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Do Indian female entrepreneurs find help more easily from men?

A debate was sparked at a Dell female entrepreneur's networking event, over whether help from their male counterparts was more accessible as women were "not so forthcoming" or because of an imbalance in available talent.
Written by Mahesh Sharma, Correspondent

BANGALORE, India: Indian female entrepreneurs are forced to reach out to men for support and advice because of a lack of resources and talent.

do-indian-female-entrepreneurs-get-help-more-easily-from-men
Dell's Women Founders Breakfast was held last week in Bangalore.

Anu Sharma, founder of The HR Practice and former global human resources lead at Indian outsourcer iGate, said that it was easier to reach out to a man for advice rather than another woman.

"Women are more difficult to reach than men. Men will talk immediately whereas I've found that women are not so forthcoming," Sharma said, during the Dell's Women Founders Breakfast here last week. This was a lead up to the international Women's Entrepreneur Network (DWEN) event in Turkey next month.
 
The statement sparked a passionate debate amongst the some 50 attendees.
 
Sidhu Kumar, who founded IT marketing firm Prayag Communications, said the imbalance was because male professional networks and entrepreneurs vastly outnumbered their female counterparts.
 
However, she said that many women have supported her, particularly as they became her clients. "I didn't go out seeking women. It was just serendipity," Kumar said.
 
She said the way that women built relationships was very different to men, who were obsessed with scale and funding. "That's one way of doing it. But for us, looking at all the people in this room, I don't feel odd or awkward about my business. No one is looking at size. Everyone appreciates the effort, and wants to know what they can help you with."
 
Dell marketing director Ritu Gupta, earlier in the day pointed out the event was a different type of networking event. "You can feel a kind of warm engagement in this room. There is honesty and candor in freely sharing our news," she said.
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