德勤：2023年风险投资人力资本调查 VC Human Capital Survey

VCHuman

CapitalSurvey

Fourthedition|April2023

Contents

Executivesummary3

WhyDEImattersfortheVCindustry8

Thediversitydividend9

BarrierstoDEIprogress11

Genderdiversity12

Racialdiversity16

Ethnicdiversity23

OtherkeycharacteristicsoftheVCworkforce27

TalentmanagementandDEIpractices29

Takeaction:HowVCfirmscanpromoteDEI38

Surveymethodology41

Appendix43

Endnotes51

Executivesummary

ThisreportincludesthekeyresultsofthefourtheditionofanongoingsurveyseriesconductedbyVentureForward,theNationalVenture

CapitalAssociation(NVCA),andDeloitte&ToucheLLP(Deloitte)to

assessthestateofdiversity,equity,andinclusion(DEI)intheventurecapital(VC)industry.TheVCHumanCapitalSurveyprovidesdataon

theworkforcedemographicsandfirm-levelDEIpracticesatUnited

StatesVCfirms.Thesurveywasfirstconductedin2016,creatinganindustrybenchmark,withsubsequentsurveysconductedin2018and2020.Thelatestsurvey,thefourthedition,wasconductedin2022.

ResultsfromthelatestsurveyshowtheVCindustryhasmadesignificantbutsomewhatinconsistentprogressinincreasing

itsgender,racial,andethnicdiversitysince2016.Women’s

representationinbothinvestmentandleadershippositionshas

grownsteadily,whileBlackandHispanicemployees’representationhasseensmallerthoughacceleratedincreasessincethelast

survey.Diversitygainshavebeenunevenacrossdifferenttypesoffirms,andthereareareaswheremoreleadershipandactioncanaccelerateprogress.

Inadditiontotheirbroadersocialresponsibility,surveyedVCfirmsarerecognizingthatmorediverse,equitable,andinclusiveteamsoutperform,fuelinnovativeideas(thatmayhavepreviouslybeen

overlooked),andcreatevalue.Researchconsistentlyshowsthat

diverseteamshavebroadernetworksandaremoreeffectiveat

decision-making.ManyVCfirmsarereflectingonsystemicbarriers

forwomen,peopleofcolor,andothermarginalizedcommunities,andareseekingtoaddressthemthroughvariousinternalandexternal

approaches.MorefirmsnowhaveadesignatedstaffpersonorteamresponsibleformanagingDEIthanbefore,andmoresaythatthey

requestDEIdetailsfromtheirportfoliocompanies.

WhileVCfirmscontinuetoexpandDEI,thelatestsurveyalso

identifiesspecificareaswhereprogresshasstalled.Thisreport

suggestsstepsthatfirmscouldadopttopotentiallyaccelerate

progressintheindustry.VCfirmsfaceuniquechallengesinincreasingdiversitysincetheytendtobesmallteams,withamediansizeof

sevenemployeesamongfirmsparticipatinginthelatestsurvey.In

addition,turnoverislow,withfirmsreportingturnoverofonly6%

amongseniorinvestmentpositionsand20%amongjuniorinvestmentpositionsintheyearendingJune30,2022.

Despitechallenges,therehasbeenprogress,andthissurveyseries

hasidentifiedencouragingdatathatmayleadtofurtherchangesovertime.Diversityisincreasingamongjunior-levelpositions,whichfirmsoftendrawfromtofillmoreseniorroles.

3

Executivesummary

Morefirmsareestablishingdiversityand/orinclusionstrategies,assigningclearresponsibilityfor

promotingDEI,usingawiderrangeofexternalsourceswhenrecruitingforopenpositions,andrequestingDEIinformationfromportfoliocompanies.ManyfirmsareestablishingspecificDEIgoalsandconductingemployeesurveystoassessinclusionwithafocusonretentionandpromotion.Furthermore,limited

partners(LPs),whocontrolwhereandhowmuchcapitalisallocatedtoventurefunds,areincreasinglyrequestingDEIdatafromVCfirms.

