* A small subset of the startup ecosystem is implicitly/explicitly biased.
* A larger subset of the startup ecosystem recognizes that fact, and won't invest in diverse founders (all things being equal) because of the additional hurdles we have to clear.
* Everyone else knows that some people are cautious about funding diversity because some people are biased.
That first tiny percentage has the devil's own leverage.
I have also heard roughly the opposite model, namely:
1. A small subset of the startup ecosystem wants to fund diverse founders, and is willing to compromise on startup quality to do so.
2. A larger subset of the startup ecosystem recognizes that fact, and won't invest in diverse founders (all things being equal) because they are worse due to group #1 funding worse companies.
3. Everyone else knows about #1 and #2, and so are cautious about funding diversity.
I'm curious if you have considered this way of looking at the world, and know of any data that would let me conclude it was less accurate than the version you outlined above.
I'm not a native speaker. What does "devil's own leverage" mean in this context? I don't think it's an idiom. Do you mean that their behaviour is what drives everybody else's?
That can be seen as a positive thing - it's hard to make money as an investor in this ecosystem by just following the groupthink, therefore the contrarians stand to make the most money.
DelaneyM|9 years ago
* A small subset of the startup ecosystem is implicitly/explicitly biased.
* A larger subset of the startup ecosystem recognizes that fact, and won't invest in diverse founders (all things being equal) because of the additional hurdles we have to clear.
* Everyone else knows that some people are cautious about funding diversity because some people are biased.
That first tiny percentage has the devil's own leverage.
dlss|9 years ago
1. A small subset of the startup ecosystem wants to fund diverse founders, and is willing to compromise on startup quality to do so.
2. A larger subset of the startup ecosystem recognizes that fact, and won't invest in diverse founders (all things being equal) because they are worse due to group #1 funding worse companies.
3. Everyone else knows about #1 and #2, and so are cautious about funding diversity.
I'm curious if you have considered this way of looking at the world, and know of any data that would let me conclude it was less accurate than the version you outlined above.
dandellion|9 years ago
prostoalex|9 years ago