Top 20 Movers and Shakers   |  March 18, 2008  

 

 

The Movers and Shakers are firms that have climbed the highest number of ranks in the listing since last year. Only those companies included in last year’s Top 250 are considered for this category. In 2007, the Top 20 Movers and Shakers earned combined revenues of $750.01 million, increasing from $423.27 million generated by this group in 2006. This is a 77.2 per cent increase year over year.

Wi-LAN tops the Movers and Shakers list this year, having moved 94 spaces from the 158th position in 2006 to number 64 in 2007. In 2006, the company transformed into a technology intellectual property licensing company, divesting its products manufacturing and engineering services businesses throughout the year. The firm generated $61.27 million in fiscal 2007, notably the highest year-over-year growth of all Top 250 companies at 2,807 per cent. This growth is directly related to the divestment of certain businesses and is not expected to continue into 2008.




Verb Exchange, the number one ranked Mover and Shaker from 2006, realized an increase in revenues of 35 per cent throughout fiscal 2007, just short of the figure required to make this list. Returning to the list again this year are PlateSpin (data centre automation software and solutions), WellPoint (applications for the oil and gas industry) and MaxSys (IT staffing). Although 10 companies on the list were able to jump between 17 and 94 spaces, an equal number jumped between 13 and 16 spaces.

The Movers and Shakers come from diverse backgrounds, offering a variety of products and services. Each of the major Branham300 categories is represented in this year’s list. Ten of the companies (50 per cent of the list) are from the Professional Services category. This highlights the aforementioned growing trend for firms that have adopted a services business model to realize significant growth. There is also a heavy weighting of Ontario firms on the list; they account for 12 of the 20 firms.

Nightingale Informatix, a software provider for the healthcare industry established in 2002, appears second on the Movers and Shakers list, having jumped 64 spots to number 165 on this year’s Top 250. This company also exhibited tremendous revenue growth over the 12-month period at 234 per cent.

Blue Line Innovations, not appearing on the Movers and Shakers list because it was not listed in the Top 250 last year, exhibited the second highest growth rate of all firms in the ranking at 1,829 per cent. This firm focuses on creating real-time energy feedback technologies that deliver increased value to clients while maintaining an eco-friendly platform. This firm is setting an example of how seriously firms are dedicated to the adoption of green IT.


Last year's list

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