Thelatestsurveyisalsotimelyinthatitwasthefirstintheseriesconductedsincethesummerof2020,

whensocialjusticeandracialequitywereafocusforthecountryandtheVCindustryafterthemurder

ofGeorgeFloyd.Sincethen,manyVCfirmshavemadepubliccommitmentstoprioritizeandadvance

DEI.Twoyearslater,the2022surveyassessedtheearlyresultsofthoseefforts,withthepercentageandabsolutenumbersofBlackandHispanicinvestmentpartnersincreasingcomparedtotheprevioussurvey.Itisimportanttonotethatitmaybetoosoonfortheoutcomesofthosecommitmentstofullyreflectin

industrydata.Thisislargelyduetothelong-termcycleofVC,structuralchallengesfacingtheindustry,andsystemicbarriersforDEIprogress(furtherdiscussedlaterinthisreport).

2020alsomarkedNVCA’spubliclaunchofitssupportingorganizationVentureForward,a501(c)(3)

nonprofitwithamissiontoincreasetherepresentationofwomen,peopleofcolor,andothermarginalizedcommunitiesinVCinvestmentdecision-makingroles.VentureForwardfocusesonexpanding

opportunitiesforpeopleofallbackgroundstoaccess,participate,andsucceedinVC,inadditiontohelpingfirmsimplementmeaningfulDEIstrategies.Thenonprofitisfundedbymorethan150VCinvestors,firms,andmajorcorporatesponsors,includingDeloitte.ThankstoVentureForward’sefforts,thereisagrowingunderstandingoftheimportanceofintersectionalapproachestoDEI.

AbouttheVCHumanCapitalSurvey

TheVCHumanCapitalSurveyprovides

informationthatallowsfirmstobenchmarkthemselvesagainstindustrypractices

andidentifyinnovativeapproachesto

promoteDEI.

ThefourtheditionofthesurveycollectedinformationasofJune30,2022,from315VCfirmsontheirtalentmanagement

practicesandthedemographicsof

approximately5,700employees.Combined,theyrepresentatotalof$594.5billionin

assetsundermanagement.

Althoughthereareotherassessmentsof

DEIintheVCindustry,thissurveyseries

takesauniqueapproach.ItgathersdiversitydataconfidentiallyfromVCfirmsofalltypesandsizes,examinesvariousdemographic

groupsacrossallpositions,andassessesfirmtalentmanagementstrategies,includingDEIpracticesandgoals.Thesurveyisconductedeverytwoyearssothatprogresscanbe

trackedovertime.Moredetailsonthesurveyandmethodologyareavailableon

page4

1.

Executivesummary

WhyDEImatters

fortheVCindustry

Thediversitydividend

BarrierstoDEIprogress

Genderdiversity

Racialdiversity

Ethnicdiversity

Otherkeycharacteristics

oftheVCworkforce

Talentmanagement

andDEIpractices

Takeaction:HowVC

firmscanpromoteDEI

4

Executivesummary

Keyfindings

STEADYPROGRESSINFEMALEREPRESENTATION.Female

employeescomprised26%ofinvestmentprofessionalsin2022

(upfrom23%in2020,21%in2018,and15%in2016)and19%of

investmentpartners(comparedto16%in2020,14%in2018,and

11%in2016).Theproportionofwomeninjunior-levelinvestmentpositions,fromwhichfirmsoftenfillmoreseniorroles,alsogrewin2022.Blackfemaleemployeescomprised2%ofinvestment

professionalsin2022(comparedto1%in2020and2018)and1%

ofinvestmentpartnersin2022(upfrom0.25%in2020butthe

sameasin2018).FemaleHispanicemployeesaccountedfor2%ofinvestmentprofessionalsin2022(anincreasefrom1%in2020and2018)and2%ofinvestmentpartners(comparedto1%inboth2020and2018).Femalerepresentationamonginvestmentprofessionalswithseniordecision-makingresponsibilitiesin2022sawlittleornogainsfrom2020.

