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In 2019, I joined a group of entrepreneurial women with one bold goal: to create the only bank in the country strategically built to close the gender lending gap. That vision became First Womens Bank. We were motivated by the numbers, and the opportunity to drive change. Women are transforming the economy in this country, owning over 14 million businesses representing 39% of all businesses, employing over 12 million people and generating $2.7 trillion. But despite this momentum, women are still not accessing the capital at equal rates as men. Women receive just 16% of commercial bank loansand only 4.4% of total dollars lent in the small business economy. That is the gender lending gap. It is layered. It is complex. But it is also highly addressable. Every business owner is unique, so we dont paint all women-owned businesses with a broad brush. But when you look at the data, a few patterns emerge. Understand the financing options First, many women simply arent connecting with the right forms of commercial capital. We often see women over-relying on personal credit tools when starting out, and sometimes throughout the life of their business. That might mean using credit cards, personal savings, or home equity lines to keep the business afloat. While resourceful, this approach is also limiting, and it can hurt their ability to qualify for commercial debt financing down the line. At the other end of the spectrum, we see women running high performing, growing firms turning to equity financing to fund expansion. Sometimes, depending on the industry or the companys life stage, thats the right call. But in many cases, it isnt. Some women may not be aware of their other options or realize that a competitively priced commercial loan can be a more cost-effective way to finance growth. This has real consequences. Studies show that on average, women founders retain just 48 cents of equity for every $1 retained by male business owners. Think about that: Women are overcoming obstacles, building successful companies, and then only owning half of their own success. We believe that needs to change. Our goal is to connect with women earlier in their business journey. Were encouraging them to think about commercial financing not just as a last resort, but as a strategic tool for growth. Education and outreach Over the years, weve also seen that women feel left behind in the lending process. They want to make informed financial decisions, but when the information or guidance isnt accessible, they get discouraged and disconnect from the process entirely. Imagine the potential if women could double or triple their access to capital, the ripple effect across jobs, communities, would be transformationalnot just for women, but for the entire U.S. economy. So, we rolled up our sleeves. We strategized, we led, and we built. Over two years, we raised nearly $40 millionthe most ever raised by a startup bank in Illinois. We launched in 2021 with a simple mission: to grow the economy by elevating the role of women within it. And from the start, investors and partners saw the power in what we were doing. Our success is rooted in that clarity of purpose. It takes a village But from the beginning, we knew we werent going to do this alone. It takes a village. Our ability to lend and support women-owned businesses is powered by deposits, and weve been fortunate to partner with some of the largest and most respected companies in the country. These organizations support First Womens Bank by holding zero interest deposits with us, creating real impact with their cash. The corporate mission partnerships are a concrete way for companies to bank with their values, support gender equity, and strengthen financial inclusion. We also knew we needed the right advocates at the table, leaders who could help amplify our mission on a national level. Thats why we created our Strategic Advisory Board, made up of lifelong champions of equality who have helped bring national attention to the power and potential of the womens economy. Billie Jean King, Sophia Bush, Nia Batts, Allyson Felix, and Wes Felix have all been instrumental in our journey. The solution is layered So, while the gender lending gap has many causes, it also has clear solutions. It starts with access. It grows through education. It scales through capital. And it thrives through partnership. This work is deeply personal to me. Throughout my career, Ive seen how often women are underestimated and how often we underestimate ourselves. Ive also seen what happens when women access the tools, the capital, and the support they need: They thrive, they lift others, and they transform communities. Thats why Im here. Thats why this bank exists. And when women rise, we all rise. Marianne Markowitz is president and CEO of First Women’s Bank.
