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Through surveys and available data, we’ve examined hundreds of small businesses and come away with six archetypal sets of practices and characteristics that we believe are representative of most growth companies operating today.

The qualifications were simple: Companies had to be domestically owned, privately held, for-profit and have shown net capacity growth over at least two years, with an employee size in 2015 of 10 to 1,000.

Below, we examine the traits of Controllers, one of the six archetypes of the Â鶹Éç360â„¢ Performance Index. To see the other five archetypes, click here.

This group keeps its focus on customers and suppliers. They pay close attention to what’s going on in their markets and do what it takes to keep customers happy. Controllers don’t grow especially fast compared to their peers, but they do grow rather steadily, and work for the long-term.

Key characteristics

• Controllers take pains to get the input of customers and suppliers in business planning.
• They are careful to establish an annual growth target, and they often match their peers in confidence in meeting that goal.
• They constantly research their markets and use the findings to make decisions.

Takeaway

Controllers hit reasonable growth targets and find ways to flourish even in tough markets.

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Read more about each archetype:

• For Â鶹Éç360 ‘Data Champions,’ Success is Steady, Plotted and Planned
• The Success Secrets That Helped the ‘Best Practicers’ Land on the Â鶹Éç360
• How Staying in Front of the Pack Helped the ‘Forward Thinkers’ Nab a Spot on the Â鶹Éç360
• Growing Against the Grain: Meet the Â鶹Éç360 ‘Contrarians’
• Confident and Sales-Focused: A Look at the Â鶹Éç360 ‘Classics’