WISDOM OF WOMEN

THE WOMEN OF THIS YEAR’S FEMALE FOUNDERS 100 SHARE THE LESSONS THEY’VE LEARNED FROM BEING FIRST, FEARLESS, AND FORMIDABLE.

Kabir Barday – Cookie Monster

Kabir Barday, founder of OneTrust, is a first-generation American entrepreneur— and was early to realize that online privacy laws are creating a massive new market.

Instacanvas – Living The Dream

Matt Munson faced down entrepreneurship’s hidden demons— loneliness, depression, and a crippling fear of failure—and emerged as a great leader and a better person. Now, he wants to help you do the same.

Best Parts – Do You Have What It Takes to Be a Founder?

In 1971, I founded a payroll-processing company—Paychex.

Outer Aisle – The Matriarch

How I converted my husband and four sons into my business partners.

The Google Whisperer

Matt Wursta’s startup helps founders make the most of Google cloud tools. When Covid-19 hit, his service was critical to companies that could no longer afford it. He helped them anyway.

THE POWER PLAYER

How I leveled the playing field to give women and minorities more opportunities in the energy industry.

THE MAVERIC

How I restarted after my mentor died.

THE DESIGNATED SURVIVOR

How I stepped up to guide my daughter’s company in the middle of a pandemic.

THE MERCHANT OF EVERYTHING

How I failed and failed and failed until finding a product retailers love

THE CLOSER

How I learned to outsell the sexists in auto showrooms and leveraged the experience to sell ad programs to dealerships.

OPENING THE WAREHOUSE DOORS: Cloud Computing and Distributed Warehousing

How logistics is leveling the playing field for small and midsize businesses

Place & Purpose

So much for the onsite gym and the free lunch. They’ll return someday. But, as the 389 firms on our fourth annual Best Workplaces list show, how you work together is more important than the place you call work. Meet six of the companies rising to the new challenge.

DTC Isn't Dead— It's Everywhere

Rumors abound of the end of direct-to consumer e-commerce. So why are DTC sales expected to grow almost 25 percent this year?

Exit Interview – Andy Dunn

CLOTHES MADE THE MAN – Dunn co-founded menswear retailer Bonobos with Brian Spaly in 2007. (He is seen here at the Madison Avenue store in New York City.)

Alertmedia – Don't Start a Business Unless You Have a Mission To Build It On

Brian Cruver was a cocky, 29-year-old, freshly minted MBA who thought he had landed in the big leagues when he took a job in 2001 — at Enron.

Lead With Purpose

Inc. tapped three masters of team management—Stanley McChrystal, Raj Kumar, and Daniel Coyle—for advice on sharpening your leadership skills in good times and bad.

They Helped Save Their Co-Founder While Building a Company

Every founder knows that the culture they create can ensure their company’s survival. Rarely, though, does it save an actual life. But that’s exactly what happened at MX, a Lehi, Utah-based fintech company co-founded by Ryan Caldwell and Brandon Dewitt in 2010.

Build a Better Bottle— From Paper

Seeking an eco-friendly detergent bottle, California mom Julie Corbett created her own.

Hustle and Heart

Monica Peraza O’Quigley loves the challenge of creating new companies. With her latest, the Etho, she’s zeroing in on her goal to empower women worldwide.

How SMBs Can Build Growth-Ready Teams

Planning for the long term should continue despite short-term challenges in other areas.

HOW I GOT COVID-19 TESTS TO MARKET IN TWO WEEKS

Everlywell founder Julia Cheek created a lab test game-changer. Then she took on the Covid-19 crisis—and found herself in the eye of a storm.

Founders Project: Sure, you lead. But the right hire leads to success.

Daniel Lubetzky, founder of multibillion-dollar snack company Kind, talks navigating financial uncertainty and staffing for next-level growth with fellow Mexican-born entrepreneur Fany Gerson, founder of sweets company La Newyorkina.

The number of Latinx startups is rocketing. Their funding is not. And the U.S. economy suffers

Unless we solve the “scaling gap,” we’re missing out on the opportunity to grow employment and GDP.

Chart Busters

Hal Leonard still making sheet music and beating the digital band.

The Real Workforce Impact of HR Technology

From automating basic administrative tasks to attracting more talented employees, HR technology has a lot to offer small and midsize businesses.

Waco Then the World

How Chip and Joanna Gaines turned a modest Waco, Texas, house-flipping operation into one of the most powerful new brands in entertainment, publishing, and retail.

How I Did It – Survive and Shine

AMBER LEONG CIRCADIAN OPTICS – She spent 20 days in the hospital fighting for her life, months after emigrating alone from Malaysia. Her experience gave her the courage to start a company. Her story made her a Shark Tank darling.

THE END OF OWNERSHIP

Two years ago, Joymode was hot off a big funding round, and carving out a spot for itself in the booming sharing economy. But the startup is now backed into a corner and wondering: Is there such a thing as oversharing?

Scandinavian Minimalist

VIKING RIVER CRUISES By dimming the glitz and emphasizing culture, the company reinvigorated an industry.