Kirkland, WA, May 06, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Women Presidents’ Organization (WPO) has announced the 12th annual ranking of the 50 Fastest-Growing Women-Owned/Led Companies™. Winners were announced during the WPO Annual Conference, held this year in Charlotte, NC. The companies featured on this year’s list span a wide variety of industries, including technology and finance, emerging sectors for women. Aggregate revenues of the 50 companies are $5.9 billion, representing a significant impact towards women-led companies’ contribution towards the global economy.
Kelly Ireland, Founder & CEO of CB Technologies, based in Orange, CA, has been ranked 30th among this year’s WPO 50 Fastest-Growing Women-Owned/Led Companies list.
“It’s an amazing honor for my team and me to be included in this list,” said Ireland. “CB Technologies’ recent growth can be attributed to our commitment to ‘Customer First’, ensuring that the level of support our clients have enjoyed continues at the same level while CB Technologies transforms and innovates. Our focus on closing the gap between information and operational technologies (IT/OT) has been a 3-year mission. We’re one of the first companies that truly understands and has experience with this IT/OT convergence, and to be a women-owned company leading the charge? It’s fantastic.”
Ireland founded CB Technologies in 2001 as a value-added reseller (VAR) focused on unparalleled client service. However, having a keen eye for technology trends and always taking the time and opportunity to listen to industry experts, she assessed the impending changes in the industry early on. She built up CB Technologies’ engineering expertise, data science practice and partnerships to revolutionize the company’s offerings and make the difficult transition from VAR to systems integrator. Since that time, the Company has flourished, leading unprecedented projects like the Refinery of the Future (RotF) at Texmark Chemicals. Successful initiatives like RotF in Industrial IoT and High Performance Computing have spurred CB Technologies’ explosive growth, increasing its revenue YOY by 46% in 2018.
“At Capital One, we are passionate about supporting women business owners and leaders,” said Jenn Flynn, Head of Small Business Bank at Capital One. “The rise in women-owned businesses is an exciting trend to watch. These women are a real force, as reflected in the WPO 50 Fastest winners, and they are inspiring others to achieve great levels of success.”
“I am delighted that this year our rankings show that women entrepreneurs are branching out into every sector of business,” said WPO President and Founder Dr. Marsha Firestone. “We are also very encouraged that companies of all sizes, such as CB Technologies are represented. Some smaller but very successful companies demonstrated significant growth this year.”
All eligible companies were ranked according to a sales growth formula, combining percentage and absolute growth. To qualify for the ranking, businesses are required to be privately held, woman-owned/led companies and have reached annual revenues of at least $500,000 as of 2013 and every subsequent year. Applicants are not required to be WPO members.
Additional facts about the 2019 50 Fastest Growing Women-Owned/Led Businesses:
- Average age of women-owner/leader is 50, younger than the average age of 51 last year
- Aggregate revenue is $5.9 billion
- Average 2018 revenue was $117.1 million
- Average number of employees on first day: 9; projected average for 2019: 492
- Funding sources at company start:
- 78% with their own funds
- 22% with funds from friends and family
- 6% with a bank loan
- 6% with a line of credit
- 4% with a credit card
- 8% with private investors/angels
All 50 companies were honored at a special event at the 2019 WPO Annual Conference at the Westin Charlotte on Thursday, May 2, 2019. Following the luncheon and awards ceremony, WPO hosted a “Guide to Growth” discussion featuring a selection of 50 Fastest winners sharing advice for established entrepreneurs working to increase businesses.
About CB Technologies
Founded in 2001, CBT is a premier, woman-owned technology solutions provider with extensive experience designing and deploying enterprise-class solutions. We consistently deliver excellence thanks to our first-class team members and strategic partnerships with the world’s finest providers of hardware and software solutions. By combining best-of-breed technologies, CBT provides a balance of services and solutions in the areas of Hybrid IT, Asset Intelligence, HPC and Analytics, and IT Supply Chain Optimization to augment your enterprise with the necessary tools to excel. Learn more at www.cbtechinc.com. Follow CBT: Twitter and LinkedIn.
About Capital One
Capital One Financial Corporation is headquartered in McLean, Virginia. Its subsidiaries, Capital One, N.A. and Capital One Bank (USA), N. A., offer a broad spectrum of financial products and services to consumers, small businesses and commercial clients. We apply the same principles of innovation, collaboration and empowerment in our commitment to our communities across the country that we do in our business. We recognize that helping to build strong and healthy communities – good places to work, good places to do business and good places to raise families – benefits us all and we are proud to support this and other community initiatives.
About The Women Presidents’ Organization
The WPO is the premier peer advisory organization connecting women who own multi-million-dollar companies. In monthly meetings across six continents, chapters of 20 women presidents from diverse industries invest time and energy in themselves and their businesses to drive their corporations to the next level. Local WPO chapters are coordinated by a professional facilitator and meet monthly to share business expertise and experience in a confidential setting. For more information, contact 212-688-4114 or visit www.womenpresidentsorg.com. Follow the WPO on Twitter @womenpresidents and Facebook @TheWPO.
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