“Female entrepreneurship in medtech is no longer an option. It’s a necessity”

Léone Atayi, CEO of the French biotech companies Hybrigenics and Stemcis, discusses the importance of women-led businesses in medtech, biotech and beyond. 

On November 14, a day that is also known as Equal Pay Day, the European Commission published some statistics that reinforced a grim point – the average gender pay gap in the EU stands at 13 per cent.

While there has been noticeable recent improvement, especially when it comes to women in STEM – science, technology, engineering and mathematics – the reality is that, due to long-lasting stereotypes and under-representation in decision-making positions, the majority of this industry is formed by men.

In the medical technology field, this is also the reality as female leaders are still a minority.

That being said, just because this is the current reality doesn’t mean that it needs to be everlasting.

However, in order to challenge the status quo and increase female representation in medtech, awareness about women in this industry needs to be raised.

Solving a need: why women-led businesses are crucial for medtech, biotech and medical devices

It is becoming increasingly obvious that there’s no such thing as one-size-fits-all when it comes to health.

For instance, by merging innovative technologies, more companies are focusing on enhancing genetically guided personalised medicine.

Similarly, an analysis of US biomedical patents led by Harvard Business School discovered that female-inventors teams are 35 per cent more likely to focus on women’s health and to discover ideas that are aimed at women.

As the title emphasised, “patents by women focus more on women’s health, but few women get to invent”.

That is not to say that men do not focus on women’s health. But as the Harvard Business School study suggested, it seems that the end product, the innovation, largely ends up benefiting those who invented it.

To give you an example, surgical specialties are still predominantly a male field. Female surgeons usually utilise oversized surgical instruments that were designed with men in mind, which, consequently, can put women at a disadvantage.

Therefore, unless both men and women are developing technologies for operating theatres, chances are that this problem will only be aggravated.

We need to make sure to incorporate female knowledge and expertise in our research as it has the potential to push innovation to the next level.

Female-inventors teams are 35 per cent more likely to focus on women’s health

Not only will this result in better care for women but also for men as cutting-edge products developed in collaboration with women can advance technologies “intended for men” just as much.

The most effective technologies are a result of collaboration between men and women, no matter who the end product is directed towards. After all, diversity in the workplace is a catalyst for innovation.

That being said, the annual analysis of the top 100 revenue-generating medtech companies conducted by Medical Design & Outsourcing revealed that only 23 per cent of the top executives at these companies are women.

While there’s more progress to be made, a noticeable positive change in medtech has been observed.

In the past two years, more and more women have moved into C-suite roles such as CEOs, CFOs, or CIOs.

However, we have to keep in mind that this is just the beginning. The increase in leadership diversity in the medtech industry will lead to a greater reaction on both a micro and macro level.

For example, on a micro-level, increased exposure will result in more women being encouraged to take action and act as leaders.

Complementarily, on a macro-level, this will also hold companies accountable and inspire corporate changes as it will encourage even more collaboration that defies gender or race.

The domino effect

In line with the micro consequences, a recent study identified exposure to innovation during childhood as a factor that determines who becomes an inventor.

Like the domino effect, an increase in women-led businesses in medtech would not only result in more inventions that benefit women but also in more women who are encouraged to act like leaders in this field.

As Gayatri Shenai, the founder of the annual Women in Technology and Operations conference, underlined, “You can’t be what you can’t see”.

For example, some women may fear entering or progressing in a male-dominated industry. However, labelling this industry as male is up to us.

More specifically, through increased exposure to women in medtech, a shift in the narrative about this industry could occur.

Raising awareness about changes that medical technology is currently undertaking can inspire women to create their own start-ups, apply for C-suite positions and tackle the fear that is holding them back from following their career dreams.

In fact, as Harvard Business Review highlighted, internalising a leadership identity is an essential step in becoming a leader.

So, presenting women as leaders in STEM will not only contribute to making medtech more accessible but could also help women embody a leadership identity.

A balanced medtech landscape is a better medtech landscape

It’s safe to say that female entrepreneurship in medtech is no longer an option, it is a necessity. After all, it’s a precondition for better and more efficient technologies for everyone.

On top of that, it’s a demand for more successful and effective businesses. In fact, according to Mckinsey’s Diversity Report, there is a higher chance of outperformance in workplaces with higher representation.

For instance, companies with more than 30 per cent women executives usually outperformed companies where 10 to 30 per cent of executives were women.

That being said, the complementarity of men and women in medtech will not only result in more extensive innovations that impact the health of the entire population but also in more successful businesses. It’s a win-win for everybody.