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Openspace is proud to announce that we have received the APAC Industry DEI Award from 100 Women in Finance, a global organization dedicated to increasing the representation of women in the finance industry. We are glad that our commitment and work to promoting diversity and building an inclusive environment is being recognized.
As of today, women still constitute less than 20% of Southeast Asia’s VC decision-makers, and a notable gender gap still exists when it comes to venture capital funding. This underrepresentation of women has always felt like a call to action for us at Openspace and we’ve made it our mission to drive a meaningful change—starting from within our own team and extending outward to our portfolio companies and the broader ecosystem we work with.
We remain firm in our conviction that greater gender diversity leads to better strategic decision-making. Today, we are proud to have a team that is 50% women, representing 12 nationalities, and with 38% women in leadership roles.
"Whilst our firm is relatively small, we have worked disproportionately hard to achieve the right diversity of background, thought, and gender.”— Jessica Huang Pouler, Partner at Openspace.
We also understand the unique role we play as a VC, where our experience, knowledge, and capital can influence our ecosystem to follow a similar path. “While we recognize each step taken toward a truly equitable finance sector, we won’t rest as long as there’s more work to be done,” Jessica added.
As part of our 2024 sustainability goals, we have achieved alignment with the 2X Criteria, a globally recognized framework for advancing gender equity in corporate settings. This alignment will help us assess and improve our policies to ensure that we continue to promote diversity across all levels both within our firm and across our portfolio companies.
Diversity, however, goes beyond gender. We’re committed to building an inclusive and innovative ecosystem by fostering diversity in race, nationality, ethnicity, age, and experience, continuously finding ways to ensure that these diverse voices are present in leadership and throughout our industry.
One of the most rewarding initiatives in our DEI journey has been OpenHours, a structured four-month mentorship program aimed at addressing the underrepresentation of women in the venture capital ecosystem in Southeast Asia. On our fourth run this year, we saw 50 talented women from 8 countries participate in the program as mentees, guided by 31 mentors—14 of whom are external mentors from the broader VC ecosystem.
What started as a small initiative has grown into a key pillar of our efforts to foster gender equity. The program is open to all women across industries who are curious about or interested in venture capital—whether they’re working in similar sectors, founders or aspiring founders, or are new to the space and curious to learn more. OpenHours not only equips women in their early-stage or mid-stage career with the guidance to excel in venture capital but also builds lasting networks of mentors and mentees who continue to support each other well beyond the program. Watching these relationships unfold by opening doors that might not have been accessible to them before and seeing them grow through this experience reminds us why this work matters.
We’re proud to have hosted OpenHours for four consecutive years and brought our cumulative mentees to 114 since launching in 2021 with each cohort continuing to inspire us with the drive and ambition they have brought to the table.
If you’d like to learn more about OpenHours program, check out our previous cohort here and stay tuned for more updates on the 5th cohort we'll be running next year.
Our work in promoting diversity is part of a larger effort to drive positive change, as reflected in our broader ESG initiatives. Read more about our sustainability efforts, including DEI initiatives, in our latest Sustainability Progress Report 2023 here.
While we are honored to receive this recognition from 100 Women in Finance, we know that the work is far from over. We will continue to champion gender diversity while broadening our focus to include other underrepresented groups to ensure that we are creating a more inclusive workplace and ecosystem.
#activeintelligence
Openspace is proud to announce that we have received the APAC Industry DEI Award from 100 Women in Finance, a global organization dedicated to increasing the representation of women in the finance industry. We are glad that our commitment and work to promoting diversity and building an inclusive environment is being recognized.
As of today, women still constitute less than 20% of Southeast Asia’s VC decision-makers, and a notable gender gap still exists when it comes to venture capital funding. This underrepresentation of women has always felt like a call to action for us at Openspace and we’ve made it our mission to drive a meaningful change—starting from within our own team and extending outward to our portfolio companies and the broader ecosystem we work with.
We remain firm in our conviction that greater gender diversity leads to better strategic decision-making. Today, we are proud to have a team that is 50% women, representing 12 nationalities, and with 38% women in leadership roles.
"Whilst our firm is relatively small, we have worked disproportionately hard to achieve the right diversity of background, thought, and gender.”— Jessica Huang Pouler, Partner at Openspace.
We also understand the unique role we play as a VC, where our experience, knowledge, and capital can influence our ecosystem to follow a similar path. “While we recognize each step taken toward a truly equitable finance sector, we won’t rest as long as there’s more work to be done,” Jessica added.
As part of our 2024 sustainability goals, we have achieved alignment with the 2X Criteria, a globally recognized framework for advancing gender equity in corporate settings. This alignment will help us assess and improve our policies to ensure that we continue to promote diversity across all levels both within our firm and across our portfolio companies.
Diversity, however, goes beyond gender. We’re committed to building an inclusive and innovative ecosystem by fostering diversity in race, nationality, ethnicity, age, and experience, continuously finding ways to ensure that these diverse voices are present in leadership and throughout our industry.
One of the most rewarding initiatives in our DEI journey has been OpenHours, a structured four-month mentorship program aimed at addressing the underrepresentation of women in the venture capital ecosystem in Southeast Asia. On our fourth run this year, we saw 50 talented women from 8 countries participate in the program as mentees, guided by 31 mentors—14 of whom are external mentors from the broader VC ecosystem.
What started as a small initiative has grown into a key pillar of our efforts to foster gender equity. The program is open to all women across industries who are curious about or interested in venture capital—whether they’re working in similar sectors, founders or aspiring founders, or are new to the space and curious to learn more. OpenHours not only equips women in their early-stage or mid-stage career with the guidance to excel in venture capital but also builds lasting networks of mentors and mentees who continue to support each other well beyond the program. Watching these relationships unfold by opening doors that might not have been accessible to them before and seeing them grow through this experience reminds us why this work matters.
We’re proud to have hosted OpenHours for four consecutive years and brought our cumulative mentees to 114 since launching in 2021 with each cohort continuing to inspire us with the drive and ambition they have brought to the table.
If you’d like to learn more about OpenHours program, check out our previous cohort here and stay tuned for more updates on the 5th cohort we'll be running next year.
Our work in promoting diversity is part of a larger effort to drive positive change, as reflected in our broader ESG initiatives. Read more about our sustainability efforts, including DEI initiatives, in our latest Sustainability Progress Report 2023 here.
While we are honored to receive this recognition from 100 Women in Finance, we know that the work is far from over. We will continue to champion gender diversity while broadening our focus to include other underrepresented groups to ensure that we are creating a more inclusive workplace and ecosystem.
#activeintelligence
