Simple Steps presents an interview series introducing inspiring women’s communities and companies that solve difficult problems in the name of solidarity. The second interview was with SWIK, Startup Women in Korea. We met with Community Leader, Kim Jiyoung, Editor Team Lead, Gu Ahjung, Organizer Team Lead, Jang Seoin, Community Manager, Woo Jihee in July 2021.

Q: How did SWIK start? What kind of problem did you try to solve?

Jiyoung: SWIK (Startup Women in Korea) started as a Facebook group in November 2017 and has grown to over 5,800 members. We publish newsletters about our community and members. We connect women in startups and send out stories about them, hoping to make a healthier startup ecosystem. SWIK, as a speaker and a messenger, spreads words about amazing women working at startups and shares various contents about the startup industry.

Q: The number of SWIK’s members grew a lot. Can you introduce your community members?

Jiyoung: 50 percent of our members are currently working at startups in various roles, including marketing, design, software engineering, and product development. Founders or future founders make another 30 percent. They want to share their expertise in running a company and exchange ideas with other leaders. The rest are other industry affiliates, such as investors and reporters, who always want to stay up-to-date with startups. There are also college students and other people interested in a future career in startups.

Ahjung: Many of our community members are actually in a very similar situation to Jiyoung. It was hard to find a married woman who had a solid career at a startup, and she needed a community like like-minded people. Many women in our community, especially women with three to five years of experience, are curious to find out how other married women or women raising children were maintaining their careers at a startup.

Q: How do people find out about SWIK?

Jiyoung: We deliver our stories in various ways such as newsletters and Brunch, the Korean equivalent of WordPress, so we can be easily found in search results. We recently started an event at Tumblebug, a fundraising platform, which is another great way to increase our reach. Many people also find us from keyword searches or Facebook recommendations.

Jihee: We have an increasing number of college students in our Facebook community. I myself was a college student until recently, and I got to work at SWIK while looking for opportunities at startups. More people are becoming curious about startups. Although the media talks about the startup industry a lot, I often find the information limited. Many people visit our community looking for helpful resources lacking in traditional media.

Seoin: Just like Jiyoung, I had difficulty finding a work-life balance as a married woman, and I needed a community for the same reason as her. I felt lost and wanted to find a role model. I think more and more people find our community, who are facing the same issue and are resolute to solve it.

Q: What is the issue SWIK focuses on?

Jiyoung: Our vision is to see at least one woman founder out of three in Korean startups. The current figure is reported to be less than 10 percent. When I participate in conferences or events, I see only three women out of 50 people. Other women founders tell me similar stories. I’d like to encourage more women to believe that working at a startup or starting a startup can be a promising career.

Right now, startup culture in Korea is focused on male software developers in their 20s. We create content that raises gender awareness and focuses on companies with a balanced gender ratio of employees and C-level executives. We also talk about what is necessary for men and women to create a healthy workplace environment and try to introduce various management cases, and not only focus on women-targeting startups.

Ahjung: SWIK’s keywords are connectivity, cooperation, and diversity. There are women as well as men in the workplace, so we speak up about what is necessary for both men and women to thrive together. Many employers also come to our community seeking best practices. I met a C-level male executive who wanted to find out what kind of benefit he has to offer for his female employees. We are not an organization trying to regard men and women as enemies.

Q: SWIK is the only community in Korea that participated in the Facebook Community Leaders Conference. What’s unique and special about SWIK?

Jiyoung: We are in a niche market. Women’s communities and women’s leadership are broader terms, but women in startups only represent a small group. Therefore, we can identify the needs and demands of this segment very quickly. This is our greatest advantage and key characteristic.

Our community values solidarity, so the members are kind and generous. Our members comprise not only women in startups but also future founders, students, and anyone who wants to get involved in the scene, so SWIK acts as a venue to communicate and support each other as well as a platform to promote themselves.

Q: You mentioned the core values of SWIK. Has anything changed since the start? What does SWIK intend to expand and develop more?

Seoin: I think we became a stable, long-running community because we had a clear goal. There were suggestions to focus more on for-profit activities, but we stayed our course, focusing on our visions. This seems to have contributed to our success as a community.

Jiyoung: Compared to 4 years ago, more investors recognize women founders. I think the perception is starting to change now. For example, a firm investing in 20 companies didn’t even question that there wasn’t a single woman founder in their portfolios. Now, people pay attention to gender equality or diversity, and more investors pay attention to the gender ratio in their portfolios.

