The biotech industry is suffering from a serious talent shortage, with start-ups in particular having an increasingly hard time filling C-level positions. Yet despite this difficulty, many job searches are failing to look beyond the industry’s stereotypical candidate, throwing their hands up in despair when the typical white middle-aged man can’t be found to fill the role. In broadening the search to include more diverse candidates – including women and people with different ethnic backgrounds – we will not only help to address the talent shortage but also strengthen the start-ups themselves. So how can a company build and maintain a more diverse management team?

Companies with a good gender balance consistently outperform those with only men in their management teams. Yet despite this, start-ups with female founders and management team members are consistently underfunded compared to all male companies. Could it be that the gender gap in funding has its roots in the gender disparity in the financing firms themselves?