On April 22, the Women in Cloud community joined together as we hosted a special edition of #WICxFortune100 Lunch and Learn. Salesforce Ventures features “A Guide to Corporate Venture Investing: Learn the Ins and Outs from Salesforce Ventures.” 

salesforce lunch and learn

To begin the event, Erin Northern, Partnership Lead for Women in Cloud (WIC) set the stage to introduce WIC and Salesforce Ventures. Erin greeted the audience and encouraged an active chat within the attendees. Attendees came from 5+ countries around the globe, all with a goal to learn and be inspired by the event today. 

Watch the introduction here:

 

Next, Salesforce Ventures brought Enki Toto, Investor for Salesforce Impact Venture Fund to the stage for the Keynote: A Guide to Corporate Venture Investing. Enki gave an in-depth presentation on the basics of investing and how corporate venture capital is different. With insightful questions from the chat, Enki delivered a well rounded approach to the topic, breaking down ideas and methods to teach and engage the audience.

Enki focused on the following topics: 

  • Deal structures
  • How to prepare for your pitch
  • Due diligence, risks, and closing the deal
  • The return on investment

Enki is currently an investor on the Salesforce Ventures Impact Fund, Salesforce’s corporate venture capital fund that invests in cloud technology solutions with a demonstrable impact in Education and Workforce Development, Sustainability, DE&I, and the Social Sector. She’s been involved in the company’s investments in BlocPower, Circulor, Crehana, Ellevest. and Propel.

 

Watch Enki Toto here: https://youtu.be/0bpqONyLC54

With this special edition of the #WICxFortune100 Lunch and Learn featuring Salesforce Ventures, WIC captured a niche audience and brought important information to the stage. 

Useful Resources: 

  • If you missed this session, you can find the recordings here
  • Register for #WICxInspire on July 14 for an interactive virtual event 
  • Do you want infinite access to more career and professional development opportunities? You can get $1000 of value for just $249 with the Women In Cloud’s Annual Access Pass. Learn and connect with the tech industry’s top leaders through Signature Events and Warm Introductions, develop your leadership skills, reach your full potential, and more! 
  • Learn more about EmpowHERaccess Awards
  • WICxLEAD: Next-generation Corporate ESG Women’s Leadership Accelerator, designed to empower corporate women and entrepreneurs to ignite economic access. Learn more and apply to qualify.
  • Want to request a warm introduction with Cloud Leaders from the session? Click here to request warm introductions today.
  • Join the #WiCDigitalNetwork to connect with community members and stay up to date with latest news, opportunities, and initiatives 

 

WIC is excited to announce the launch of our 7th Cloud Accelerator Cohort, beginning virtually on May 26th, 2022. Our unique accelerator program enables female tech founders to leverage the power of partnering with hyperscalers like Microsoft, Google, and IBM to become enterprise and Cosell ready. 

Women in Cloud has successfully graduated 70+ women-led companies over 6 previous cohorts with a global expansion including 9 countries around the world: United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, India, Kenya, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates.

The WIC entrepreneur community asked and We ANSWERED! We’ve adjusted the program to be even better than before.

Now A 3-month immersive program with even MORE benefits, including a 3 year relationship with the Women in Cloud community. During this immersive 3-month program the Cloud Accelerator provides: access to industry leaders, structured training, office hours, industry events, self-learning content, and more, all via digital platforms making the Accelerator accessible to women-led businesses worldwide. Women in Cloud is excited to announce the following 9 companies that have been accepted in the WIC Cloud Accelerator 7.0 Cohort of their award-winning Cloud CoSell Accelerator:

This kickoff focused on helping founders develop their future vision and this experience was led by Patti Dobrowolski, 3 Times TEDx speaker and inspired the founders to design their co-sell plan.

Here is the output of what a vision of equitable equity and access looks like for women founders.

Going digital has let us expand our horizon and open this program to people from around the world rather than just a region. 

This year’s WiC Cloud Cosell Accelerator is more than just an effort to make economic contributions to the system by empowering entrepreneurs. It is about embracing the new normal and moving forward with a sense of community. It is about adopting self-empowerment and finding comfort in knowing where to turn for support with a community at your side. Most importantly, it is about collective growth and learning.

The Cloud Cosell Accelerator combines training, access to industry leaders, structured training and office hours, industry events, self-learning content, and more, all via digital platforms making the Accelerator accessible to women-led business worldwide. Women in Cloud is excited to announce the following companies as accepted in the 7.0 cohort of their award-winning Cloud Cosell Accelerator:

  • AffableBPM- SaaS based Fully Customizable Business Workflow Management to provide Automated Compliance checks, Paperless – end to end, Cut down manpower up to 65% and Cost savings up to 50% . It is quick and easy to install and adopt!

