This year Berkeley ranked 66th on the PROFIT 500 list of fastest growing companies in Canada. We're always honoured to be a part of the rankings, but this time is an especially big milestone - it's our third consecutive year cracking the top 100 of a PROFIT list.
Growing a business quickly is one thing, but sustaining that growth is a daunting task. It's a fine line between balancing sure wins with riskier endeavours.
It's common for entrepreneurs to become more conservative after their company attains some success. But, placing too much focus on protecting what has already been built can inhibit an organization from further evolution.
In the case of Berkeley, it means not shying away from international competition. The company continues to grow domestically, while also representing Canada as it competes head to head with some of the biggest players in the industry. When businesses position themselves in the largest markets they truly learn which strategies work and which strategies fail against stiff competition. Sinatra's hit "New York, New York" says it best, "If I can make it there, I'll make it anywhere."
Readjusting expectations is important as organizations move out of their infancy stage. In our first year on the PROFIT 200 list, Berkeley ranked 26th with a revenue growth rate of 1,489%. In this year's PROFIT 500 ranking, Berkeley posted a growth of 1,060%. Eason acknowledges that continuing these high percentages isn't sustainable. As Berkeley moves towards its "adolescence" stage, creating a realistic growth strategy has become a major focus.
"Ultimately high growth percentage is great for a start up, but it's certainly difficult to recreate in the long term," says Eason. "External metrics shouldn't dictate strategy, increasing our offerings and providing clients with the best possible customer experience should."
