Reston, VA, Feb. 20, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Two wars, ongoing economic uncertainty, and industries at the precipice of disruption by AI have done little, if anything, to slow down the growth of a special subset of professional service firms–High Growth firms. The past year’s high growth firms grew at a whopping median rate of 41%, a leap of nine percentage points more than the previous year’s and four times faster than their peers, according to the Hinge Research Institute’s 2024 High Growth Study. In fact, firms as a whole seemed unfazed by the turbulence, performing at a professional-services-wide median growth rate of 14%, the highest since the study began in 2015. Firms’ resilience was also reflected in their profitability. High Growth Firms enjoyed 25% profitability while their slower-growing peers also improved theirs. Even firms whose revenues dipped in 2023 improved their profitability to 15%.
Access the High Growth Study Executive Summary here: https://info.hingemarketing.com/2024-HGS-PR
The annual study investigates the factors behind high growth firms’ remarkable growth and profit rates across six industry segments: architecture/engineering/construction, accounting and financial services, management consulting, software/technology, government contracting, and legal.
“To outpace the competition in growth and profitability, B2B service firms need to be fluent in high-impact business development and marketing techniques, attract top talent, put technology at the heart of how they do business, and use data to uncover the opportunities in a volatile marketplace,” said Elizabeth Harr, Managing Partner of Hinge. “These are the pillars of adaptability and resilience in a business environment that turns upside down every three months.”
As 2023 served up unforeseen challenges, firms equipped with these pillars withstood even unfamiliar pressures.
Business Development and Marketing Muscle, Not Cuts
Over the past year, business development and bottom-of-the-funnel marketing techniques—those that are more closely linked to true sales than techniques that perform further up the funnel—made the most impact on firm growth. While obtaining the same percentage of leads from digital sources as last year, high growth firms fueled their growth through bottom-of-the-funnel techniques that engage directly with leads. The most impactful of these techniques were providing assessments and/or consultations, live product/service demonstrations, distributing business development materials, and speaking at conferences or events.
Social media platforms, whose importance spiked as a networking tool during the pandemic, made less of an impact on growth this past year as in-person events and interactions returned to normal. High Growth Firms still use the platforms, especially LinkedIn, to share insightful content.
Top Talent Magnet
High Growth Firms did not simply weather the talent drought, they thrived in it. Compared to their slower-growing peers, they gave their recruits higher ratings on skill level and were able to outsource specialized marketing skills they could not directly hire.
Technology Adoption as Main Strategy
In the face of uncertainty, high growth firms turned information generated through research and a panoply of digital systems into a source of competitive advantage. Asked what topics they would learn more about in the coming year, four out of their top five were related to data and technology: AI, online engagement with clients, process automation, and big data & analysis.
Each year, the High Growth Study dives deep into the growth strategies of professional services firms. This year’s study surveyed 824 firms representing $52.9 billion in revenue and nearly 210,000 employees.
The High Growth Study Executive Summary can be accessed here: https://info.hingemarketing.com/2024-HGS-PR
About the Hinge Research Institute: We conduct and publish independent research on professional services firms to uncover the marketing strategies of high growth firms and give B2B companies and associations the data and insights they need to understand and profit from the professional services industry.
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