Smart50 rank: 44
Revenue: $176 million
Growth: 27.94%
Founders: Matthew Franceschini, 39; Jonathan Knowles, 39; Pedro Fric, 38
Based: Victoria
Employees: 70
Industry: Property and business services
Website: www.entitysolutions.com.au
A seachange in Australian work patterns from conventional employment to sole trading or independent contractual arrangements has proved a fruitful foundation for Melbourne-based business Entity Solutions.
Entity Solutions provides a corporate employment structure for local and foreign independent contractors, in the process taking much of the associated administrative burden off their shoulders.
The firm also makes money from the flipside of that relationship, providing hiring and legal compliance services to the corporates that hire independent contractors.
More than 2000 independent contractors are currently employed through Entity Solutions, giving the firm a slice of the $176 million in wages that pass through its books.
The business was founded in 1999 using $26,000 - and several months of 80 hour weeks - kicked in by its four founders, including current senior managers Matthew Franceschini, Jonathan Knowles and Pedro Fric.
The business faced more tough times four years later when changes to immigration laws evaporated 20% of its business overnight.
"Our challenge was to redefine our service offerings to recapture a market that was crucial to our ongoing success," Franceschini says. "It took six months to formulate a service offering and delivery structured around complying with the legislative changes and 12 months more to recover from the financial impact of losing business, clients, staff and momentum."
