Entrepreneur magazine released its 13th annual “Hot” list of the fastest-growing businesses in America this week. Thirty companies in the metro area made the cut of the newly expanded list of 500 firms, with 22 placing in the top half.
Three firms in Washington, 19 in Northern Virginia, and eight in Maryland beat out 19 million other businesses for the distinction.
Entrepreneur magazine, which partnered with the Corporate Research Board, chose the fastest growing firms from a field of 95,000 companies founded between 1998 and 2002. To be considered the firms had to meet job and sales growth criteria, have sales under $1 billion in 2006 and the hands-on involvement of its CEO.
One of the reasons the metro area has been a haven for smaller businesses is the tremendous presence of large businesses, and the federal government, which provide a ready market, said Jerry Gordon, president and CEO of the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority. Large businesses and the federal government also attract “bright, young people” who might ultimately go out and start their own business, Gordon noted.
Additionally, there is a “greater than proportionate share of minority- and women-owned businesses” in the region, particularly in Fairfax County. These two categories are currently experiencing the fastest growth, Gordon said.
The growth of firms involved in contracting with the government stood out to Maria Anton, executive editor of Entrepreneur magazine, who noted a particularly high number of Washington-area contractors on the list.
In the top 100 was Four Points Technology, based in Herndon; Government Support Services, Inc., headquartered in Alexandria; The Dixon Group, Inc., based in Washington; Applied Integrated Technologies, Inc. in Greenbelt; Log.Sec Corp. of Manassas; Bethesda-based Iridium Satellite, LLC; Patner Construction, Inc. in Fairfax, and Odoi Associates, Inc., which is headquartered in Greenbelt.
Entrepreneur magazine’s “Hot 500” businesses*
Washington
53 – Dixon Group
217 – The QED Group, LLC
310 – Regional Contracting Services, LLC
Northern Virginia
14 – Four Points Technology
39 – Government Support Services, Inc.
73 – Log.Sec Corp.
89 – Patner Construction, Inc.
103 – Nexius, Inc.
105 – MorganFranklin Corporation
109 – Acuity Consulting, Inc.
113 – Integrity Applications, Inc.
122 – The Goal, Inc.
125 – Webster Data Communication Inc.
152 – Valador, Inc.
186 – Platinum Solutions, Inc.
191 – ICI Services, LLC
193 – MCG Capital Corp.
201 – Orion Worldwide Travel LLC
252 – NonstopDelivery, Inc.
335 – Winn Design, LLC
359 – kmG Hauling, Inc.
395 – Aquarian, LLC
Maryland
67 – Applied Integrated Technologies, Inc.
75 – Iridium Satellite, LLC
96 – Odoi Associaties, Inc.
151 – Omnitec Solutions, Inc.
158 – Master Key Consulting
269 – Econometrica, Inc.
373 – HeiTech Services, Inc.
474 – Insight Technology Solutions, Inc.
*Businesses listed are based on area code. Those with a 202 area code are listed under Washington, 703 in N. Virginia and 301 in Maryland.
