“We will hear from some of Baltimore’s most innovative leaders, and this panel will showcase the growth and future of Baltimore’s innovation economy. [in] Technology, life sciences and creative industries.”
This was an introduction given by Dionne Joyner Weems to a panel I was on at the 2023 Baltimore Together Summit, where Baltimore-area founders, including 2023 Realist Startups Rebecca Rosenberg, CEO of ReBokeh Vision Technologies, and Sam Scott, CEO of JuneBrain, took to the stage at the newly opened M&T Bank Exchange to discuss their innovations.
During the panel, Scott, who is also a mother, highlighted the positive aspects of her journey as a founder, such as her work with universities, but also acknowledged the challenges she faces as a Black woman with a neuromuscular disease, including being stopped from disclosing her disability during investor meetings out of concern that she would be perceived as too risky.
Backstage before the panel, Rosenberg spoke about similar challenges investors have, pointing to a UK study with some “stark” statistics — for example, founders with disabilities are 400 times less likely to receive venture capital funding — which highlighted the challenges for both she and Scott in fundraising and other aspects of self-identifying as disabled founders in the US.
The conversation led to a virtual roundtable discussion between the two founders, which touched on the challenges they may face in securing venture capital funding, as well as the broader issue of representation and recognition for entrepreneurs with disabilities. Below are some of their reflections. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
What insights have you both gained about yourselves and the industry through your journey as founders, particularly in terms of being disabled founders and empathizing with the population of people you serve?
Sam Scott: I learned what my limitations are and how that reflects in my innovation in other ways. So if you have a disability, you have to be innovative every day to navigate the world in the best way for you, because the typical ways of running a startup don’t necessarily work when you have a particular disability.
I have limited energy. [it] It doesn’t mean you have to take a nap. It means you’re going to end up in intensive care if you don’t take care of yourself. So I learned early on that I’m good at working on teams… but I also have to rely on other people to fill in the gaps in my own gaps, and I just [going] “You learn about fundraising and networking in a different way.”
Rebecca Rosenberg: First of all, Sam, I’ve never heard anyone describe it like that before. [if I don’t rest] Something very serious could happen. I would be so grateful. [as someone with a disability] Because I think that’s something that a lot of people don’t understand. It’s very similar with what I’ve learned about myself. I think I’ve really learned. And this is something that I knew from childhood, but especially in the last four years as an entrepreneur, I’ve seen how many things that you’re forced to learn as a child with a disability that most people don’t learn until adulthood. Like, learning to ask for help. Like, if you’re going down the stairs and you don’t see the stairs, you’re just going to hurt yourself.
So I had to learn from an early age how to ask for help, and also learn some resilience in the face of adversity and the innovation that Sam was talking about, and also learning to solve problems that no one else could solve for me because they didn’t understand them.
Are you concerned about the inequalities highlighted in the report, such as disabled entrepreneurs only having 0.1% of a voice in the public sphere – a topic that was initially discussed in the UK but may also resonate in the US – can you share your perspective on this lack of representation in the public sphere?
SS: I think there are two issues. I think there are probably about five, but two that really stand out. One is the taboo around disability, which still persists. I think one of the challenges of giving a voice to entrepreneurs with disabilities is giving them a sense of being in a safe enough space to embrace their disability and say, “I belong here.”
… The second reason is that many investors see disability as an additional risk to a company. If you sit down at a VC table and talk openly about your disability, you might hear something I’ve heard before: “We’re concerned that this might limit your ability to be a good CEO.”
RR: I agree with a lot of those points, and going off on a bit of a tangent about funding, what I find really interesting in our industry, particularly in the low vision assistive technology space, is the number of companies that are developing low vision assistive technology, but obviously they haven’t talked to anyone who’s actually using that technology. [blind] In the past.
It’s shocking: a significant number of companies become successful without ever having this conversation — and investors often just don’t know. [they] You can see the vibrating glasses. Blind people don’t like being vibrated randomly, but investors don’t know that. And if the company was talking to blind people, they probably would have started getting some feedback.
SS: Rebecca, I’ll give you an example of what you’re talking about. I’m trying to get into an angel group, and I’ve been stuck in the vetting process for about three months. I spoke to someone yesterday and asked them why. They said that a company similar to ours got into the group, and they weren’t the best company, but they were similar to us. And it turns out that there was one investor in the group who had no experience in neurological disease, retinal disease, or ophthalmic technology. They were very forthright in expressing their opinions about what they thought was true about the industry and how to solve the monitoring problem, even if it was way off the mark. But it shaped the decision of the whole group, and it impacted not only my previous company, but also my company that’s in the pipeline now. So I’m grateful to one investor that I spoke to. He said that if I pitch to the group, I should bring up all the customer interviews I’ve ever done and really try to educate them, whether the group is open or not, because no one has ever educated them. They’re really driven by what they think is right.
What are your hopes for the future of the workplace at your company? How do you see it evolving, especially if there were no limitations to design? Describe your ideal future workplace.
SS: [I’m] I’ve built the company culture very intentionally, and it’s about transparency, not meddling in people’s business, but transparency about facts. [that] When I’m unwell, I just provide a safe space for my team members to be human and to experience their own limitations, because there are other people on my team who have disabilities and they told me how it affects their work.
And what I’m really trying to do is create space. [where] That’s OK. There’s nothing wrong with having to do things a little bit differently. So on a very practical level, I really stress… everybody taking care of themselves. So if it’s a day where you really need a brain rest, a mental rest, a physical rest, you can just put up a sick day icon and you’re OK. Nobody’s gonna bother them. We’re not allowed to bother people who are off.
RR: LeBoke is partnering with the Johns Hopkins Center for Disability and Health Research to [develop] It’s a community platform for the visually impaired. We’re very excited about this partnership and can’t wait to share more details with you. [I] As new talent joined the project and went through the interview process, I learned that the Disability Health Research Center is committed to accessibility and reasonable accommodations, and making sure everyone has what they need. [is important]They don’t have to ask, it’s already known and it’s already being done — subtitling on Zoom. I mean, giving things extra time. So I’m really impressed that they were able to make that happen, especially Bonnie. [Swenor, the center’s founding director] They’ve been able to foster that culture and understanding within their organization, and I’m honestly very excited about it. There’s a lot to learn from them and how they’re handling it, and I think this is just a great example of them doing it well.
Company: ReBokeh / JuneBrain Series: Leadership Development Month 2023
Source link