RMIT accompanies female entrepreneurs

RMIT University hosts the "Empower HERpreneurship" event to promote gender equality in entrepreneurship and celebrate the achievements of female business leaders.

The event, organized by the RMIT Activator startup incubator in collaboration with the Entrepreneurship program of the RMIT University Business School, "Empower HERpreneurship" includes an exhibition introducing products and services of 10 startups founded by women, along with a discussion session with prominent female entrepreneurs.

According to a 2022 report by the Vietnam Federation of Commerce and Industry, the proportion of businesses owned by women in Vietnam is 22%, on par with developed countries such as Sweden, Singapore and France. However, the global pandemic has hindered progress on gender equality. The World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2021 found that the time it takes to close the gender gap has increased by 36 years (to 135.6 years) in just 12 months due to Covid-19.

Dr Justin Xavier - Senior Manager of Projects and International Cooperation at RMIT University's School of Business, said that female entrepreneurs are increasingly leading social impact, environmental sustainability and ethical leadership. "They are making a positive difference in their communities and beyond," he said.

Dr. Jung Woo Han - Senior Head of Human Resource Management and Entrepreneurship at RMIT also affirmed that female entrepreneurs today are not limited to small or micro enterprises. Start-ups founded by women have made breakthroughs in innovation, boldly launching international brands.

Speakers and representatives of the organizing committee of the event "Empowering HERpreneurship". Photo: RMIT Vietnam

However, to achieve such important milestones, female entrepreneurs need to commit to continuous innovation and be very persistent. Ms. Pham Hong Van - founder and CEO of Emmay Joint Stock Company, a company specializing in producing products from mushrooms, shared that innovation does not happen immediately, it is necessary to start with small steps.

"There are only 20 companies in the world that have the mycelium technology we have. The technology is not complicated but requires years of relentless dedication. It took us 1,000 trials to finally achieve success," she recounted.

In 2022, the female CEO entered the global top 30 in the FoodTech Challenge organized by the UAE government . According to her, the inherent kindness and ability to listen and care for others are unique to women when starting a business.

Ms. Pham Hong Van (second from right) shares her startup story. Photo: RMIT Vietnam

Another advantage women have is that they make up the majority of consumers worldwide, added Xuan Nguyen, a RMIT alumna and co-founder and CEO of audiobook company Fonos. With an empathetic and thoughtful approach, female entrepreneurs can better understand and meet the needs of their same-sex customers, something that men find difficult to grasp. “This gives women great potential to start successful businesses,” she stressed.

Xuan Nguyen also advises future female entrepreneurs to promote their inherent female strengths. Previously, she thought she needed to be dominant and strong to be able to integrate when working with men. However, she soon realized this was the wrong approach.

“I learned to be true to myself, find balance and recognize the unique advantages that I, as a woman, can bring,” she added.

RMIT students attend the "Empowering HERpreneurship" event. Photo: RMIT Vietnam

The speakers also noted that female entrepreneurs face a double challenge: convincing others of their business abilities, while at the same time, believing in themselves. To overcome this obstacle, the team of experts emphasized the importance of recognizing internal barriers and improving self-confidence through continuous learning and knowledge improvement.

Speaker Xuan recounted her journey of coming up with the idea to build her first bakery chain with the ambition of creating a business on a scale comparable to KFC. At that time, she knew how to make a good product but did not know how to build and run a business, how to read financial reports, build a website, manage logistics...

However, later, thanks to the entrepreneurship courses at RMIT, she was equipped with the skills and mindset to build and develop a successful business.

Dr Jung Woo Han added that 60% of students studying Entrepreneurship at RMIT Vietnam are female. This rate is much higher than the rate of women founding and owning businesses in Vietnam (22%).

"I fully believe in a brighter future for female entrepreneurs in Vietnam and in the region," he added.

Nhat Le

Readers interested in business training programs, majoring in Business Startup at RMIT can see more here.

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