Inc. 500

The INC 500 is an impressive list of the nation’s fastest-growing private companies. This list is compiled by INC magazine, who publishes the list each year in their October issue of INC.

Making the list for one year is hard enough. It requires a great company, impressive management, and a product or service that is in high demand. Because the list is based upon historical compound growth, making the list a second year is rare. Little & Company was recognized for an unheard of 4 years in a row.

While not all companies can achieve this growth rate, year over year. Much of what was learned can be applied to achieve growth rates at the top of your industry.

The University of Utah

Ralph Little received both his undergraduate degree in Finance and his master’s degree in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Utah.

Even before I received my MBA, the university hired me to teach an MBA level course in entrepreneurship. I taught at the university as an adjunct member of the faculty for 12 years.

Concurrent with teaching at the U of U, Ralph Little began consulting with individual businesses. This he loves to do. It is the pleasure of seeing businesses unshackled from poor business practices and once free, able to grow and produce profits.

He was approached by a junior college to design their entrepreneurial program, which he did. He hired the staff, trained the instructors, and taught there and at the U of U, until the program was on solid footings.

Ralph Little now teaches at BYU in Provo, where his classes continue to be full, and students claim that the class has changed their life.

Harvard

As a result of his success on the INC 500, Ralph Little was to be among the 90 entrepreneurs and small business owners invited to attend a special management program at Harvard University. Reserved exclusively for owners of growing businesses, participants gathered at Harvard campus in Boston, for 3 weeks a year for 3 consecutive years.

The Harvard curriculum was designed specifically for small and growing businesses. Much of what I learned at Harvard, is included in the course that I teach, together with what I have learned and practiced as the CEO of my businesses.

You will see among our curriculum 5 Harvard cases and a number of Harvard Business Review articles that address management and growth topics specifically for small businesses.

SBA

Ralph Little was approached by a company based in Boston, MA., to contract with them to teach a business management course for the SBA. The contracting firm, Interise, hired Ralph to teach this class for the SBA.

Each year for 5 years, Ralph taught a new group of highly motivated small business owners a specialized course of material designed to improve their management styles and improve their business performance.

Based on the success of this course of teaching, a local Chamber of Commerce also hired Ralph to teach the same course to their members.

As a result of the success of these and other courses taught by Ralph the Small Business Administration awarded Ralph Little, the 2018 Entrepreneur Advocate of the Year.