B.C. is home to eight of Deloitte’s Technology Fast 50 winners, with Vancouver’s Hootsuite taking second place with a revenue growth rate of 56,514 per cent over five years.

Among 15 companies five years old and under pegged by Deloitte as ones to watch across Canada, four are from Greater Vancouver. And HootSuite and Vancouver’s Global Relay were two of five companies given Deloitte’s Fast 50 Leadership Award.

“This year overall the growth rates in the Fast 50 were just phenomenal compared to the prior year,” said Kari Lockhart, Deloitte’s technology industry leader in Vancouver.

“It was five times the growth rates that we had seen last year.”

The average growth rate among this year’s Fast 50 was 4,736 per cent, compared with about 832 per cent last year. Companies were judged on their revenue growth over a five-year period, along with innovation, entrepreneurship and leadership.

The awards were announced Thursday.

“Overall in the tech sector, just phenomenal growth is being shown from 2009 onwards,” said Lockhart. “Overall, B.C. again had a fantastic showing.”

Hootsuite made its debut on the list, following Toronto digital media company Chango in first place, which chalked up five-year revenue growth of 69,800 per cent. Third on the list was Ottawa-based Shopify, with a five-year growth rate of 16,759 per cent.

Also in the top five was Vancouver’s QuickMobile, with a revenue growth rate of 12,332 per cent. Other B.C. companies in the Technology Fast 50 list included Burnaby’s Clio, which specializes in legal management software; Vancouver’s Avigilon Corporation, maker of video surveillance software and equipment; Zafin, a provider of relationship banking solutions; Appnovation Technologies, a global IT services firm; Richmond’s Clevest, provider of mobile workforce management software; and Burnaby’s Photon Control, which specializes in measurement technologies, including optical sensors and instruments.

Lockhart said B.C.’s tech community is very strong.

“We have some amazing companies with the likes of Hootsuite, Global Relay, Avigilon, with Hootsuite and Global Relay this year receiving leadership awards and Avigilon receiving a leadership award in the Fast 50 two years ago,” she said. “With those companies, the leadership they have continued to focus, they want to build it here in B.C. and they’ve focused on paying it forward to the tech community.”

Lockhart said the fact that four of the 15 companies on the companies to watch list are from B.C. reflects the strong start-up culture in this province.

“That really shows me that the tech start-up community is just blossoming,” she said. “Some of the companies that are coming out are fantastic companies and that’s being recognized through this award across the country.”

Ontario accounted for 29 of the Fast 50 winners, followed by Quebec with nine, B.C. with eight and four from Alberta.

Close to 90 per cent of the respondents in Deloitte’s annual survey of CEOs of Technology Fast 50 companies said access to capital for tech companies has improved or remained the same over the past five years.

gshaw@vancouversun.com

The best of B.C.:

B.C. companies on Deloitte’s Technology Fast 50 List and their ranking

2. HootSuite

5. QuickMobile

10. Clio

15. Avigilon Corporation

16. Zafin

22. Appnovation

34. Clevest

42. Photon Control

B.C. Companies on Deloitte’s companies-to-watch list

BitLit

Corvus Energy

Trulioo

Unbounce