This summer, Knoxville-based PIPS Technology, a company incorporated in 2001 by owner, president and CEO Alan Sefton, was acquired by Illinois-based Federal Signal Corp., which trades on the New York Stock Exchange. The privately held developer and manufacturer of automatic license plate recognition (ALPR) systems had previously appeared on BusinessTN's Fast50 list of the fastest-growing companies in Tennessee. The purchase price? $115 million.
This year, BusinessTN introduces the Hot100, an expanded revamp of the original Fast50. Eligible companies are still required to be Tennessee-based, employ at least five people and have revenues in excess of $750,000. And, like PIPS, they must be companies with a bright future. However, this new list does more than just double the number of companies profiled. It also expands the criteria in an effort to include those more established companies whose growth is remarkable but who do not—cannot—keep pace with young startup companies rocketing to early success. Additional criteria includes employee growth, growth over a period of years and growth as compared to industry average.
The Hot100 also inescapably involves increased editorial judgment. BusinessTN’s staff chose 33% of the companies on this list based on knowledge of the company’s success and references from knowledgeable sources about area companies performing well. That change made it all the more difficult for applicants to make the list: the number of applications submitted reached an all-time high just as the percentage of submitting companies selected for the list hit an all-time low.
In sum, the inaugural Hot100 spotlights companies from industries as wide ranging as missile defense to barbecue. They are the companies enriching our local and regional economies, providing jobs and fueling the Volunteer State’s entrepreneurial culture. The stories behind these businesses speak volumes about the value of free enterprise. They aren’t a bad read, either.
To better and more quickly differentiate between the kinds of success placing each company on this list, we’re adding the following designations:
Blast-Off!
Young companies off to a fast start
Steady Orbit
Companies now beyond the startup years that continue to grow at an above-average rate and that are laying the foundation for long-term sustainability
Change of Trajectory
Companies which due to recent trends, events or business decisions have become especially hot in their niche
Solar Flare
Large, firmly established companies experiencing a new growth or whose growth against the industry baseline is remarkable
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