FI Group Plc, the private software, systems and services company that made its name as F International by giving women programming and coding work they could do home long before the concept of telecommuting was fashionable, overdosed on the word sparkle when reporting its results, but it was a fair summary of what has been a very good year for the company. Speculation in the Financial Times has it that the Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire-based company is planning to seek a full listing in London in the near future. The company said that was all it was – speculation – but was not denying the scenario either. The company is effectively controlled by its employees, who have 42% of the shares, but double the voting rights on the board. A further 18.3% is held in a shareholders trust with Schroeders, Baronsmead Ltd and New Court Ventures as the institutional shareholders. The rest is held by directors. Pre-tax profits advanced by 57% to ú3.3m from turnover that rose 49% ú61.7m. FI has benefitted from the trend towards facilities management, which now accounts for about 70% of turnover. The company enjoys long-term contracts with banks, retail companies, utilities and telephone companies, among others. It said it starts the new fiscal with its strongest-ever order book. Employee-controlled companies usually end up having to float once they grow beyond a fairly limited size because the value of the shares held by early holders becomes so high that no insiders can be found to raise the money to buy them once the early holders reach the point where they need to cash in.
