Applying an inclusive lens to business development is not only the right thing to do, it’s also good for the U.S. economy. Here's some evidence, from the realm of entrepreneurship. Looking at publicly available statistics compiled by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC)*, women are starting and growing American businesses at rates higher than those of all U.S. businesses. For example, since 2007, the number of woman-owned businesses has increased by 58%, whereas the number of total U.S. businesses launched in that time frame increased by12%.

This pool of female start-up leaders and entrepreneurs is both inclusive and intersectional. Women of color account for ownership of nearly half (47%) of all woman-owned U.S. businesses, according to the stats compiled by WBENC. In 2017, women launched 1,821 net new businesses daily, with 64% of all of these new enterprises founded by women of color.

Growth is of course a great thing; but for individual business owners, rapid growth can come with challenges of scale. So we asked Angelina Darrisaw, our Google National Digital Coach and the owner of a woman-owned business herself, for her tips on preparing for growth. Our Coaches teach free workshops as part of the Grow with Google program across the U.S. Angelina shares her insights on planning for growth in this video:

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* WBENC pulled stats from the the 2018 State of Women-Owned Business Report (American Express) and Megaphone of Main Street: Women's Entrpreneurship Spring 2018 (SCORE).