>> Download the 2007 Fastest-Growing 100 List
The Hispanic Business 100 Fastest-Growing Companies® are spread across a wide range of industries. Businesses on the list market practically every type of product and service, from air cargo transportation, human resources consulting, and concierge services to architecture, packaging, and health care.
Liberty Power Corp., a Fort Lauderdale, Florida-based independent supplier of retail electricity, ranks No. 1 on the list. Sales increased from $806,215 in 2002 to $119.71 million in 2006 as the company's workforce grew from six to 60 people.
"We expect to be a billion-dollar company over the next few years or so," CEO David Hernandez says.
Two companies that earn significant revenues from federal contracts rank second and third on the list.
Force 3 Inc., a Crofton, Maryland-based network infrastructure developer, increased five-year revenue from $2 million to $253 million. The No. 2-ranked company posted a five-year compound annual growth rate of 235.08 percent while continuing to garner business from hundreds of government agencies and companies.
"Our revenue for 2007 will be in the $310 million range," President and CEO Rocky Cintron says.
J2 Engineering Inc., which ranks third, increased revenues from $26,000 to $20.10 million. The Tampa, Florida-based environmental and construction service company's workforce grew from 5 to 50 employees. The rapid growth rate continues this year. So far in 2007, the company has secured about 10 contracts worth more than $150 million, compared to four contracts totaling about $15 million by the same time last year, says President and CEO Jose Morales. Military contracts account for about 80 percent of the company's revenues.
Mr. Morales credits part of their growth to the company's bonus program. J2 has two bonus pools – one for all employees based on how the company performs, and a discretionary pool for those who are key contributors to growth.
"Employees have learned that they will be rewarded for working hard to help the company grow and buying into its culture. Our goal is to eventually become an employee-owned company and they are working hard toward that," says Mr. Morales, who owns about 78 percent of J2.
Collectively, the Hispanic Business 100 Fastest-Growing Companies posted five-year revenue growth of 295.4 percent from 2002 to 2006, down from 334 percent from 2001 to 2005. Smaller revenue growth accompanied a 16.4 percent drop in productivity compared to the 2001-2005 period. That reflects an increase in the average number of employees, which rose from 266 in 2005 to 309 in 2006.
That pace is tough to maintain year after year, especially as companies become larger and growth that's big in absolute terms is smaller on a percentage basis. LatiNode, a Miami-based supplier of voice-over-Internet-protocol service, did stay at No. 1 in 2004 and 2005; it's at No. 15 this year.
Last year's No. 1, San Antonio-based TerraHealth Inc., dropped to No. 4 this year. The medical and IT services company increased five-year revenue from $497,503 to $24.49 million while its workforce grew from 25 to 402 employees. TerraHealth posted a five-year compound annual growth rate of 164.9 percent for 2002 to 2006, down from 203.1 percent from 2001 to 2005.