Category:
E-Commerce
Indoor toilets were once considered a health hazard. Electric lighting sparked fears of deadly fires. Air conditioning was dismissed as an unnatural threat to human health. It seems absurd now, but each of these technologiesnow fundamental to modern buildingswas initially met with widespread skepticism and resistance. Today, we’re seeing history repeat itself with water reuse. As the United States grapples with an escalating water crisis, a powerful solution is gaining momentum. Buildings can intelligently capture, treat, and reuse their own wastewater by leveraging advanced technology, data analytics, and automation to optimize every step of the water reuse process. These smart systems continuously monitor water quality and usage, automatically adjusting treatment processes to ensure safety and efficiency. While current regulations limit this recycled water to non-potable applications, the reality is that water from these systems is often treated to a level that is scientifically safe enough to drink. This isnt about compromiseits about building smarter, managing water as a circular resource, and using it where its needed most, all within the building itself. This innovation comes at a critical moment. Nearly 45% of the lower 48 states are currently experiencing drought conditions, with the Southwest and Plains regions particularly hard-hit. Major water systems like the Colorado River and Lake Mead face unprecedented strain, while aquifers supplying 90% of U.S. water systems are depleting at alarming rates. Climate change only compounds these challenges by intensifying evaporation and disrupting weather patterns, leading to both extreme droughts and devastating floods.At the same time, water and sewer rates are skyrocketing as municipalities invest billions to upgrade aging infrastructure and manage dwindling supplies. For buildings, this translates into rising operational costs and growing pressure to adopt more resilient, cost-effective solutions. Against this backdrop, onsite water reuse represents not just an innovative approach but an increasingly necessary one. And predictably, some people may feel uneasy with onsite water reuse, mostly because of perception, unfamiliarity, and the natural human tendency to be cautious about new technologies, especially those involving health and safety. But history shows us that discomfort is often just the first chapter in a story that ends with “How did we ever live without this?” The path from rejection to necessity History keeps repeating itself when it comes to building innovation. Take indoor plumbingpeople fought against it tooth and nail in the 1800s. Public health officials, guided by the now-debunked miasma theorythe belief that disease was spread by “bad air” rather than germsinsisted that human waste had to be kept outside the home. Ironically, their reliance on cesspools and open sewers only fueled the spread of deadly diseases like cholera and typhoid, which ravaged entire cities Only as modern sewage systems developed and germ theory took hold did attitudes finally shift. Indoor toilets, once feared as harbingers of disease, gradually became celebrated as symbols of sanitation and progress. Today, their presence is so fundamental that we’ve collectively forgotten they were ever controversial at all. Electric lighting faced similar resistance. Before it lit up our lives, it sparked public panic. Newspapers churned out stories about people getting electrocuted or going blind. The infamous War of the Currents between Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla only heightened public anxiety, with Edison going so far as to publicly electrocute animals to paint Teslas alternating current (AC) as a deadly force. Yet within a generation, those same lights became the very symbol of human advancement. Resistance gave way to adoption, and eventually to total dependence. Then there’s air conditioning. Doctors once warned it would make us soft and sickly. In the early 1950s, the National Association of Home Builders and the University of Texas partnered to create the Austin Air-Conditioned Villagea real neighborhood built to study how everyday families would adapt to living with air conditioning. Six homes were equipped with A/C, while others were left uncooled. Researchers tracked not just energy usage, but human behavior, comfort, and social response. Some participants worried about health effects, while others complained that the cooled air attracted scorpions and other desert pests. But over time, skepticism gave way to comfort, and the experiment helped lay the groundwork for widespread adoption. Now more than 90% of American homes have A/C, and places like Phoenix or Miami would lose millions of residents without it. What was once considered risky has become absolutely essential. Water reuse is gaining popularity Our centralized water infrastructure is showing its age. Pipes laid a century ago are failing. Treatment plants designed for consistent climate patterns are buckling under the pressure of intensifying droughts, floods, and wildfires. Meanwhile, commercial and residential buildings account for the majority of urban water useyet a significant portion of that demand is for non-potable applications like toilet flushing, irrigation, and cooling, which dont require pristine drinking water quality. Onsite water reuse offers a compelling alternative. With todays technology, buildings and industry can recycle up to 95% of their wastewater. This approach strengthens sustainability, enhances resilience, and increasingly improves the bottom line. San Francisco has already made water reuse mandatory for larger developments. Other cities such as Los Angeles and Austin are creating incentives or updating building codes. Forward-thinking developers aren’t waiting for mandates; they’re embracing water reuse to meet sustainability commitments and future-proof their investments. Still, old habits and perceptions persist. Some people instinctively recoil at the idea of treated wastewater, even when it’s used exclusively for non-potable purposes. But both the data and the historical pattern are clear about where we’re headed. The lifecycle of transformative technology Every transformative building technology follows a predictable journey: First comes resistance: “You want me to put what inside my building?” Then adoption: “Actually, this solves a real problem quite elegantly.” Followed by mandates and markets: “New code requires it, and buyers expect it.” Finally, normalization: “Remember when buildings didn’t have his?” Onsite water reuse is already transitioning from the second to the third phaseand picking up speed. Soon enough, we’ll look back at the practice of flushing toilets with drinking water with the same bewilderment we now feel about houses without indoor plumbing. The real question isn’t whether onsite water reuse will become standard practice. It’s how quickly we can make the leap from outrageous to obvious. Aaron Tartakovsky is the CEO and co-founder of Epic Cleantec.
