CEDIA Releases Key Findings from Annual Benchmarking Survey

The Custom Electronic Design & Installation Association (CEDIA) has released key findings from its 2014 Benchmarking Survey, which evaluates the state of the home technology professional company performance for calendar year 2013 and reports on 2014 expectations. Results find home technology professional companies experienced strong growth in 2013 over 2012, focusing on selling more upgrades/add-ons and expanding services/technical offerings.

• The median operating profit margin increased from 3.5 percent in 2012 to 6 percent in 2013.
• The median annual gross revenue for 2013 was $1,234,221, a 22percent increase over 2012 for these respondents.
• Employee productivity increased in 2013 too with revenue/employee increasing from $145,950 in 2012 to $166,675 in 2013.
• While operational efficiency has historically been a huge profit prohibitor for home technology professionals, companies saw an improvement from 33.2 percent of revenue in 2012 to 30.7 percent in 2013.
• Number of projects and project size increased in 2013 over 2012 as well. Median number of projects increased from 57 in 2012 to 69 in 2013. Median project size increased from $10,168 in 2012 to $11,892 in 2013.
• The percentage of firms offering recurring revenue services increased from 37.5 percent in 2012 to 43.5percent in 2013. More importantly, of the firms that do offer these services, their median number of sold agreements doubled in 2013 with a median of 20 sold in 2012 to 40 in 2013.

"We are seeing that 2013 ended on an incredibly positive note with great growth in projects, revenue, and most importantly operating profits, said Erica Shonkwiler, CEDIA Senior Director of Research. In addition, home technology professional owners are projecting an additional 10percent revenue growth in 2014, a conservative and realistic expectation.” PR