UNEVENPROGRESSINBLACKREPRESENTATION.Blackemployeesaccountedfor5%ofinvestmentprofessionals(anincreasefrom4%in2020and3%in2018)and4%ofinvestmentpartners(upfrom3%in2020and2018).Inabsolutenumbersinthesurveysamples,thenumberofBlackinvestmentprofessionalsandthenumberofBlackinvestmentpartnersalsoincreased.Blackrepresentationamong

junior-levelinvestmentpositionsremainedflatat7%(upfrom5%in2018).Blackemployeessawgainsamonginvestmentprofessionalswithseniordecision-makingresponsibilities.

GROWTHOFASIAN/PACIFICISLANDERREPRESENTATION.

RepresentationofAsian/PacificIslanderemployeeswas22%among

investmentpositionsin2022(upfrom19%in2020and17%in2018)

and18%amonginvestmentpartners(anincreasefrom15%in2020

and2018).Amongjunior-levelinvestmentprofessionals,Asian/Pacific

Islanderemployeescomprised26%ofthesepositions(similarto

25%in2020butupfrom20%in2018).In2022,Asian/PacificIslander

investmentprofessionalssawsomeincreasesinseniordecision-

makingresponsibilitiescomparedto2020.

REPRESENTATIONOFWHITEEMPLOYEESDECREASESINSEVERAL

AREAS.Whiteemployeescomprised69%ofinvestmentpositions

in2022(downfrom72%in2020and76%in2018)and75%of

investmentpartners(adecreasefrom78%in2020and80%in

2018).Therepresentationofwhiteemployeesamongjunior-level

investmentprofessionalsremainedthesamein2022(61%)asin2020

butwaslowerthanin2018(78%).

SOMEIMPROVEMENTINHISPANICREPRESENTATION.Hispanic

employeescomprised6%ofinvestmentpositionsin2022(upfrom

4%in2020and5%in2018)and5%ofinvestmentpartnerpositions

(anincreasefrom4%in2020and3%in2018).Hispanicrepresentation

amongjunior-levelinvestmentprofessionalsalsoincreasedfrom4%

in2020and2018to5%in2022.Hispanicinvestmentprofessionals

alsosawgainsinseniordecision-makingresponsibilitiesin2022

comparedto2020.

Executivesummary

WhyDEImatters

fortheVCindustry

Thediversitydividend

BarrierstoDEIprogress

Genderdiversity

Racialdiversity

Ethnicdiversity

Otherkeycharacteristics

oftheVCworkforce

Talentmanagement

andDEIpractices

Takeaction:HowVC

firmscanpromoteDEI

5

Executivesummary

MOREFIRMSHAVEASSIGNEDRESPONSIBILITYFORDEI.In2022,60%offirmssaidthattheyeitherhaveastaffpersonorateam

responsibleforDEIinitiatives(anincreasefrom55%in2020,34%in2018,and16%in2016).

MOREFIRMSHAVEIMPLEMENTEDDIVERSITYANDINCLUSIONSTRATEGIES.Inthelatestsurvey,46%offirmsreportedhavingadiversitystrategy(upfrom44%in2020,35%in2018,and15%in2016),and44%saidtheyhadaninclusionstrategy(upfrom41%in2020,31%in2018,and17%in2016).

DIVERSITYANDINCLUSIONSTRATEGIESAREASSOCIATEDWITH

GREATERGENDERDIVERSITY.Firmsthatreportedhavingadiversitystrategyoraninclusionstrategy(orboth)hadagreaterpercentageoffemaleemployeesamongtheirinvestmentprofessionalsthanfirmsthathadneitherstrategy(28%vs.23%),aswellasamongtheirjunior-levelinvestmentprofessionals(37%vs.31%)andtheirinvestment

partners(20%vs.17%).Thisisinlinewithprevioussurveyeditionsthathadsimilarfindings.

