This September, the Portland Business Journal will celebrate 30 years of producing its List of The Private 100 Fastest-Growing Companies in Oregon and Southwest Washington, and the survey to determine the honorees is now open.
Nominate your company for the Fastest-Growing and Largest Private Companies lists.
What's changed
We're marking the third decade with a couple of significant changes to the process for selecting those 100 companies:
- As in the past, participating companies must disclose and verify the last three years of revenue for publication. The minimum revenue required for three years prior, in 2021, will now be $500,000 and a new minimum revenue requirement of $1 million will be established for the prior year, 2023.
- The ranking was previously based only on percentage growth in revenue over the last two years. This year it will be based equally on both dollar-volume growth and percentage growth over that time frame from 2021 to 2023.
If you're not familiar this honor, here's a look at The Private 100 from last year, when companies grew revenue by an average of $32.2 million or 80% between 2020 and 2022.
Growing by 75.4%, Pinnacle Pro Logistics of Vancouver came in No. 1, while the minimum 2020-22 percentage growth to make The Private 100 was 33.6%. But that level will likely change this year with the new revenue minimums and ranking criteria. If we applied this year's restrictions to last year, the lowest percentage growth rate would have been 8.8% and the lowest growth amount would have been $557,142 to make the Private 100.
Leveling the field for larger companies
Larger and older local firms that previously did not enter the hyper-competitive Fastest-Growing Companies contest — but are still growing — are encouraged to join the competition now that the amount change in revenue is reflected in the ranking and new minimum revenue requirements have been established.
As always, younger and smaller startups that meet these revenue requirements are also strongly encouraged to submit their firms and be recognized for extraordinary growth in recent years.
"While it's critical to still recognize the fast growth of small businesses, we want to also honor our larger companies that generate significant revenue growth over a multiyear period," said Candace Beeke, president and publisher of the Portland Business Journal. "This new method of ranking allows us to truly recognize the area's fastest-growing businesses."
Lighthouse Awards remain a beacon of growth
One popular aspect of the program that won't change is the Business Journal honoring those companies that make The Private 100 five years in a row. Last year, Brink Communications, Market Express LLC and Reece Complete Security Solutions, received Lighthouse Awards.
This year, there are eight companies that ranked in the Private 100 from 2020 to 2023 and, thus, have the potential to become Lighthouse winners.
Submit your company by May 17
If you haven't already received an email invitation to take the pre-populated survey for your firm, you can fill out the nomination form. Both have a deadline of May 17. Feel free to email data editor Brandon Sawyer or call him at 503-219-3411 if you have any questions about entering your company in the survey.
