Creating open dialogue, achieving consensus and encouraging teamwork. Today, these are just a few of the business strengths often associated with women entrepreneurs. "Women definitely shine when it comes to skills that involve a real connection to people. What's key here is building your competitive advantage by learning how to combine that style with the business savvy to recruit, motivate and retain a strong management team," says Maureen O'Leary-Pickard of the BDC Consulting Group.

O'Leary-Pickard, who was a keynote speaker for a recent BDC's Women in Business seminar, offers businesswomen some practical advice on how to get past some of the common hurdles when building a winning management team.

Assess where you are in the business cycle
A first step to building a strong management team is to assess where your company is in the business cycle and be realistic about the key challenges at that stage. Ask yourself; where is my business today and where do I want it to be tomorrow? Do you want rapid growth requiring the kind of managers who thrive on intensity and fast pace? Are you willing to accept steady growth and offer your senior team a more balanced personal and work life? If you are unsure, you could consider using a growth assessment tool to evaluate the potential of the business. BDC has trained specialists who can conduct a cost-effective diagnosis of your business that will help you take a closer look at a number of factors, including your management team's strengths.

Hire to match expectations
Once you've identified the stage your business is in, it's crucial to be clear about your expectations with management hires. You need everybody on your leadership team to be focused on achieving common company goals. If you're unclear about your expectations, you may want to seek external advice to help you define your vision of your company. An effective executive recruiter can help you articulate your requirements and target candidates with the appropriate profile. Since hiring demands substantial time and resources, you want to use a process that will reduce costly turnover and increase your chances of selecting and retaining people who will deliver the performance that your company needs.

Hire motivators
Building a high performance management team requires managers who can influence people to perform their best. To motivate employees to achieve excellence, you need to recruit managers who can act as leaders and demonstrate strong skills in coaching and communications. Coaching builds a learning environment and cements the partnership between managers and employees. Open, two-way communications is a vital part of achieving buy-in from your entire team and creating harmony throughout the company.

Avoid trying to clone yourself
As Einstein said, you can't solve a problem with the same thinking that got you there in the first place. Don't attempt to "clone" yourself at the management level. Women entrepreneurs who want to make a success of their companies may instinctively seek out managers who have similar skills. But this can be limiting for your business. Although your leaders should share your core business values, you should surround yourself with an executive team with a diversity of competencies and experience in order to take your business to the next level.

Build on the management essentials: Planning, organizing, controlling and evaluating
Ensuring that you have a healthy balance of management skills is critical to building an effective team. Begin with strong planners, people who understand the importance of strategic planning and can help you shape your goals and strategies. Organizers typically are highly skilled at acquiring and using resources efficiently to get the job done. Controllers are very good at implementation and keeping the operation on track, while evaluators can help you assess your performance and how to improve for the future. A rule of thumb here is to be sure that you're not missing any of these essential management skills on your team.

Resolve conflict through focused business thinking
In a tough business environment, conflict is almost inevitable, whether your business is in rapid growth or downsizing mode. How do you resolve conflict on your management team as quickly as possible? It helps to maintain focus on your business needs and remain open to all possible solutions. Use your strong communications skills to find the best possible win-win solution. If you're having problems resolving issues in your company, seek outside help through management consultants or your board of directors.

Be creative with your compensation
It is always wise to be equitable with salaries to create a work environment that fosters fairness. In a competitive recruitment market for managers, you have to be innovative with rewards and compensation. Design long-term rewards for performance such as profit-sharing and short-term rewards for efforts such as gift certificates for cinema or dinner. Arrange for those extra perks such as childcare, dry-cleaning pick-up service or meal catering.

Do systematic succession planning
Ensuring your business can maintain its own independent life is essential. Succession planning for all key positions means building that capability into your company and preparing for the future. It may require you to look hard at sensitive issues such as death and heir planning. It is strongly recommended that you seek specialized expertise to make succession planning an integral part of your overall company strategy.

Create a board of directors
Depending on the scale of your business, a board of directors can be a great asset to help you with more strategic issues and long-term planning. Outside directors can provide your company fresh thinking and enhance your management team's strength. It's important to find directors who can bring that extra expertise that your company may need, such as marketing, finance or law. If you're running a rapidly growing company, a board of directors can also help you assess your managers' internal decisions and assist you in seeking growth financing. Lenders and venture capitalists may also view a board as an ideal means to evaluate how well your company is managed.