Alice Bentinck
{{Short description|British entrepreneur (born 1986)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2020}}
{{Use British English|date=March 2019}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Alice Bentinck
| image = Alice Bentinck in office.jpg
| caption = Bentinck in 2016
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1986|7|23}}
| birth_place = New Forest, England
| occupation = Entrepreneur
| years_active = 2011–present
| known_for = CEO of Entrepreneur First
Co-founder of Code First: Girls
}}
Alice Yvonne Bentinck{{Cite web|url=https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/officers/Q_cQl7hzNqB-PP4Lnl9Q3M3DWM0/appointments|title=Alice Yvonne BENTINCK - Personal Appointments (Free information from Companies House)}} {{post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100%|MBE}} (born 23 July 1986)[https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/officers/eamluqgLvvxwejECvdD42AJ2D8Y/appointments Companies House]{{cite web |url= http://www.bizstats.co.uk/ltd/entrepreneur-first-founder-gp-limited-SC493957/|title=Entrepreneur First Founder Gp Limited RHU|publisher=bizstats.co.uk|year=2015|accessdate=1 October 2015}} is a British entrepreneur. Along with Matt Clifford she is the co-founder of Entrepreneurs First (EF), a London-based company builder and startup accelerator founded in 2011. EF finds exceptional talent from around the world, and funds them to build exceptional companies.{{Cite web|url=https://www.techinasia.com/entrepreneur-first-demo-day-2017https://www.techinasia.com/entrepreneur-first-demo-day-2017|title=Tech in Asia - Connecting Asia's startup ecosystem|website=www.techinasia.com|language=en-US|access-date=2017-11-21}} In 2017, it was announced that Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn and Partner at Greylock, was leading a $12.4million investment into Entrepreneurs First.{{Cite news |last=Hurley |first=James |date=2017-09-12 |title=Start-up business puts entrepreneurs first |url=https://www.thetimes.com/business-money/companies/article/start-up-programme-puts-the-entrepreneur-first-kldsw5swm |access-date=2017-11-21 |work=The Times |issn=0140-0460}}
Bentinck and Clifford are also the founders of Code First: Girls, an organisation offering free web programming courses for women in university.{{Cite web|url=http://www.codefirstgirls.org.uk/the-team.html|title=The Team|website=Code First: Girls|access-date=2017-11-21|archive-date=7 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200407204258/https://www.codefirstgirls.org.uk/the-team.html|url-status=dead}} An advocate for the entry of more women to the tech field, Bentinck was named one of the Fifty Most Inspiring Women in European Tech by the Inspiring Fifty organisation in 2015.
Early life and education
The daughter of Major Vivian Mark Bentinck, of the Royal Marines (a descendant of Admiral Sir Rudolph Bentinck, Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth, of the Barons Bentinck) and Dr. Miranda Whitehead,Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage 2003, vol. 3, p. 3183 Bentinck grew up in the New Forest region of southern England.{{cite web|url=http://www.themagicelephant.com/we30/|title=Women Entrepreneurs under 30 / Alice Bentinck|publisher=The Magic Elephant|year=2015|accessdate=29 September 2015|archive-date=1 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151001150701/http://www.themagicelephant.com/we30/|url-status=dead}}{{cite web |date=11 October 2013 |title=The Drum 30 under 30 #19: Alice Bentinck, co-founder, Entrepreneur First |url=http://www.thedrum.com/news/2013/10/11/drum-30-under-30-19-alice-bentinck-co-founder-entrepreneur-first |accessdate=30 September 2015 |publisher=The Drum}} She attended the Godolphin School in Salisbury, an all-girls boarding school.{{cite web |url= https://uk.linkedin.com/in/alicebentinck|title=Alice Bentinck|year=2015|accessdate=30 September 2015|publisher=LinkedIn}} There she enrolled in Young Enterprise, creating a business model for handmade purses.{{cite web|url=http://www.businesscloud.co.uk/magazine/an-interview-with-alice-bentinck|title=An Interview with Alice Bentinck|date=2 October 2014|accessdate=30 September 2015|publisher=Business Cloud Magazine|archive-date=1 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151001160416/http://www.businesscloud.co.uk/magazine/an-interview-with-alice-bentinck|url-status=dead}} She then attended the Nottingham University Business School, graduating with a bachelor of arts in management studies, with first-class honours.{{cite web|year=2014|title=Ms Alice Bentinck – Co-founder EF & Code First: Girls|url=http://nff2014.government.fi/documents/341343/345555/Alice+Bentinck.pdf/ae01fc80-490e-429c-b9e7-99b308393c76|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151001155059/http://nff2014.government.fi/documents/341343/345555/Alice+Bentinck.pdf/ae01fc80-490e-429c-b9e7-99b308393c76|archive-date=1 October 2015|publisher=Northern Future Forum|accessdate=30 September 2015}}
Career