MOSTFIRMSHAVEESTABLISHEDORPLANTOESTABLISHSPECIFICDEIGOALS.Thisnewquestionaddedtothe2022surveyfoundthat40%offirmshadestablishedspecificDEIgoals,whileanadditional

23%saidthattheyplantoimplementsuchgoalswithinthenext

sixmonths.AmongfirmsthathadsetspecificDEIgoals,93%had

establishedthemforfirminvestmentstaff,67%fornon-investmentstaff,and67%forportfoliocompanies.

MOREFIRMSARECONDUCTINGINCLUSIONSURVEYS.Inclusion

relatestohowemployeesexperiencetheworkenvironmentand

whethertheyfeeltheyareacceptedandvalued.In2022,32%offirms

saidtheyconductemployeesurveystoassessinclusion(anincrease

from26%in2020).

MOREFIRMSAREFOCUSINGONDEIATPORTFOLIOCOMPANIES.

In2022,38%offirmssaidtheyrequestedDEIdetailsfromtheir

portfoliocompanies(anincreasefrom30%in2020and19%in2018).

INTERESTINDEIAMONGLPSISGROWING.In2022,47%offirms

saidthatlimitedpartnersrequestedtheirDEIdetailswithinthelast12

months(anincreasefrom41%in2020and36%in2018).

Notes:

“Investmentpartners”aredefinedasemployeeswiththetitlesofmanaginggeneralpartner,managingpartner,generalpartner,foundingpartner,ormanagingdirectororwerepartnerswhoweredesignatedassenior-level

employees;andasinvestmentprofessionalswithseniordecision-makingresponsibilities.

Investorswith“seniordecision-makingresponsibilities”includeinvestment

professionalswhooriginatedeals,representthefirmonportfoliocompany

boards,areinvestmentcommitteemembers,orareownersinthemanagementcompany.Thisdataisavailablestartingwiththe2020survey.

Raceandethnicitydatafor2016arenotincludedinthereportbecausethe

relatedsurveyquestionshadadifferentformatinthe2016surveyandarenotcomparabletothosein2018,2020,and2022.

“Peopleofcolor”isdefinedasAsianAmerican/PacificIslanders,Blackand

AfricanAmerican,NativeAmericanorAmericanIndian,andHispanicorLatinoincludingpeopleofwhitedescentwhoidentifyasHispanicorLatino.

Executivesummary

WhyDEImatters

fortheVCindustry

Thediversitydividend

BarrierstoDEIprogress

Genderdiversity

Racialdiversity

Ethnicdiversity

Otherkeycharacteristics

oftheVCworkforce

Talentmanagement

andDEIpractices

Takeaction:HowVC

firmscanpromoteDEI

6

Executivesummary

Diversity,equity,andinclusion:whatarethedifferences?

Diversitycanbedescribedastherepresentation,inagroup,ofvariousfacetsofidentity,including(butnot

limitedto)race,ethnicity,nationality,genderidentity,LGBTQ+status,socioeconomicstatus,ability,religion,

andage.Inanorganization,diversityoftenreferstothedegreetowhichspecificgroupsarerepresentedintheworkforceandleadership.Intersectionaldiversityconsiderswaysinwhichdifferentaspectsofsocialidentity(suchasrace,gender,sexuality,class,maritalstatus,ability,andage)overlapandintersectinwaysthatshapeaperson’sday-to-dayexperiencesintheworldandworkplace.However,morefirmsnowrecognizethatsimplyhavingadiverseworkforceisinsufficient.Theyarebroadeningtheirhorizonsbeyondanarrowfocuson

diversityandinclusiontoconsiderequity.DiversityisonlyonecomponentofDEI.Althoughincreasingdiversityisimportant,firmsshouldalsofocusonpromotingequityandinclusion.

