While the impediments to greater participation of women in economic growth have been a topic of intense discussion the world over, BYJU’s co-founder Divya Gokulnath feels entrepreneurship and leadership are gender-neutral. The only way one can build a diverse and equal workforce is by simply focusing on creating leaders — not women or men leaders.
“For us at BYJU’S, diversity is inextricably related to our innovation strategy. We strongly believe that diverse teams have higher growth and pace of innovation. If a company has a good representation of women since inception and in strong leadership positions, the balance is usually in place throughout the organisation. This has been a result of a conscious effort to hire without bias,” said Gokulnath, in an interview for DealStreetAsia’s inaugural report – Female Founders in India 2021 – on the gender funding gap in India.
The report, which includes interviews with other female founders as well, focuses on fundraising by women-led startups in 2021. Founders that DealStreetAsia spoke to not only noted the strides made in narrowing the gender-funding gap in India but also pointed out obstacles such as the decreasing participation of women in the labour force, especially in the wake of the pandemic, and systemic hurdles.
On the role of women as entrepreneurs, Gokulnath said things have been steadily improving, with key stakeholders such as policymakers and investors making room for women-led and owned businesses. Besides, the ongoing, active efforts to maintain boardroom equality across industries have created new opportunities for women entrepreneurs.
BYJU’s was co-founded in 2011 by husband-wife duo Byju Raveendran and Divya Gokulnath. The startup was reportedly valued at $22 billion after raising $800 million in a larger round in March this year.
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