BusinessReport.com

A very good year

Heavy construction firms report revenue increases in 2008, but the effects of the economic downturn could be reflected on next year’s list.

Risky business

Worley Catastrophe Response experiences triple-digit growth thanks to employee training and building customer relationships.

A Wink and a nod

Wink Companies looks to the future after its engineering business is purchased by a Houston-based company.

A shrinking market

A reduction in payrolls because of the economic downturn means a reduction in premiums for workers’ comp companies.

Click here to download the Top 100 private companies list. (PDF)

Click here to download the entire cover package. (PDF)

How the list comes together

In the spring, Business Report sent out letters and e-mails to all companies from recent lists, those identified as possible qualifiers and those suggested by readers. We also placed notices on our Web sites asking companies to post their information or send it by fax or mail.

We followed up with faxes, phone calls and research to confirm the data. In some cases, we looked at related industry performance and other business compilations to estimate revenue.

Some companies declined to reveal their numbers, so we relied on public information and sources to make reasonable estimates.

Companies were ranked according to their reported or estimated revenue for the most recently completed fiscal year, which in most cases was the calendar year 2008.

Here's how we fared

We ask for your numbers. So here are ours. Louisiana Business Inc., which publishes Business Report, 10/12 magazine, 225 magazine, InRegister, the online Daily Report AM and Daily Report PM and Real Estate Weekly and a variety of other online and contract publications, saw revenue rise 8.4% in 2008 to $7,553,859 from $6,971,246 in 2007. The company has 63 full-time employees, all working in Baton Rouge at the corporate headquarters on Jefferson Highway near Drusilla Lane and Interstate 12.

Chairman/Publisher Rolfe McCollister Jr. founded the company in 1982. President/Associate Publisher Julio Melara is a partner in the company.