  • Liiingo– Liiingo’s platform enables businesses to effectively connect, engage, and their shared customers’ journey, so they can nurture and benefit from repeat business and referrals. Liiingo’s mobile engagement platform removes those barriers for customers with our patented language delivery solution, as well as providing an intuitive an engaging experience.

  • LockDocs: LockDocs is a Digital-identity-as-a-service platform for the financial services sector. We are transforming how financial institutions collect and manage and customer data by offering a frictionless customer experience and generating significant time and cost savings in the process.

  • MyExcelia: MyExcelia is an AI-powered voice-enabled pocket coach that records voice, translates to text, anonymizes input, and provides in-the moment communication improvement feedback to managers, coaches, leaders, and employees at all levels without further input or effort from the employee.

  • OfficeTroops: Offers a global technology supported service to help small and medium organizations source, manage and nurture their future talent. The fight for talent requires a concerted effort at career brand development, candidate engagement and technology in hiring. Large organizations have substantial budgets to do this. We bring that same caliber to small and mid size businesses (SMB) who might otherwise lose out in this fight. Our solution centers around a white labelled hiring platform combined with concierge level placement services. We augment SMB hiring teams from day one and give them hiring scale at an attractive price point.

  • Accelera : The Maestro Ecosystem is a complete, all-in-one digital transformation tool. We partner with various technologies in payments, finance, and customer service through the API management layer. We use a digital identifier in a multi-tenanted environment to segregate a client’s data, which is orchestrated, headlessly, and displayed on a webpage.

  • Sapta Inc: Sapta is a cloud-based enterprise value management software built to help organizations achieve sustainable accelerated growth eliminating management chaos. The integrated management platform helps enterprises build OKRs, fuel innovation, make faster business decisions, and create a seamless CX journey.

  • Viverie AI: Viverie AI is the vision and brain for various types of smart robots, cameras, and sensors. Through collaborative training, our AI can be your solution for your specific needs. 

  • iLEAP Group: A Cloud MSP Provider transforming HBCU ecosystem with Cloud Services with IP based solutions.

Do you want to participate in the WIC Cloud CoSell Accelerator but missed the deadline? Don’t worry you can apply to be a part of our next Cohort HERE that is expected to roll out in late September.  

If you think you’d like to apply for the Accelerator Program but not sure if your business is ready yet?

 

Join us for the #MillionDollarPartnershipChallenge June 21-24, designed to prepare women-led tech businesses for the next steps.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We invite you to apply. Click HERE to learn more: https://womenincloud.com/initiative-cloud-accelerator/

Women are the key drivers of the economy; by accessing the resources needed to launch and sustain businesses, Women in Cloud will address the economic inclusion to co-develop and co-market solutions by providing women the tools, knowledge, and networks they need to build a successful enterprise-ready cloud business.

What if we told you you can access enterprise opportunities via Cloud marketplaces?

Global enterprises will spend more than $7 trillion dollars in the next four years as they struggle to modernize, build a global technology foundation for growth, and support simple, secure, and reliable access to data and services, says the IDC.

The big drivers? The usual suspects like cloud initiatives, big data analytics, and mobility. But, IoT is becoming a major investment focus, and so are automation or AI initiatives. Women In Cloud Cloud Accelerator is established to help you represent and access these opportunities via the new sales engine called Cloud Marketplaces powered by Microsoft, Google, RedHat and AWS.

We are inviting you to learn and explore if you are the right fit for the WIC Accelerator Cohort 7.0 starting Late May 2022.

We invite you to join our Cohort 7.0 Open House on May 6th at 10am PST.

If you or anyone you know might be interested in becoming a part of the Cohort 7.0 Accelerator Program this will be a great opportunity to ask questions about the program before you sign up.

We will be discussing the following:

  • Co-Sell Cloud Accelerator with Hyperscalers To Win Enterprise Opportunities

  • Program Outline & What to Expect

  • Opportunities for Access

  • Perfecting Your Solution on a Marketplace

  • Building Co-Sell Go To Market Plan

  • Accelerator Benefits

  • Open Q&A

Please register for the event HERE.

If you know other female tech entrepreneurs who might be interested please pass the event invite along.

Co-Sell Cloud Accelerator with Hyperscalers : Program Benefits At A Glance

  •  3 Month Dedicated Accelerator starting May 2022
  • 3 years of access to all the enterprise opportunities to get you access to customers and investors

  • Monthly roundtables & Community connections

  • Speaker slots on industry and community events

  • Expedited Warm Introductions To Advisors, Investors & Buyers

  • Access To Cloud Hyperscaler Partnerships

  • Invitations to participate in digital GTM offerings from Hyperscalers

  • Get your ready to participate in Cloud marketplaces

  • Dedicated Digital Learning Hub

  • Access to Cloud Hyperscaler programs and cloud credits

Website: Cloud Accelerator

We look forward to seeing you soon on May6th.