Equityisoftenconfusedwithequality.Equalityiswhenallpeoplearetreatedidentically,withoutconsiderationforhistoricalandsystemicbarriersandprivileges.Equityistheoutcomeofdiversity,inclusion,andanti-

oppressionwhereinallpeoplehavefairaccess,opportunity,resources,andpowertothrive,withconsiderationforandeliminationofhistoricalandsystemicbarriersandprivilegesthatcauseoppression.Equityaimstogeteveryonebeyondthosesystemicbarrierstothesamestartingplace.EquityalsohasadistinctfinancialimpactwhenappliedwithintheVCecosystemgiventheindustry’srole—andtheassociatedinvestmentpartner

economicsthatresult—withfundingthenextgenerationofpromisingyoungstartups.Therefore,theindustrycanconsiderexaminingandchangingthedesignofsystemsandprocessesthatdeterminewhoholdsthe

poweroffinancialequity.Thisoftenmeansrethinkinginternaltalentpracticesandexternalnetworks.

Inclusioncanbedescribedastheactionstakentounderstand,embrace,andleveragetheunique

strengthsandfacetsofidentityforallindividualstofeelwelcomed,valued,andsupported.Itgoesbeyondrepresentation.Inourstudy,employeediversityisusedtoreferencegender,raceandethnicity,age,levelofeducation,careerlevel,maritalstatus,veteranstatus,disabilitystatus,anddependentcareresponsibilities.Whetheracompanyisinclusiveoftendependsonitscultureandthebehaviorofitsleaders,inadditiontospecificpoliciesandprograms.

Executivesummary

WhyDEImatters

fortheVCindustry

Thediversitydividend

BarrierstoDEIprogress

Genderdiversity

Racialdiversity

Ethnicdiversity

Otherkeycharacteristics

oftheVCworkforce

Talentmanagement

andDEIpractices

Takeaction:HowVC

firmscanpromoteDEI

7

WhyDEImattersfor

theVCindustry

TheVCindustryplaysacriticalroleinidentifyingandfundinginnovativestartupsthatcreate

jobsandeconomicvalueand,intheprocess,revolutionizepeople’spersonalandprofessional

livesforthebetter.

Despiteitsenormouscontributions,thoseopportunitiesandbenefitshavenotbeen

experiencedequally.TheVCindustrytodayrecognizesthatwomen,peopleofcolor,andother

underrepresentedgroupshavebeenexcludedfromequalopportunitiestomanageventure

fundsorholdinvestmentdecision-makingpositions.

NotonlyhavehistoricallyunderrepresentedcandidatesbeenoverlookedbyVCfirmswhen

recruitingandpromotingtalent,butalsostartupsledbyunderrepresentedfoundersface

outsizedchallengesinsecuringVCinvestment(eventhoughtheyhavebeenfoundtoachieve

betterperformance).In2021,VC-backedstartupsraisedmorethan$345billioninVCfunding,

1

yetonly2.4%wasinvestedinstartupsledbyfemalefounders,1.3%inBlackfounders,and2.1%

inHispanicfounders.

2

Astartupecosystemwithinvestorsandinnovatorsthatbetterreflectthedemographicsofthe

countryhasthepotentialtounlockopportunitiesforevengreatersuccess,wealthdistribution,

andeconomicvalue.

8

Thediversitydividend

Amorediverse,equitable,andinclusiveecosystemcanhelptheinnovationeconomymaximizeitsimpact.Differentpointsof

view,networks,andexperiencesbringsolutionstoproblemsand

opportunitiesthathavebeenoverlooked.VCfirmsarestartingto

recognizethatthelackofdiversityamongtheirworkforceisabarriertomakingsuccessfulinvestmentsandachievinghigherreturns.

VariousstudieshaveshownthatdiverseVCfirmsfundmorediversefoundingteamsandoutperform.

Onestudyfoundthatraciallyandethnicallydiverseteamshad

successrates5.8%higherthanthoseofhomogeneousteams.

3

VCfirmsthatincreasedtheirproportionoffemalepartnersby10%

sawtheiroverallfundreturnsincreaseby1.5%eachyearandtheirprofitableexitsincreaseby9.7%.

