Does Your Company Have What It Takes?

In my travels and during the many reader phone calls I take and make each week, one of the most frequent requests I receive is the following: Publish more stories about what my solution provider peers are doing right—and wrong. Indeed, one of the most popular sections in the redesigned print edition of CRN is the expanded Demand Generation department, which features tips from and profiles about the CRN Fast Growth 100.

HEATHER CLANCY Can be reached via e-mail at hclancy@cmp.com.

The other thing I love about the ranking is that it is incredibly dynamic. Only 20 or so companies that made the 2005 list also appeared on the 2006 ranking. There are several logical explanations. For one thing, the laws of simple mathematics make it tough to sustain high growth rates, especially as the revenue bar keeps getting higher and managers are called upon to balance increased sales and profitability. Another big factor, which should come as no surprise, was channel consolidation. I suspect this also will be the case as we begin collecting data for the next edition, slated to publish July 9. Indeed, several of the companies I was prospecting for CRN TV video interviews have been acquired, in some cases by other Fast Growth companies.

So, do you have what it takes to be on the next Fast Growth ranking? Consider the company ranked No. 100 last year, Sysix Technologies, logged growth of 50 percent over the two-year period considered. In 2005, the Downer's Grove, Ill., company had $57 million in sales. The top Fast Growth player, Groupware Technologies, grew by an astonishing 3,920 percent.

This year, we'll accept applications for cumulative growth over the past two years. As before, the ranking will focus on independent, U.S.-based solution providers doing business according to classic channel models, including VARs, resellers, retailers, network and systems integrators, and managed service providers. Vendors and distributors are not qualified; and custom-system builders will be recognized in our upcoming Leading System Builders project. You'll find the 2007 Fast Growth 100 call to action at www.crn.com/fg2007. Meanwhile, if you have questions about whether you should apply or you're a past member who'd like a shot at a video interview, e-mail me at hclancy@cmp.com. You can also contact CRN Research Editor Jeanette Boyne at jboyne@cmp.com with questions about the project methodology.

Apply now for 2007 fast growth 100 at www.crn.com/fg2007.
CRN Editor Heather Clancy welcomes letters at hclancy@cmp.com.

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