Survival of the Industry Fittest

Abstract: This study aims to provide more knowledge about gender bias in venture capital funding and dig deeper into the regulatory focus of questions that venture capitalists ask entrepreneurs. The goal of the study is to see if the regulatory focus changes depending on the gender of the founder and the perceived industry fit of the founder. Through conducting interviews, the study aims to provide further knowledge in the above-mentioned area. The analysis of the study shows that there is a tendency for gender industry fit in combination with an entrepreneurial fit to affect the regulatory focus in the questions venture capitalists ask founders. The results of the study point at women being perceived as more ill-fitting in a male-coded industry than men in female-coded industries.