4

Onefactorinthesuccessofdiverseinvestingteamsmaybethattheyaremorelikelytoinvestinunderrepresentedfounders.Forexample,inonestudy,femaleVCpartnersweretwiceaslikelyastheirmale

colleaguestoinvestinfemalefoundingteamsattheearlystages.AnotherstudyfoundthatBlackinvestorsaremorelikelytoback

femalefoundersandHispanicfounders.

5

Homophily,orthenaturaltendencytogravitatetowardpeoplefromthesamedemographicgrouporsimilarbackgrounds,canplayarolewhenmakingan

investmentorhiringdecision.Diverseinvestingteamscanmitigate

biasesandovercomeblindspotswhensourcingdealsandinvesting,particularlyinunderrepresentedfounders.

Althoughdiversefoundingteamsoftenstruggletosecurefunding,theyhavebeenfoundtogeneratemorevaluethanhomogenous

teams.Inonestudy,raciallyandethnicallydiversefoundingteamsgenerated30%highermultiplesoninvestedcapitaloninitialpublicofferings(IPOs)andacquisitionsthanhomogenousfoundingteams.Incomparison,diverseC-levelgroupshad64%highermultiples.

6

Asfirmstakestepstocreateamorediverseworkforce,especiallyininvestmentdecision-makingpositions,theycanunlocknewnetworksofrobusttalentpoolstohireandinvestinthatcanhavetrickle-downeffectstogeneratesuchconcretebusinessbenefits.ADeloittestudyofgenderdiversityintheleadershipoffinancialservicesfirmsfoundthatthenumberofwomeninseniorleadershiprolesincreased

threefoldforeachadditionalwomanaddedtotheC-suite

.7

ButincreasingtherepresentationofmarginalizedgroupsintheVCworkforceandamongleadershipisonlyoneelementinadvancingDEI.VCfirmscanensurethattheworkplaceenvironmentistrulyequitableandinclusive,whereallemployeeshaveaccessand

opportunity,canbethemselves,arevaluedfortheirwork,andarerewardedfairlyfortheircontributiontothefirm’ssuccess.

9

Thediversitydividend

InaDeloittesurveyofhumanresource(HR)managersworldwideacrossmultipleindustries,79%saidthatfosteringasenseof

belongingintheworkforcewasimportanttotheirorganization’s

success,and93%agreedthatasenseofbelongingdrivesimprovedorganizationalperformance.

8

However,manyfirmshavestruggledtocreatesuchinclusive

workplaceenvironments.Alltoooften,racialandethnicminority

employeesfeelthattheyhaveto“cover”whileatwork,i.e.,changetheirappearanceorbehaviortobeaccepted.ADeloittestudyacrossmultipleindustriesintheUSfoundthat79%ofBlackand63%of

Hispanicemployeesreportedcoveringwhileatwork.

9

Researchhasfoundthatwhetheraworkplaceisinclusiveconstitutesanessentialfactorformostemployeeswhenchoosingacompanytoworkforordecidingwhethertoremainattheircurrentemployer.

10

Providinganinclusiveworkplaceisasignificantfactorwhencompetingformillennialtalent,whonowconstitute55%oftheVCworkforce.

DEIalsoremainsanareaoffocusforLPs.LPinterestin

environmental,social,andgovernance(ESG)strategiesisbecomingmorecommon,drivenpartlybyregulatoryfactors,theirinstitutions’strategy/stakeholders,ortheoutperformanceofdiverseteamsasseeninvariousresearch.Inthelatestsurvey,47%ofVCfirmssaid

thatLPshadrequestedtheirDEIdetailswithinthelast12months,upfrom41%in2020and36%in2018.

VCfirmshaveaclearmoralandbusinessimperativetoexpandtheirnetworksbyhiringtalentedprofessionalsfromgroupsthatare

underrepresentedintheindustry,builddiverseteamsofinvestmentdecision-makers,andprovideaninclusiveandsupportivecultureinwhichtalentcanthriveandsucceed;inturngeneratingvalueforthefirmanditsLPs.

