform England’s regions through sustainable economic development and deliver sustainable economic growth.
• The Bank of Scotland offers a unique Women in Business programme, with a full time team focusing directly on the development of women's enterprise in the UK. The Bank of Scotland is committed to understanding the trends and issues affecting businesswomen today and is proactively taking positive steps to address them, through the provision of a support programme which seeks not to segregate women but to ensure that mainstream activity is appropriate and accessible for them. Following the merger of Halifax and Bank of Scotland in 2001, HBOS has become the UK’s largest mortgage and savings provider with 22 million customers and is a major player in the provision of current accounts and credit cards in the UK.
• GO-East, The Government Office for the East of England, covers Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk and Suffolk and are sponsors of the Women in Technology Conference. It brings together into a single operation the varied regional activities of a range of Government departments with the aim of making the Region a better place to live and work in. As Government's eyes and ears in the region, GO-East communicates messages and ensures the East of England has an input to the policy-making process at the centre.
• Women’s Technology Cluster in San Francisco is a community of entrepreneurs, mentors, investors and service providers. The WTC’s mission is to provide the resources, support and access to capital that allow women-led start-ups to succeed.
• Other event sponsors include the Greater Cambridge Partnership, East of England Business Link and Fujitsu.