People in the community have different needs, such as promoting their business, recruiting or seeking jobs, finding a business partner, and so on. This is natural in a community, and we will remain open for people to fulfill their needs. One member succeeded in

There are many people in our community who want different things—advertise, recruit, or find a business partner. These are the benefits of a community. We will continue to provide opportunities to exchange ideas and information. We had many offline gatherings before the Covid-19 pandemic. I heard one member got a job thanks to another member after meeting each other at the gathering. It is important for us to support our members and provide similar opportunities so that people can do things together within our community.

Q. How do you find resources to fund your programs and activities?

Jiyoung: That’s something people ask a lot. Many want to advertise on our newsletters and banner ads and ask to be featured on our promoted content. Our income is mainly our ad revenue and B2G profits, such as hosting an event. The community itself hardly generates any income.

Q. Say someone just donated ten million dollars to SWIK. How would you use the money?

Jiyoung: What we really want to do is to support and educate women founders. We could be an accelerator or investor. There are many future founders in our community, but the ones who really need help are fledgling founders. SWIK can first and foremost identify their needs, so we can help them better. Our community is always available for them and we can reach out fast.

Ahjung: We’ve been talking about having chapters outside of Seoul for the last few years. Many things are concentrated only in Seoul. Even Pangyo, which is known as the Korean Silicon Valley, is not ideal for small companies, and only big companies such as Naver thrive there. I think it is necessary to expand to other areas. If we have money, we can organize local chapters at places like Busan, Jeju, or even Silicon Valley, which is our ultimate goal! (Simple Steps would be excited to meet SWIK in Silicon Valley!)

Seoin: I’d like to find more hidden talents and make an agency or platform where they can act as mentors and lecturers. Simply thinking of ten million dollars makes me feel good.

Jihee: If we do everything Jiyoung, Ahjung, and Seoin say with ten million dollars, we will be able to receive the next round of funding.

Jiyoung: I think investing in people is crucial. It’s not easy to work voluntarily without getting properly compensated. But our team members have been doing just that. I’ll invest in our team members first if I have ten million.

Q. Ten million dollars can make you happy, right? Now, back to reality: what do you plan for the rest of this year?

Jiyoung: I needed a community when I worked at a startup as a marketer, so I started SWIK. Now, running SWIK has replaced my main job, so I am not sure what I am anymore. Am I a social activist or businesswoman? My conclusion was that I was both. As a community manager and businesswoman, I want to create a successful new service and receive more funding. It’s time for me to grow as a founder.

Ahjung: I want to spread words about SWIK and also inspire our community members with our team’s strong identity and confidence.

Seoin: When I put up a notice to find a mentor or a lecturer, most applicants are men who are eager to promote themselves. Korean women tend to shy away, even though they are more than capable of lecturing or mentoring. I think women tend to limit themselves without realizing it. I think we need to change our mindset, and I hope to do that in our community.

Q. I see many job postings on SWIK’s Facebook page recently. Do you plan to expand SWIK’s role in recruiting?

Jiyoung: I am open to the possibility of our role in recruiting, although I think for-profit activities can damage the spirit of the community and be detrimental in the long run. While our top priority lies in our role as a community and in creating content, we are trying to start a new recruiting service based on insights that we have gained from community members and running SWIK.

Q. What do you envision for SWIK’s future?

Jihee: Many people dream of starting their own business these days, but they don’t know how or where to start. They don’t know any people, and few resources are available. Starting a new business may be a bumpy road full of risks, but SWIK wants to inspire and support those people.

Jiyoung: I think a lot about women’s leadership, and I believe it’s crucial to inspire and motivate students and people in their 20s. People who have worked in traditional enterprises tend to have a hard time thinking outside the box. That is why I want to focus more on helping young people, in college or even high school, with practical tips.

Jihee: I think working at startups is special in itself. I want to introduce more people in the startup scene to our community and inspire our members with their career paths.

Jiyoung: I hope to stay in touch with Simple Steps. I think people in Silicon Valley might also be curious about Korean startups.

Interview date: July 13, 2021

Interviewed by: Teri Park, Hyekyung Lee, Bokyung Kim, and Doyeon Kim
Written by: Jiyoon Yoo
Edited by: Hyekyung Lee and Doyeon Kim

WE GROW TOGETHER Interview Series - SWIK

[Coffee Chat] Conversation with author Lee Jinmin

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