A study by Terem Technologies has found that a lack of STEM training is not holding back Australian female tech entrepreneurs.
Only 19 per cent of entrepreneurs surveyed had a STEM background, and of these, only 4 per cent had a computer science background. Instead, 41 per cent had a degree in business, commerce or economics.
The entrepreneurs surveyed were filling these gaps in their own expertise by outsourcing to developers (50 per cent), teaming up with a tech-founder (32 per cent) employing tech talent (14 per cent), with 64 per cent overall managing teams to deliver on the technical execution of their startup.
The picture is not all rosy though, with a range of hurdles preventing women from embarking on a tech startup.
Thirty-four per cent named a perceived lack of expertise, 30 per cent cited a lack of confidence, and 27 per cent pointed to a lack of supportive networks. Twenty-seven per cent also believe attitudes to risk are stopping female entrepreneurs from taking the plunge, while 25 per cent highlighted life choices and 14 per cent pointed to family responsibility.
Scott Middleton, CEO, Terem Technologies, said the results paint a very mixed picture for women entering the tech startup space.
“It is encouraging to see that you don’t need STEM to lead and create businesses in the technology sector. It’s also exciting to think that we don’t need to wait for education policy to increase the number of women studying maths and science to see a significant boost in the number of female tech entrepreneurs,” Middleton said.
