#11 Vivint, Inc.

   Now this is a name-changer. APX Alarm? Make that Vivint, Inc. Security alarm company? Make that home automation company. Industry leader? Make that … well, some things never change. “We’re in an amazing place right now,” says Todd Pedersen, founder of Vivint, Inc., which is the provider of a home automation platform for the masses. “We have top-of-the-line technology, fantastic employees, great vision and a great new brand.” But when Pedersen thinks back on the company’s history, that certainty wasn’t always secure. “Truth is, I’m shocked by where the company has gone. I never had the dream early on that it would be this successful,” he says. “But now our dream is so much bigger, I’m embarrassed to tell you about it.” Then let’s start at the beginning, shall we?

The company started because no one would give me a job. It was 1992, and we started out as an outsourced marketing company. We contracted with pest control companies, and we’d hire college students to sell. At our peak, we sold 30,000 pest control customers annually. 

The problem was we didn’t get to keep the customer. We’d sell the product and then hand them over for the ongoing customer service. We didn’t love it. 

We got into the security business in 1999. From there it was an adventure and a rocky few years — some years were good, some were bad. But we learned a lot. 

In early 2006, a private equity firm out of New York approached us with a proposal structure of fifty-fifty ownership. We liked it, because we wanted to be in the same driver’s seat as the equity partner. Plus, it meant we finally got to keep our customer base and become a full-service security company. 

At that point we were a large install company with no existing ongoing customer base. We weren’t even in the top 1,000 in the security industry. And now we’re the fourth largest in North America. We’ll be the second largest come summer.  

In 2011, it was time to rename the company. We’re completely changing what we look like, feel like and act like. Security is just one component of our company. We now have technology that can control anything inside the home — lighting, heating, thermostat, energy management, audio/visual, security, cameras, you name it. And you can control it from China if you want to.

Home automation is typically known as a luxury for the wealthy. But we’ve brought it to the masses. It’s simple and affordable, and we’ve got the customer service to back it up.

Last year was our test year. We installed 170,000 new homes with this platform. We’re not the top in home automation — there’s one company ahead — but give us time. We will absolutely dominate this new space.

Major brands have announced a recent move into this home automation field — Verizon, AT&T, Comcast, Motorola. And we have major advantages over all of them. We’re really doing it and not just talking about it. 

The crazy thing is we had more growing pains in the first three years than we do now. We have elastic systems, and we’ve learned how to staff up and handle growth. Our annualized revenue will probably increase by $120 million this year, and it will be fairly easy to manage. 

With our new building in Provo, we wanted it to reflect our open culture. The architect interviewed employees and came up with the concept of glass walls — and it all reflects the open-dialogue policy we have here. We’ve made a real investment in this building in order to give back to our people. All of the design and furniture — it’s not the cheap stuff. And we have a cafeteria here that our employees eat at for free. We serve 1,000 meals a day, which doesn’t make us any money. But it makes people feel appreciated and loyal, and I guarantee we’re making a return on this investment. 

We feel so fortunate to be here in Utah Valley. The talent is incredible. We feel fortunate to employ the amount of people we do and take part in the local economy. Hopefully the valley feels the same way.