The Sunday Times BDO Profit Track 100 ranks the top 100 private UK companies by profit growth; the 2016 group achieved average annual profit growth of 82 per cent over a three-year period.
While London and south-east England remain the dominant regions for their head office bases, more than half are located outside south-east England. Eight of the top ten are headquartered away from the capital. Nearly two out of three are still majority-owned by their leaders, while 13 are majority-owned by private equity firms. This year, more than 25 per cent of the companies in the table are in building-related sectors.
Their contribution to the UK economy is significant. Cumulatively, their total profits have risen from £300m to £1.5bn over three years. They have added 25,000 jobs and support the direct employment of more than 65,000 people. They are also highly productive; average profits per employee are £23,543. This, the Sunday Times notes, is up from the average profit per employee of £14,843 in 2011 – a rise of 59 per cent.
This is a key message: effective scale-up businesses are critical for improving UK productivity.