Analysis

Perhaps it’s women’s natural instinct to nurture or maybe high-impact entrepreneurs know that you can’t sustain rapid growth without employees who deliver excellent products and customer service. It’s both, according to Marsha Firestone, President of the Women Presidents’ Organization (WPO), which compiled a list of the 50 Fastest Growing Women-Owned/led Companies in North America sponsored by American Express OPEN, it’s both.

What you don’t know can hurt you, especially if what you don’t know leaves your business back in the 20th century while your customers are well on their way into the 21st.

In that case, you are losing opportunities to grow, to reduce costs, and to build customer loyalty.

Moms aren’t the only ones asking for more flexibility in the workplace these days. Men, Gen Y, and Baby Boomers are making the same demand. But what works for one doesn’t work all and what works for the business matters, too.

Read all of How Changing Corporate Culture Is Good for Business and Employees on Forbes.

Some 80 percent of women entrepreneurs were girl scouts once. Maybe that's not just a coincidence.

There’s a shortage of women leaders. One organization thinks it has the formula for fixing that.

Girl Scouts: They already have an impressive track record. More than two thirds of U.S. Congress women and an incredible 80% of women business owners were Girl Scouts.

Read all of Want Women Leaders? Start with Girls on Forbes.

Getting enough cash to carry your business through its start-up years is tough. Family, friends, and credit cards can only stretch so far yet you may be inviting failure if you under-capitalize. Venture capitalists often want businesses that are already revenue positive with fast growth potential, which leaves a lot of entrepreneurs without recourse.

Read all of Social Enterprises Give Philanthropists a New Way to Do Good on Forbes.

Research shows that women exaggerate the skills they need to succeed. For women entrepreneurs, that could be a problem.

Women-owned businesses start life with a third less capital than those owned by men. Some female entrepreneurs say it's partly the owners' fault.