Don’t Call Me a Founder – I’m a Female Founder
Originally published by Hannah Cranston for Fortune
There’s been a growing movement among women in business to reject the term “female founder.” The argument is that their work should stand on its own merit, free from what feels like a DEI qualifier—a dirty word in this political climate. It’s a backlash similar to what we saw with “girl boss” (beyond its toxic hustle culture connotation), with women responding with a resounding: “I’m not a girl boss. I’m just a boss.” The thinking is clear: We don’t call men “male founders,” so why should women be labeled differently?
But what if we’re missing the point?
The resistance to the term is understandable. For years, female entrepreneurs have had to fight for recognition in a landscape that often treats them as anomalies rather than leaders in their own right. The assumption underlying the label “female founder” often carries the weight of tokenism rather than distinction. It suggests that being a woman in business is the defining characteristic of success, rather than the ability to innovate, build, and lead.