Global Growth Plans For Westborough's Training Associates
With a 175-percent increase in sales over the previous year and more than 103 percent over the past four years, The Training Associates of Westborough is looking to grow even more.
With its Westborough headquarters and smaller offices in Washington, D.C., Chicago and San Francisco, expansion into Europe is the likely next step, said Vic Melfa, company CEO. Melfa said Training Associates officials are consulting with various advisors now, gathering information before they seek out growth equity firms for investment.
"First, we're laying down our qualifications so we can speak to them on a uniform playing field," Melfa said. "We hope to negotiate (a deal for investment) by the end of the year."
‘Outsourcing Is In'
Melfa said Training Associates' growth drivers have less to do with unemployment and more to do with outsourcing and technological changes, neither of which seem to be phasing out anytime soon, he said.
"Outsourcing is in now," Melfa said. "Outsourcing is a part of (companies') personnel," with the rising costs of business, he said. He pointed out that the costs of taking on a new employee go way beyond just paying new workers a salary: Other considerations include rising wages, inflation, the cost of benefits, legal issues, the cost of companies protecting themselves from legal issues, and the cost of training and insurance, he said. "You have to say, ‘Gee, is there a cheaper way I can do it?'" Melfa said, of the issues companies face before turning to contractors to get the work done.
Melfa said that for a salaried employee making $40,000 to $80,000 a year, the additional costs to bring them onboard with benefits and the like equal two to three times the cost of wages paid, on average.
Businesses in general keep changing, Melfa said, whether through mergers or acquisitions, overseas relocations or software upgrades - all mean that worker retraining is needed, he said.
Securing the help of a growth equity investor, said Mefla, will not only help Training Associates grow bigger and faster, but also give the company financial backing that can allow it to open more offices, and link the firm with international connections and expertise overseas.
In addition to setting its sights on growth in Europe, Training Associates' headquarters in Westborough has seen some expansion here over the last year.
Melfa said the staff has doubled from 50 to 100, and the company doubled its space as well. "We grew from 10,000 square feet of space in our three-story building to 20,000 (square feet)," he said, after Bain Capital moved out of an adjacent office. "It was available, we added walls, made some changes and added a bigger classroom."
According to a statement, the company projects sales of more than $60 million for 2012, with profits to continue to exceed industry averages.
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