BREAKING DOWN BARRIERS IN BUSINESS, BIOTECH AND BIAS

Gender bias could have impeded Dr Anne-Marie Corner’s career advancement back in the early 90s, but the Manchester Met alumna found it just made her determination to beat the odds even stronger.  Along with three other female entrepreneurs she went on to form a network that helped thousands.

When Anne-Marie left Wales, for what was Manchester Polytechnic, she quickly learnt that her chosen subject, chemistry and biology, was pretty male dominated. “I was the only girl, or one of two women, in several of my classes at university and this continued into my MBA class, where just 17% of the class was female.  So, from the get-go I knew I was one of few, and that continued into my career when I moved to the states.

“As a female CEO in the US biotech world there were only a handful of us and even though we ran businesses that were more successful and more ethical, less than 1% of all venture capital was going to female-led businesses.  It was blatant gender bias and terribly frustrating, so we decided to band together and support each other.” continues Anne-Marie.    

What started as four women, all CEOs of biotech companies, who didn’t want to feel alone on their mission to succeed, gradually expanded to an organization of over 200 women.  The Women’s Investment Network, which started in the late 90s and is now known as the Alliance of Women Entrepreneurs, was launched for women who ran high growth companies and needed venture capital to scale their business.

A supportive network where women could exchange stories, look at each other’s business plans, and hear from experts, it enabled women to not feel alone in their ambitious endeavours and be armed for any difficult situations they would find themselves in. 

“We did a lot of work to help get women on corporate boards.  One woman on a board was a complete outsider. Two women on a board was a conspiracy.  Three women sitting at different points of the table bouncing ideas around, couldn’t be ignored. The whole dynamic changed when we took up more space and for the most part, companies that are run by women get much better outcomes.  We lead when it comes to negotiating and run our companies more ethically. Female dominated boards have far fewer issues, and under the table activities. 

Our companies tend to be extremely profitable and companies with well paid employees have content employees, who do better.”

SHINING A LIGHT FOR WOMEN

“Sadly, there will always be terrible injustices against women.  One of the most popular activities we have had in the network were round table events, where CEOs would come together in small groups and share their horror stories. But it also meant others could arm themselves for what they might experience and have the tools to overcome obstacles.

“It is why International Women’s Day is so important, it’s a chance to keep shining a spotlight on the injustices, but also the great stories, the breakthroughs and put some of the wrongs that that have been put upon women everywhere, right.  Look at all the female leaders we have in the world right now, in the Scandinavian countries, New Zealand, and in the US with the first female VP in history.

“Great strides are being made in leadership and the obstacles I faced when I first started out are lessening. It’s getting easier to call someone out for discrimination now, for sure.  There’s so much more awareness, the shape of the business is changing.

“There’s more help to build an equal playing field too, more tools in corporations where you can go to HR, which is often a female dominated department, and sit with someone and say this is my track record, I’m good at what I do, but I’m being passed over for a guy.  You can speak to someone and get it handled by a third-party.  You don’t have to confront these issues alone.

“There will always be issues, but that’s why International Women’s Day is vital.  It’s a time to check in with each other, but also discuss issues we’re still facing. 

TAKE EVERY OPPORTUNITY

Sharing some advice for women who want to be successful in their careers, Anne-Marie, says, “Be your authentic self.  Get your head down, work hard and speak up.

“I went to an all-girl school and loved it. We were taught by women, and all taught to be outspoken.  And I had a wonderful mother. She turned down going to university and regretted it all her life, so she would always say to me ‘do anything that’s offered to you’.

“It’s been the best advice. I’d say the same to any woman at Manchester Met.  If you have any chance to do something. Do it.”

“When I was in grad school, I volunteered for every assignment. Because if I messed up my presentation, it was in front of my classmates, and we would all go out and have a beer and laugh about it. We were learning and would naturally make mistakes.  But by the time I got into my career, I was the best presenter you could ever meet. I could hold my own on radio shows where inside I was scared, talking live about medical issues, but the practice during those early years meant I had the confidence and experience, and it stood me in good stead.

“You never know what’s coming your way, so say “yes” now.  I once had a call from a contact at a pharmaceutical company, who asked me to come by and give an update on what was happening with in my company. 

“It sounded to me like he and I were going to sit in his office and chat, but I walked into a conference room without notes, slides, or presentation and he introduced me to his head of R&D, the head of medical development, the head of clinical trials. There were 16 people in the room.

“I was asked if I had any slides or if I needed to hook up my computer and I just said no I’m actually going to just talk through everything and invite people to ask questions.  I winged it for an hour, talking through what we’d done and answering questions, without a minute’s preparation.  That skill came from accepting any task, grabbing every opportunity, every experience during those early years when the cost of failure was low.

“Those practiced presentations in front of my classmates, which at the time was a fairly low-cost experience, set me up for the skills I would need when the stakes were high.”

A ROLE MODEL FOR SUPPORTIVE WOMEN

As well as running her own business, founding a hugely successful women’s network and having a family, Anne-Marie has worked hard to get girls from minority backgrounds into education in the states. Helping them through the critical years, such as 8th grade, and enabling them to move on to good high schools and into universities. It’s a role one of her daughters has also taken on, working in minority schools, where there has been a history of drugs, gangs, and violence, helping a steady stream of smart girls get into good private schools with full scholarships.

“My daughter would sit with them, talking to the parents, talking them through the application forms, literally holding their hands to get these young bright 14- and 15-year-olds into a better place where they could then take off and excel.”

“The hope is they too will look back and they’ll help other girls just like them and you have the whole cycle effect of girls and women supporting each other to improve their chances of success.

“Women innately know we must help each other and all the people around us. We think about how we can help our community. Collaboration is our greatest weapon.  We’re so much strong together.”