We were honored to learn that Neighborhood America was among the innovative companies included in this years’ AO Global 250. From our nomination all the way through to the final selection in the Enterprise/Infrastructure category, this was no ‘beauty contest,’ as Tim Miller (VP, Financial Markets, The 451 Group) pointed out during the opening presentation on Tuesday evening:

“They (AlwaysOn) take the methodology very seriously. It’s quite rigorous. Could be seen as a beauty contest, and it’s absolutely not that- unless you view business liability as a beauty contest.”

 

Over 900 global nominations were received. Entries were evaluated by an editorial panel from KPMG, AO editorial teams, Bridge Bank, BSI USA. Companies were judged in five categories: innovation, market opportunity, commercialization, stakeholder value creation and media buzz. Weighing heavily on the decision were considerations such as how big is the market, how much traction has the company gained, how well is the company executing on a business plan, and how much enterprise value are they creating.

 

Packy Kelly, Partner, KPMG, summed up the review process: “We dig deep – we try to find the diamond in the rough...The Global 250 represents the emerging private companies in technology, the best of the best." A true global competition, 25% of the selected companies are outside the U.S.

 

Companies included in the AO Global list have historically shown significantly greater valuations than their peer companies. Miller shared impressive stats that showed exit valuations for previously recognized AO companies at almost 3x the industry average for comparable private companies. “A big round of applause for those who are picking these companies – and an even bigger round of applause for those named to the AO Global 250 list.”

 

So what does it mean to be part of the AO Global 250? All good things to our customers, employees and shareholders. Congratulations, NA!

 

View these opening presentations: http://alwayson.goingon.com/page/display/28097