Note: This is a U.S.-only program.

Microsoft has developed the Partner Fund Program to help provide working capital to existing Microsoft Partners. You’re invited to apply for this program as you seek to grow your business.

As a Microsoft Partner, Microsoft is committed to your success. Whether you’re seeking to scale your business, improve your Microsoft capability, or put yourself on a more profitable path, this fund is for you. Review the loan information and eligibility requirements below, then fill out the form to nominate your company. Upon completion of the form, they’ll contact you to discuss your submission in detail.

About the Partner Capital Fund loan program:

  • Partner can apply for loans ranging from $25,000 to $500,000.
  • Loans maintain terms of less than 60 months.
  • No or low interest will be charged for payment terms (Microsoft will cover all or most of the interest costs).
  • Eligibility is based upon financial and other information provided.

Partner Capital Fund eligibility requirements:

  • Partner must be based in the U.S.
  • Partner must be enrolled and active in the Microsoft Partner Network.
  • Eligible businesses who are partners include those who are:
    • Offering consulting services that utilize Microsoft products OR
    • Building on a Microsoft platform to build their own business OR
    • Developing app using Microsoft products OR
    • Creating IP using Microsoft products (i.e., organizations who are willing to build unique technology on the Microsoft platform).
  • Partner must be in good standing (i.e., no disputed accounts receivable greater than or equal to 60 days).
  • Partner must have less than $7M in annualized revenue.
  • Partner must have ability to provide three years of financial statements (reviewed or audited) or provide three years of federal tax returns.
  • Startup organizations must provide a five-year projection or business plan.
  • Additional items may be requested from Microsoft’s banking partner.
  • Partner must self-certify responses.
  • Commitment to allocate forecasted spend on Microsoft products or services reviewed as a percentage of the loan. Details to be provided during review process.

You’re invited to nominate your company to receive working capital support through the Microsoft Partner Capital Fund. Whether you’re seeking to scale your business, improve your Microsoft capability, or put yourself on a more profitable path, this program is for you.

To nominate your company, review the loan information and complete the form within the link below. The Microsoft team will review your submission and contact you to discuss in detail.

By submitting this form, you are indicating that you are interested in having access to credit with the Partner Capital Fund for the Microsoft Partner Network (MPN) that Microsoft’s banking partner offers. Participation in the Partner Capital Fund program is subject to Microsoft’s program terms. Credit review and approval is subject to the program terms set forth by the banking institution providing the credit. Your personal information will be shared with banking partners and processed by Microsoft as per their privacy policy.

Apply Today!

You can learn more at Microsoft Lunch and Learn on May6th, 2022. Save Your Spot

Corporate sustainability has come a long way since the early days, when executives were focused on the “triple bottom line”—a commitment to environmental, social, and economic goals. These days, sustainability is not just a public relations effort; it is a fundamental part of the business.

When was the last time you think about how your company engages with sustainability?

You’re not alone. In fact, most CEOs and business leaders don’t often consider their corporate sustainability engagements. That’s why we’ve put together five ways that executives can improve their company’s engagement with sustainable practices.

Start with a working definition of ESG — and set some achievable goals.

As a business leader, you’ll want to set some concrete goals that are based on ESG metrics specific to the industry in which your company operates. Start small and be realistic about what your team can realistically achieve within a certain period of time. For example, if your industry is energy production, you might start by committing to a 10% reduction in energy use at all facilities over the next three years. This goal is measurable (simply compare this year’s energy use against last year’s) and specific (10%). It also has a clear endpoint (three years). You may not be able to reach that goal immediately: your facilities were built in an era before environmental responsibility was top of mind, so you may need to invest capital into new equipment or retrofitting old equipment before you can reduce energy usage by 10%.

Construct an Corporate ESG Framework.

Constructing a framework to determine how to prioritize and implement ESG practices is vital. It starts with picking your framework such as SASB, TCFD, GRI, SDGs and measuring your MSCI ESG Ratings. These will help you determine which ESG factors are important to your business, industry, and stakeholders. These standards should be tailored to meet the needs of your organization, as well. ESG Focused framework development involves identifying internal expertise and external partners that can assist with the process. Once you identify what those ESG factors are, you must develop a strategy for implementing them into your organization’s operations in order to achieve measurable results.

Get CEO and Senior leaders on board.