Prior to founding EF, Bentinck interned in the office of Tony Blair in London, where she also assisted the Africa Governance Initiative. From 2009 to 2011 she was a management consultant in the London office of McKinsey & Company.{{cite web|url=http://www.inspiringfifty.com/50-inspiring-women-list-2015-eu/ |title=Meet the Fifty Most Inspiring Women in European Tech |publisher=Inspiring Fifty |year=2015 |accessdate=30 September 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150925193629/http://www.inspiringfifty.com/50-inspiring-women-list-2015-eu/ |archive-date=25 September 2015 }}
Bentinck and Clifford met in 2009 while working at McKinsey. After noticing that entrepreneurship was not seen as a viable career option for talented and ambitious individuals in Europe, unlike in Silicon Valley, they decided to found Entrepreneurs First in 2011.{{Cite news|url=https://www.wired.co.uk/article/entrepreneur-first-startup-founders|title=Entrepreneur First turns strangers into startup founders|last=Manthorpe|first=Rowland|access-date=2017-11-21}} Alice initially served as CPO at EF before taking over from Matt as CEO in 2023.{{Cite web |title=Our Team - Entrepreneur First |url=https://www.joinef.com/our-team |access-date=2017-11-21 |website=www.joinef.com |language=en-US}}
Noticing that most individuals applying to Entrepreneurs First were male,{{cite web |url=http://www.thegryphon.co.uk/2014/09/cracking-the-code-an-interview-with-alice-bentinck/ |title=Cracking the Code: An Interview with Alice Bentinck |publisher=The Gryphon |date=September 2014 |accessdate=1 October 2015 |archive-date=5 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151005151943/http://www.thegryphon.co.uk/2014/09/cracking-the-code-an-interview-with-alice-bentinck/ |url-status=dead}} Bentinck and Clifford founded Code First Girls in 2012. The non-profit is the largest provider of free coding courses for women in the UK, delivering over £20 million worth of free technology education and teaching three times as many women to code as the entire UK university undergraduate system.{{Cite web|last=Porter|first=Alice|date=2021-08-03|title=Learn how to code: everything you need to know to get started|url=https://www.stylist.co.uk/life/how-to-code/530131|access-date=2022-02-24|website=Stylist|language=en}} Code First Girls has now taught over 55,000 women to code for free at university level and has significantly impacted the technology landscape. Since 2015, Bentinck has also served on their board{{Cite web|url=http://www.codefirstgirls.org.uk/press-releases/uk-press-release-london-wednesday-7th-april-2015-amali-de-alwis-joins-code-first-girls-as-ceo|title=Amali de Alwis joins Code First: Girls as CEO|website=Code First: Girls|access-date=2017-11-21|archive-date=7 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200407204257/https://www.codefirstgirls.org.uk/press-releases/uk-press-release-london-wednesday-7th-april-2015-amali-de-alwis-joins-code-first-girls-as-ceo|url-status=dead}} and helped raise £4.5M in Series A for them from leading VCs including [https://active.partners Active Partners] and [https://samos.vc Samos investments].
EF's first international office was opened in Singapore in 2016, bringing the same company building model to Asia.{{Cite web |title=Tech in Asia - Connecting Asia's startup ecosystem |url=https://www.techinasia.com/entrepreneur-first-demo-day-2017 |access-date=2017-11-21 |website=www.techinasia.com |language=en-US}}{{Cite news |title=There has never been a better time to build a startup in Singapore |url=https://e27.co/never-better-time-build-startup-singapore-20170821/ |access-date=2017-11-21 |work=e27 |language=en-US}}
In 2017, it was announced that Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn and Partner at Greylock, was leading a $12.4million investment into Entrepreneurs First. As part of his investment, Hoffman also joined the board of EF.{{Cite news |date=2017-09-11 |title=Linkedin's co-founder investing in a London startup hub |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/indyventure/linkedin-reid-hoffman-entrepreneur-first-start-ups-hub-london-a7941196.html |url-access=limited |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170912231438/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/indyventure/linkedin-reid-hoffman-entrepreneur-first-start-ups-hub-london-a7941196.html |archive-date=2017-09-12 |access-date=2017-11-21 |work=The Independent |language=en-GB}}
In December 2023, it was announced that Bentinck would take over as CEO of Entrepreneurs First after Matt Clifford stepped down from the role to concentrate on opportunities in artificial intelligence.{{Cite web |last=Scammell |first=Robert |date=5 December 2023 |title=Matt Clifford steps down as Entrepreneur First CEO to focus on AI |url=https://www.uktech.news/ai/matt-clifford-steps-down-entrepreneur-first-ceo-ai-20231205 |website=UKTN}}
As of 2025 Entrepreneurs First's combined portfolio is worth over $11b with global sites in London, Paris, Bangalore, New York and San Francisco.{{cite web |last= |first= |date=20 September 2015 |title=About Us - Entrepreneur First |url=https://www.joinef.com/about/ |accessdate=1 October 2015 |work=Entrepreneur First}}
Other activities
In 2014 Bentinck was appointed one of the Prime Minister's advisors for the Northern Future Forum in Helsinki.
