Episode Summary:
Leslie is the Indigenous Entrepreneurship Director at Minderoo Foundation, an Australian not-for-profit organisation seeking effective, scalable solutions to persistent problems. Leslie’s role at Minderoo is part of their Generation One initiative, with the goal of creating employment parity with and for Indigenous Australians. Leslie also founded DreamSpark, a tech, investment and Web 3.0 enterprise, and co-founded Covocate, a HR Tech platform that helps companies identify their best job candidates. In his conversation with Adam, Leslie discusses some of the unique challenges facing Indigenous founders, as well as what he sees as the role of government in the startup ecosystem.
Chapters:
00:00 Introduction to Day One Podcast
00:31 Meet Les Delaforce
01:00 Overview of Minderoo Foundation
01:47 Transition from Startups to Non-Profit
02:05 Les's Journey into the Startup Ecosystem
03:16 The Ecosystem Landscape in 2014-2015
04:07 Backdoor Listings and Capital Raising
05:17 Support Organizations in WA
06:36 The Rise of Coworking Spaces
08:05 Current Gaps in the Ecosystem
09:03 Unique Challenges for Indigenous Entrepreneurs
13:16 Support for Indigenous Founders
14:24 Strengths of the Australian Ecosystem
15:21 Rise of New Venture Funds
18:48 Government's Role in the Startup Ecosystem
20:32 Attractiveness of the Startup Ecosystem
22:52 Transitioning from Politics to Startups
24:31 Advice for Founders
25:50 Changes in the Ecosystem Over the Last 12 Years
27:01 Crowdfunding and Indigenous Startups
30:00 Final Thoughts on Access and Opportunity
