The Custom Electronic Design & Installation Association (CEDIA) has released key findings from its 2013 Benchmarking Surveys, which evaluate the performance and the state of home technology professional companies for calendar year 2012 and reports on 2013 expectations.Results find home technology professional companies are continuing to experience moderate growth, focusing on operational efficiencies (historically one of the largest prohibitors of profitability) again, and ready to bring in additional staff to accommodate a growing workload. Among the key findings are:

• 2012 survey participants expected a revenue increase from 2011 of 12 percent. 2013 participants reported an actual increase of 10 percent and an expected increase in 2013 of 18 percent.
• Median number of employees stayed flat from 2010, 2011, and 2012 at 6 employees per company (full and part-time), while revenue per employee rose from $135,000 in 2011 to $145,950 in 2012. However, participants indicate that they will increase their staff by 14 percent in 2013.
• In 2012, there was a stronger commitment to operational efficiencies with 80 percent of participants reporting that they focused on standardizing operational practices in 2012 for increased profitability, the most applied tactic out of the 10 presented.
• Of the participants offering recurring monthly revenue services, the percentage of companies offering remote network monitoring and diagnostic services is continuing on a strong positive trend – 16 percent in 2011 to 32 percent in 2012 to 41 percent in 2013.

“I participate in the CEDIA Benchmarking Surveys because it gives me a pulse of what is happening in our industry, how to plan for the future, and what changes we need to make as a company,” says Matt Bernath, president, Surreal Systems and CEDIA member. “ It is well worth the effort, because the information you get you can’t get anywhere else.”

The survey report, compiled by Profit Planning Group, provides detailed benchmarks, best practices, and trend analysis based on data collected from home technology professional companies.

All survey participants receive a customized report comparing their company to similar size companies, the industry median, and the most profitable industry companies. This custom report also includes a suggested action plan for increasing profitability and trending analysis for participants of more than one year. The estimated value of this custom analysis is $2,500.

For the first time, CEDIA is offering condensed versions of the reports at no cost to all CEDIA members as a membership benefit. The full survey reports are available for purchase through the CEDIA Marketplace: The 2013 CEDIA Benchmarking Survey – Finance, Project Management, & Marketing portion of the research costs $700 for members and $1,200 for non-members. The 2013 CEDIA Benchmarking Survey – Staffing, Benefits, & Compensation portion costs $300 for members and $800 for non-members.