SCHENECTADY, N.Y. and AUSTIN, Texas – Transfinder Corp.’s streak of year-over-year revenue growth was extended to 26 following a record $35.4 million in revenue in 2023, a 23 percent increase from $28.9 million in 2022.
Transfinder, which provides school transportation management and logistics solutions to more than 2,300 school districts throughout North America also added 164 school districts to its roster of clients, with 41 percent leaving competitors for Transfinder and 55 percent not using any software.
The increase in revenue came from a number of sources, including clients continuing to migrate from Transfinder’s earlier routing solution, Routefinder Pro, to its browser-based Routefinder PLUS, which was again named the Best Software in the industry. Contributing to revenue growth was the release of the company’s Servicefinder fleet maintenance solution, which was under development for several years. Transfinder also saw an increases in GPS hardware sales, up 114 percent from 2022.
In addition to revenue growth, last year also marked a return to conferences on a large scale, with Transfinder employees attending 39 conferences across the county, a company record. And Transfinder experts recorded 114 days on district sites, up 25 percent from 2022.
“We made a lot of noise in the industry in 2023,” said Transfinder President and CEO Antonio Civitella. “We launched two new products, Patrolfinder for police and Servicefinder for bus garages. We also made significant upgrades to all of our solutions and hit the road to meet our clients and future clients where they are at.”
Civitella explained why all the activity to increase the company’s exposure.
“The stakes are too high for schools to be using inferior products,” he said. “We have a sense of urgency like never before because we know our solution not only save districts time and money but ultimately save lives too. That’s what keeps us up at night.”
Civitella said today one out of every three students receiving school transportation in North America are taking a bus that is routed using Transfinder technology.
“To be honest, I won’t rest until that ratio is closer to 1:1,” Civitella said.
Civitella spoke to that urgency during a daylong kickoff at Transfinder’s headquarters in Schenectady, New York, on Jan. 15.
“Deep down, all of you care about the success of our clients,” he said. “We will always have challenges, but we have the courage to tackle those challenges.”
And overcome them they did. Transfinder’s award-winning parent app, Stopfinder, named a Best Education App by Education Technology Insights, saw the number of subscribers increase 66 percent to 314,066 in 2023. Stopfinder allows parents to track their child’s bus in real-time as well as have two-way communication with district officials. In 2023, parents received 4.7 million announcements, up 71 percent from the previous year.
Another solution gaining momentum is Wayfinder, the award-winning driver app. The number of trips navigated using Wayfinder jumped 165 percent to 1.9 million in 2023, while the number of student scans for attendance increased 172 percent to 6.2 million during the same period.
Beyond Transfinder’s award-winning software and hardware is the company’s service and support teams that engage with clients in a number of areas. Clients implementing new software gave Transfinder an average 4.7 stars for their experience in 2023. Meanwhile, 8,677 training sessions were held, up 6 percent from 2022; and 745 clients attended Transfinder University Livestream, up 8 percent.
Transfinder also added or improved ways for clients to reach its experts in support to reduce wait times, such as live chat, which increased 42 percent year-over-year. Customers on average gave Transfinder 4.7 stars for their chat experience.
Customer service is a critical focal point at Transfinder as its clients are traversing 75.9 million miles each year with students. That’s an increase of 198 percent from last year.
“We have to get it right for our clients because they have to get it right for the students and their parents,” Civitella said.
Transfinder continues to add to its headcount. Currently, the tech company has 182 employees globally, with 118 in the United States, the bulk of which are in New York’s Capital Region. That’s up from 174 globally and 111 in the United States in 2022.
Civitella anticipates crossing the 200-employee threshold in 2024.
“We could have hired more in 2023 but in 2024 we’re going to have massive hiring. We are hiring in nearly all departments and adding new departments and positions as well,” he said. “And while we love hiring in our backyard, can hire the best of the best wherever they are. We’ve cracked the code to not only productivity but also building a great culture where people like where they work. That’s indicated in the Best Places to Work, Top Workplace and Best Company to Work for in New York State awards we’ve won over the years. We’ve got an amazing team that keeps getting better.”
Highlights in 2023 include:
· 26th consecutive year of annual revenue growth
· 164 new clients
· Hardware sales up 114 percent from 2022
· Created the Top Transportation Teams award, well received by the industry
· Launched the new and improved Servicefinder
· Launched Patrolfinder to assist police agencies and school resource officers
· Received Best Software and Best Hardware awards from School Transportation News
· Received Top Education Apps from Education Technology Insights
· Named a Best Place to Work, Top Workplace and Best Companies to Work for in New York State
· 8,677 training sessions with clients, up 6 percent
· Attended 39 conferences
· Officially opened Mumbai, India office, which closed 2023 with seven employees
· Received 3,723 applications (hired 20)
· Secured the location in San Antonio, Texas for the return of the Annual Client Summit
“2023 was a good year. We worked hard, learned a lot and gritted it out. We extended ourselves into new areas that will begin paying off in 2024,” Civitella said. “But 2024 will be a great year. Mark my words: 2024 will be transformational for Transfinder. Our employees know it. Our clients feel it. And soon, the industry will see it.”
About Transfinder:
Founded in 1988 and headquartered in Schenectady, New York, Transfinder is a national leader in intelligent transportation systems, providing transportation management systems and services to municipalities, school districts, adult care facilities and police agencies. Transfinder develops and supports its proprietary routing and scheduling solutions and apps for optimal transportation logistics. Transfinder has been an Inc. magazine “fastest-growing company,” at one time holding a streak for 11 consecutive years on the list. The company has offices in Austin, Texas; Shanghai, China and Mumbai, India. The company provides both software and hardware, receiving Best Software and Best Hardware awards by industry leaders. Transfinder also has been named a Best Place to Work, Top Workplace and Best Company to Work for in New York State multiple times, For more information, visit www.transfinder.com.