Don’t expect your ESG strategy to gain momentum or even see the light of day without the support of your company’s CEO and senior leadership. When you’re just starting out, your role will be more about collecting data than coming up with strategies, so start by introducing yourself to senior leaders. You’ll want to book a meeting with the CEO and her inner circle (COO or CFO, if you have them) to discuss ESG goals. Explain that you would like their input on what they think ESG should look like for your organization. If they aren’t already familiar with ESG as a concept, take a few minutes to give them some background information and explain that you are taking these initial steps in order to get ahead of possible regulations and meet investor expectations, which will help preserve growth over the long term. With these points in mind, ask the CEO if there are any aspects related to sustainability or social impact that she thinks could be improved within the company (e.g., waste management), and then take notes on how she answers these questions.

Once you’ve wrapped up this discussion and taken note of what they said, schedule another meeting 10-15 days later where you can share some concrete next steps based on their feedback from last time. At this point it’s likely that many people will still be curious about exactly what needs to happen for an ESG strategy at your company—the key is providing clear direction instead of being overly vague about why it matters or allowing stakeholders to fill in their own blanks based on assumptions they may have heard elsewhere but aren’t relevant for your industry/company specifically.

Identify and Prioritize ESG Reporting and Disclosures Needs

  • Identify and prioritize ESG reporting and disclosure needs. This should include analyzing your company’s current state as well as understanding its competitive landscape.
  • Establish metrics to track key ESG performance indicators. By establishing a baseline, you can more accurately measure progress toward your goals. As you select your key metrics, keep in mind that the objective is to create a system that is both relevant and easily accessible for multiple stakeholders. To ensure relevance, consider using framework-specific metrics (e.g., those that align with MSCI ESG Scores) wherever possible—it will make it easier for those familiar with the MSCI standards to compare you to other companies using MSCI, who are also likely reporting on similar metrics, which allows them to understand how your company stacks up against competitors.* Be transparent in disclosing ESG information—optimally through a publicly available report which covers material issues and provides an independent assurance statement as appropriate

Recruit Women Leaders to Lead ESG

Although the world of corporate responsibility is still largely male-dominated, women are making their mark as rising leaders in Asia. The reason? They tend to take a more holistic approach to ESG issues and have better relationships with stakeholders. These two traits go hand in hand in building trust among those that make decisions, which can lead to positive business outcomes down the line. As companies continue to grow and their missions expand, it’s important that they put their arms around sustainable practices—but it’s equally important that they find ways to make them feel like home for all employees.

This year more and more enterprise companies are in search of comprehensive global sustainability operating models and developing more leadership opportunities for women.

So, where do they start? To address the market needs, we are launching the WICxLEAD, the next generation Corporate ESG Women’s Leadership Accelerator, designed to empower corporate women and entrepreneurs to ignite economic access. Our scholars will learn how to lead and influence digital transformation projects through cloud and AI technology, teaching them how to grow their executive presence, personal brand identity, public speaking impact, global access creation and community development strategies giving them a powerful platform to accelerate as industry ESG influencers and purpose-driven leaders. 

Identify Digital Transformation Solution

Digital transformation, or the use of digital technologies to solve problems and create value in an organization, is a powerful tool for helping your company achieve its ESG goals. With digital transformation, you can show employees and customers that your company is committed to change and improvement—and by demonstrating this commitment through positive action, you’ll be able to prove your worth as a shareholder.

Successful companies know that taking care of their people will lead to better business performance in the long run. A digital transformation solution that focuses on creating a diverse and inclusive workplace is an excellent way to show employees (and potential talent) that they’re valued by the company.

Additionally, moving business processes online increases efficiency—which means fewer hours worked for employees who need time off for family or personal matters, less wasted materials from paper-based forms, and more streamlined production cycles. Even if the process itself can’t be automated or digitized just yet, it’s still a great idea to give employees mobile tools so they can work faster from anywhere. In other words: with less time spent doing menial tasks like paperwork or waiting around for approvals from managers at headquarters, workers have more time to focus on innovative projects and produce higher quality work overall. Here is an example of how FEDx leveraging digital transformation efforts to reduce carbon footprint.

Establish Community Partners to Scale company’s impact.

  • Co-brand and co-develop solutions with a dedicated community partner like Women In Cloud
  • Leverage social media campaigns to spread the word about your partnership and efforts, as well as its success stories.
  • Use community partnerships to help with funding your programs, particularly those in underserved communities.
  • Community partners are also useful for testing ideas before scaling up, and have access to volunteers that can be used for small-scale projects or events before larger scale implementation begins.

We believe when we work together to make our planet and people healthy through our actions, we all can accelerate our growth in ways that generate sustainable outcomes including profits.