She has been a member of the advisory board of Founders4Schools since April 2014, and a member of the Computer Science Department Industrial Liaison Board at Imperial College London since April 2015. In September 2015 she became a mentor for Girls in Tech London.{{cite web|url=http://www.techworld.com/news/startups/girls-in-tech-london-launches-mentoring-programme-bump-women-up-boards-3625109/|title=Girls in Tech London launches exclusive mentoring programme backed by Google, Amazon and Spotify execs|first=Sam|last=Shead|date=9 September 2015|accessdate=1 October 2015|work=Tech World|archive-date=2 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151002060045/http://www.techworld.com/news/startups/girls-in-tech-london-launches-mentoring-programme-bump-women-up-boards-3625109/|url-status=dead}}
From 2019-2022 Alice was served as a committee member of the UK AI Council, as part of a group of business and tech leaders that provided advice to the UK Government and high-level leadership on the Artificial Intelligent ecosystem. Other members of the committee included Chris Bishop, Microsoft Technical Fellow and Director of the Microsoft Research Lab in Cambridge and Mustafa Suleyman cofounder of DeepMind.
In 2022 and 2023, Alice was announced as a member of Prime Ministers Boris Johnson and later Rishi Sunak's Business Council, a group of industry leaders working in partnership with the government to deliver high productivity and growth in the UK.{{Cite web |date=February 2022 |title=PM assembles new cohort of business leaders to turbocharge UK economy |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/news/pm-assembles-new-cohort-of-business-leaders-to-turbocharge-uk-economy |access-date=2022-02-24 |website=GOV.UK |language=en}} The Council works in partneship with the Government, to unlock investment, harness innovation and improve access to skills and talent.
In 2022 Alice co-authored the book, ‘[https://howtobeafounder.com How to be a Founder],’ with Matt Clifford as an essential guide on how entrepreneurs can identify, fund, and launch their best ideas. The book was published by Bloomsbury, the publisher behind Harry Potter, and won the 2023 award for Best Startup Book at the Business Book Awards.
Honours and awards
In 2015 Alice was named one of the Fifty Most Inspiring Women in European Tech by the Inspiring Fifty organisation.
In 2013 she was ranked No. 19 on The Drum{{'s}} "30 Under 30 Women in Digital" list. She was a Top 25 finalist in the Tech City Movers and Shakers 2013{{cite web |year=2015 |title=Announcing the Tech City Top 25 |url=http://techcitynews.com/2013/12/13/announcing-the-tech-city-top-25/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150609010021/http://techcitynews.com/2013/12/13/announcing-the-tech-city-top-25/ |archive-date=9 June 2015 |accessdate=1 October 2015 |publisher=Tech City News}} and the Girls in Tech Ones to Watch 2013.{{cite web |title=Alice Bentinck, co-Founder, Entrepreneur First |url=http://www.digital-entrepreneur.co.uk/alice-bentinck.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151004015607/http://www.digital-entrepreneur.co.uk/alice-bentinck.html |archive-date=4 October 2015 |accessdate=1 October 2015 |publisher=Digital Entrepreneur Awards}}
In 2014 she was named to several newspaper and magazine lists. She was named one of "The 1000 – London's Most Influential People" by the London Evening Standard,{{cite web|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/news/the1000/the-1000-londons-most-influential-people-2014-tech-stars-9780818.html |title=The 1000 – London's most influential people 2014: Tech stars|date=16 October 2014|accessdate=1 October 2015|work=London Evening Standard}} one of the "35 Women Under 35" by Management Today,{{cite web |url= http://www.managementtoday.co.uk/go/35-women-under-35-2014|title='I Was Told People Like Me Didn't Go To Oxford|publisher=Management Today|year=2014|accessdate=1 October 2015}} and was cited as a "Rising Star" by Computer Weekly as part of their 2014 Most Influential Women in UK IT campaign.{{cite web |url=http://www.computerweekly.com/photostory/2240223724/Rising-Stars-2014-Most-Influential-Women-in-UK-IT/4/Alice-Bentinck-co-founder-Entrepreneur-First|title= Alice Bentinck, co-founder Entrepreneur First|first=Kayleigh|last=Bateman|date=7 July 2014|accessdate=30 September 2015|work=Computer Weekly}} Additionally, the British Interactive Media Association included her on its BIMA Hot 100 of 2014.{{cite web |url= http://issuu.com/bima-awards/docs/bima-hot100-book/9|title=The BIMA Hot 100, 2014|year=2014|accessdate=1 October 2015|publisher=British Interactive Media Association}}