Category:
E-Commerce
I would argue that the most important indicator of a brands health is customer loyalty. For leaders, building and sustaining strong customer loyalty is the holy grail. Leaders talk a lot about how to win customer loyalty, and sometimes that could mean getting caught up in chasing the newest shiny object, silver bullet, or trend. To avoid that chase, I’ve made a point of rooting myself in an approach that sounds basic on the surface, but is truly transformative: making customers the true center of every decision. This isn’t a reactive strategy during tough timesit’s a proactive philosophy that builds resilience and clarity before you need it. When you remain centered on prioritizing customer needs and experiences, you create a foundation of trust and understanding that fosters long-term loyalty. The human connection in a digital world Technology has improved access to customers in a lot of ways, but it has also created distance. I got to thinking about this after reading a recent LinkedIn post from my colleague Dennis Kozak, written after he toured colleges with his daughter. He said his daughter could sense which interactions felt authentic versus those that were rote, detached, and rehearsed.” These were in-person interactions, which should be immune to detachment. But weve all become so accustomed to digitally-driven detachment that it seems our interpersonal standards have shifted. The innate ability to detect authenticity isn’t limited to campus toursit’s fundamental to every interaction, especially customer interactions. I am all for the efficiencies gained from AI chatbots, automated systems, and digital interfaces, yet there needs to be a balance between technology and the human element to effectively build true connections. When everyone uses the same technology solutions, genuine human engagement becomes your true differentiator. Demonstrating your ability to understand and connect is crucial in maintaining strong connections with others and is ultimately best left to people, not machines. These qualities foster loyalty, trust, and genuine relationships. Use values as your customer compass The principles that guide your personal decisions should extend to how you prioritize customer needs. I’ve found that grounding myself in integrity, authenticity, and teamwork creates a framework for customer-centric decision making. Integrity means doing what’s right for customers, evenand especiallywhen facing tough choices and challenging times. Making customers central means that the choice becomes clear if you are making hard choices that prioritize their needs over short-term business interests. Every commitment represents an opportunity to demonstrate that you genuinely value their success as much as your own. Authenticity kind of sounds like corporate buzz speak, but to me, its very real. It shows up as consistency between what you promise and what you deliver. Back on campus, Dennis said people can immediately tell which representatives were “passionate about the school and genuinely wanted her to be part of it versus those monotoning from a script while thinking about how soon they could be done with the conversation.” Weve all had customer experiences where we felt like the person on the other side was just going through the motions, right? And I hope weve all had the opposite experience, too, when we truly felt seen and heard, like our experience mattered. What a difference! See beyond immediate transactions One great (or terrible) interaction can make or break a customer relationship, but the strongest customer relationships are built over time with consistent engagement. These bonds form when you demonstrate understanding beyond the immediate problem. For example, if a customer contacts your company because theyre frustrated about a glitch, its important to address the glitch. But its not just about the glitch. Its about the lost productivity, the time spent needing to find contact info and reach out, and concerns about whether they can trust the product in the future. What can you do about that? Technology can actually enhance this understanding when applied thoughtfully. While AI raises legitimate concerns about depersonalization, I’ve found it can be an unexpected ally in customer centricity when used to augment rather than replace human judgment. By synthesizing different viewpoints from across the organization, we develop more effective responses that truly address customer needs when responding to complex situations. Technology can improve the functional aspects of customer experiences while humans address the intangible elements. Humanize the digital experience As technology continues to rise toward dominance, I think were at an inflection point: Do we allow digital efficiency to create emotional distance, or deliberately design human connection into every touchpoint? This balance between humans and machines doesn’t happen accidentally. It requires deliberately designing customer journeys that incorporate genuine human touchpoints at pivotal momentsespecially during those times when trust is tested and either strengthened or broken. When you put customer needs first in good times and in bad (not to sound like wedding vows here!), customers trust that their needs remain your priority, no matter what. These customers are so much more likely to ride out tough times with you and not only stay loyal to the company, but serve as vocal brand advocates who share their experience with others. Now that is the holy grail. Melissa Puls is chief marketing officer and SVP of customer success and renewals of Ivanti.
Category:
E-Commerce
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