There was a intriguing article (free registration required) in the Washington Post today about a Northern Virginia entrepreneurial company, Dyscern, which was started as a home-based business by a mom wanting more flexibility and is now expected to post revenues of $12M this year. As the business has grown, CEO Jennifer Canty moved it out of her basement and teamed with her husband Bill Frischling to build their small business. What struck me the most from this article other than the scary parallels between their journey and my own, is the challenges they are seeing are fairly normal for a growing entrepreneurial company. Their experience provides lessons we can all learn from.

1. Communication is key. Even if the top two executives at the firm weren’t married, communication between team members is crucial in a growing company. Dyscern describes their style as “honest without being diplomatic.” The ability to express contrary views honestly stems from a mutual respect and trust among members of the close-knit team.
2. Encourage referrals from employees when hiring. When someone has been working for you, they know the culture and what is required of new employees. What better position from which to recommend future employees? The risk you run is that you get too many ‘like minded’ people on board, but making sure new folks are consistent with your corporate culture is critical, especially when you’re small and growing. In fact, I learned the hard way that cultural fit is as important as skills (if not more so!) when adding to a growing team.
3. Integrating work and life can work, but it doesn’t have to be for everyone. While the owners choose to integrate their work and life, it isn’t forced on the rest of the company. Dyscern often hosts family-oriented events but those who choose to keep work and family separate are able to. It is not a one-size-fits-all approach to work-life balance.

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I was recently honored to speak with a group of women entrepreneurs who were visiting the United States with the International Visitor Leadership Program. This particular group was from the Middle East and Northern Africa (MENA). Of the 12 women, about half spoke English and the rest had the benefit of an Arabic translator.

In the short 90 minutes I was with them, it was amazing the connections we were able to make. From cultures that are light-years away from each other, we found common ground in growing our businesses and, for many of them, trying to raise a family at the same time.

An interesting business question came up that I thought was worth sharing: what should you do when you’re working your way into a business that has been in your family for years? I believe the advice we discussed is applicable to anyone stepping in to take over any business, whether a family business or not:

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