Australian Sports Technologies Network (ASTN) and Women in Sports Tech (WiST) released a new report ‘Paving the way for Sports Innovation in Australia’ to recognise and celebrate over 100 women who are leading sports innovation across Australia within government, industry, sporting institutions, universities and high-performance sport within Australia.
What is the mission behind the list?
Commenting on the Power 100+ List, Cam Vale, General Manager at ASTN, said, “The ASTN-WiST Power 100+ list recognises women that are at the heart of Australia’s billion-dollar sportstech industry. We are building one of the world’s most advanced and integrated sports innovations ecosystems and women in sports innovation must be a top strategic priority over the next decade as we move towards the Brisbane 2032 Summer Olympic Games.”
“Research tells us that inclusivity drives innovation and that gender-diverse teams are 25% more likely to generate above-average revenue and profits,” said Marilou McFarlane, CEO and Founder of WiST, experienced leader in the sportstech industry for over 12 years.
“Nearly all job seekers today consider DEI focus to be a requirement, not just a preference. Leadership sets the tone, and we are delighted to support ASTN’s efforts with programs that have proven to provide tangible results over the last six years with over 30 corporate partners, like Nike, the NBA, Comcast NBC Sports, IBM Sports, Titleist, the USOPC etc.”
“We are proud to partner with Women in Sports Tech to shift the culture of sportstech in Australia. Women are still highly unrepresented across the local sportstech sector, and the industry must work together to do more to inspire our next generation of female entrepreneurs and remove barriers. We have a long way to go but by working closely with WiST we hope to help change the ratio and drive real industry change,” Cam Vale added.
What is the Power 100+ List?
The list was compiled by a combination of ASTN workshops, interviews, desktop research and conversations with executive leaders over the past 12 months. ASTN and WiST have focused on the intersection of mostly Aussie-domiciled females working at the intersection of data, digital and tech in Australian Sports Performance, Digitisation and Sports Business.
Gender participation and executive representation of sport in Australia has been a focus of policy makers and industry; however, the representation of female founders and female executives within the fast-growth area of “Sports Innovation” (the intersection of data, digital and technology within Sports, Entertainment, Esports and Digital Health) needs attention with research showing that less than 5% of sports startups in Australia are led by women.
ASTN and WiST are working together to build specialised programs and activities for 2023 – including the launch of ‘Fireside Chats’ with the first webinar ‘Culture Matters’ being held on 22 March, 2023. Register here to join the conversation. The full report ‘Paving the way for Sports Innovation in Australia (Power 100+ List)’ can be downloaded from here. Let’s create the world’s most innovative sportstech environment eager to #ChangeTheRatio
