#54: investing in black female founders with Sharon Vosmek

<p>Sharon Vosmek is the CEO of Astia and Managing Partner of the Astia Fund. Astia is a global organisation &nbsp;that works to level the investment playing field for startups that include women. Ms. Vosmek developed &nbsp;Astia’s creative, proven approach to investment – called the Astia Expert SiftTM - that eliminates bias in the &nbsp;investment screening process and contributes to the success of female entrepreneurs and their ventures. &nbsp;Well-regarded around the globe, Ms. Vosmek is known for her opinions, research and commentary on the &nbsp;importance of women leaders as integral to innovation and high-performing entrepreneurial teams. She &nbsp;has spoken at the United Nations and given lectures at numerous universities on the topic of building &nbsp;inclusive ecosystems. She is an Advisory Board Member to two venture Funds, E²JDJ Venture Fund and &nbsp;Illuminate Ventures and serves on the Boards of Ozo Innovations and Pagedip. Ms. Vosmek lives and &nbsp;works in San Francisco.</p> <p>We cover the following in this conversation:</p> <ul> <li>Investing in black female founders</li> <li>Sharon shares her journey to changing how many black female founders the Astia fund invests in</li> <li>Traditional VC firms and the need for change in the industry</li> <li>Sharon shares a message for black female founders who are yet to embark on their fundraising journey.</li> </ul> <p>****</p>