Executivesummary

WhyDEImatters

fortheVCindustry

Thediversity

dividend

BarrierstoDEIprogress

Genderdiversity

Racialdiversity

Ethnicdiversity

Otherkeycharacteristics

oftheVCworkforce

Talentmanagement

andDEIpractices

Takeaction:HowVC

firmscanpromoteDEI

10

BarrierstoDEIprogress

VCfirmstendtobesmall(withamediansizeofsevenemployeesandanaverageof20inthe2022survey),andturnoverislowinsenior

investmentpositions(6%inthelatestsurvey).Bothfactorschallengefirmsseekingtodiversifytheirworkforce.

Whenfillingopenpositions,79%ofrespondentssaidthey

typicallyrelyonpersonalnetworks,whichtendtobehomogenousandcanleadtotheexclusionofqualifiedprofessionalsfrom

underrepresentedgroups.AnotherchallengetotheadvancementofDEImaybetheuseofpatternmatching,orrelyingoncommonattributesofpasthiringorfundingdecisionsthatledtosuccess,toinformdecisionsinsteadofobjectivemeasures.

Oncehired,employeesinunderrepresentedgroupsalsoface

challengesinmovingintomoreseniorpositions.Ninety-fourpercentoffirmssaidthatsoftskills—suchascommunicationskills,attitude,

culturalfit,andleadership—areveryimportantorimportantfactors

whenassessingemployeesforpromotion.Althoughsoftskillsare

keystosuccess,evaluatingthemisinherentlysubjectiveandcanallowunconsciousbiastoaffectpromotiondecisions.Whilesubjectivity

isafactorinanypromotiondecision,itcanposeaparticularbarrier

foremployeesfromunderrepresentedgroups.VChashistorically

operatedonanapprenticeship-styletrainingmodel,andtraining

opportunitieshavebeenscarce.Aspiringinvestmentprofessionals

withoutpersonalconnectionsorexclusivecredentials(asthosefromunderrepresentedbackgroundsaremorelikelytobe)havethusbeenleftoutofrelevanteducationalorprofessionaltrainingopportunities.

Newfundmanagersseekingtoraisetheirownfundsalsofacehighfinancialrisk,obstaclestosourcingcapitalfromLPs,andascarcityofcomprehensiveinformationandresourcestosupportnewfirms.ThesechallengesareallfactorsthatproducestructuralbarriersfornewcomersinVC.

Therehavebeenseveraldiversityinitiativesannouncedbyfirms

ortheindustryoverthelasttwoyearstoaddresssomeofthese

challenges.Theseinitiativeshavelargelyfocusedoneducationandmentorship.Whilehelpful,therewilllikelyneedtobefollow-throughinhiringandinvestmenttoachievesignificantprogress.

11

Genderdiversity

TherepresentationoffemaleemployeesatVCfirmsincreased

survey,upfrom23%in2020,21%in2018,and15%in2016.Despite

amonginvestmentprofessionals,includingthosewhoarejunior-level

theprogress,thepercentageofwomenininvestmentpositions

andconstituteapipelineforfutureseniorpositions,aswellas

remainsfarfromparityoftheoverallworkforceandUSpopulation.

amonginvestmentpartners.TheoverallrepresentationofwomeninVChasincreased,butthisprogresshasnotbeenequalacrossdemographicgroups.

Firmsfoundedwithinthelasttenyearshadmorewomenin

investmentpositions(30%)thandidolderfirms(24%).Firmsfocusedontheseedinvestmentstage(32%)alsohadahigherrepresentation

Workforceoverall

offemaleemployeesamonginvestmentprofessionalsthanthose

Womenconstitute47%oftheUScivilianlaborforce.

11

Inthe2022

focusedonearly-stage(26%),multi-stage(26%),orgrowth(24%).

survey,femaleemployeescomprised47%ofthetotalVCworkforce,

slightlyincreasingfrom45%inthepreviousthreesurveys.(

Figure1)

Firmsreportedthatwomencomprised35%oftheirjunior-level

investmentprofessionals,upfrom33%in2020,28%in2018,and25%

Womencomprised