Elliance® Receives Inner City 100 Award from Inc. Magazine

Elliance, an eBusiness technology firm serving advertising agencies and their clients, has been named by Inc. Magazine as one of the fastest-growing companies located in Americas inner cities. Elliance was ranked 74 out of 100 companies listed nationally as one of Americas fastest growing urban businesses.

Pittsburgh, PA -- Elliance, an eBusiness technology firm serving advertising agencies and their clients, has been named by Inc. Magazine as one of the fastest-growing companies located in Americas inner cities. Elliance was ranked 74 out of 100 companies listed nationally as one of Americas fastest growing urban businesses. Elliance was recognized at the Inner City 100 Live awards gala the evening of Thursday, April 26.

The Inner City 100 is a joint project of Inc. Magazine and the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC), a non-profit organization founded in 1995 by Harvard professor Michael E. Porter. The list will be published in the May issue of Inc. Magazine which is read every month by 2.5 million business readers. This award places Elliance among a select group of Americas most promising businesses that are frontrunners in the new economy.

The Inner City 100 celebrates business leaders who had the incredible foresight to build vital companies in Americas inner cities. According to Elliance President & CEO Abu Noaman, I established Elliance in Pittsburgh for very strategic reasons. The city of Pittsburgh is a thriving business community and is home to seven FORTUNE 500 companies. We also have the ability to attract talent from some of the top universities within the nation. In fact my alma mater, Carnegie Mellon University is recognized as one of the best technical universities in the world. Elliance looks forward to increased growth and prosperity within the city of Pittsburgh for years to come."

Eligible companies are ranked according to their five-year sales growth. The 2000 Inner City 100 is ranked according to company growth rates between the fiscal years 1995 and 1999. Neither profitability nor number of employees enters into the equation.

In order to qualify for the 2001 Inner City list, a company must have met the following criteria:

- Be a for-profit corporation, partnership or proprietorship
- Be headquartered in the inner city or have 51% or more of physical operations in the inner city
- Employ 10 or more employees at year-end 1999
- Have a five-year operating sales history that includes at least $50,000 sales revenue in 1995 an increase in 1999 sales over 1998 sales, and sales of at least $1 million in 1999.
- Holding companies, regulated banks and utilities are not eligible for the list.

Elliance provides clients and agencies with strategic eBusiness solutions and Internet technology designed to build business online. Elliance partners with agencies to provide their clients with a multitude of eBusiness solutions ranging from eCommerce and website development to digital marketing and integration programming.