Bentinck was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2016 Birthday Honours for services to business.{{London Gazette|issue=61608|supp=y|page=B16|date=11 June 2016}}
In 2017, Bentinck was named by Computer Weekly as one of the most influential women in UK IT.{{Cite news|url=http://www.computerweekly.com/news/450427323/Computer-Weekly-announces-the-Most-Influential-Women-in-UK-IT-2017|title=Computer Weekly announces the Most Influential Women in UK IT 2017|work=ComputerWeekly.com|access-date=2017-11-21|language=en-GB}} She was again named by the London Evening Standard as one of London's most influential people in the Progress 1000: Capitalisers/Entrepreneurs category.{{Cite news|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/news/the1000/the-progress-1000-londons-most-influential-people-2017-capitalisers-entrepreneurs-a3655251.html|title=Progress 1000: Entrepreneurs|work=Evening Standard|access-date=2017-11-21|language=en-GB}}
Personal
Bentinck has participated in competitive carriage driving since her youth.
Selected articles
- {{cite web |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/alice-bentinck/taking-the-plunge_b_8175000.html|title=Taking the Plunge|date=22 September 2015|work=The Huffington Post}}
- {{cite web|url=http://realbusiness.co.uk/article/31389-stop-doing-pointless-networking|title=Stop Doing Pointless Networking|date=16 September 2015|work=Real Business|access-date=30 September 2015|archive-date=5 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305005739/http://realbusiness.co.uk/article/31389-stop-doing-pointless-networking|url-status=dead}}
- {{cite web |url=http://www.techworld.com/blog/turning-techies-into-founders/how-can-uk-build-more-deep-tech-startups-3620218/|title=How Can the UK Build More Deep Tech Startups?|date=21 July 2015|work=Tech World |last1=Bentinck |first1=Alice }}
- {{cite web |url=http://www.techworld.com/blog/turning-techies-into-founders/youre-doing-lean-wrong-3618004/|title=You're Doing Lean Wrong|date=30 June 2015|work=Tech World}}
- {{cite web |url=http://www.techworld.com/blog/turning-techies-into-founders/rip-accelerators-3613790/|title=RIP Accelerators?|date=1 June 2015|work=Tech World}}
- {{cite web |url=http://www.techworld.com/blog/turning-techies-into-founders/build-product-not-startup-3609586/|title=Build a Product, Not a Startup|date=27 April 2015|work=Tech World}}
- {{cite web |url=http://www.techworld.com/blog/turning-techies-into-founders/why-backing-technical-founders-is-way-forward-3607721/|title=Why Backing Technical Founders is the Way Forward|date=14 April 2015|work=Tech World}}
- "Style and Facebook: Promoting Women Role Models{{Cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.com/life-style/article/style-and-facebook-promoting-women-role-models-93cs6xf0z|title=Style and Facebook: Promoting Women Role Models|website=The Times|last1=Britten|first1=Fleur}}"
References
{{Reflist|30em}}
External links
- {{Twitter}}
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s86Xvq9hEuM "Be a Founder, Not a Follower"] 27 September 2014 speech
- [http://www.careergirldaily.com/five-entrepreneurial-lessons-from-alice-bentinck-the-founder-of-entrepreneur-first/ "Five Entrepreneurial Lessons From Alice Bentinck, The Founder Of Entrepreneur First"] Career Girl Daily, 24 July 2015
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bentinck, Alice}}
Category:English women in business
Category:British technology company founders
Category:British women company founders
Category:Alumni of the University of Nottingham
Category:People from New Forest District
Category:People educated at Godolphin School