PATH SETTER: MAPANYTHING CHARTS SPEEDY GROWTH BY SHOWING SALESPEOPLE AND OTHERS HOW TO GET WHERE THEY NEED TO BE IN A HURRY.

• Author: Ranii, David
• Position: NCTREND: Tracking tech

Location, location, location" has long been the real-estate industry's mantra. Now, that mentality is taking hold in technology, with the global "location of things" market forecasted to grow at a 34% annual clip to $71.6 billion by 2025. Charlotte--based MapAnything is emerging as one of the fast-growing startups riding the wave as the so-called "LOT" market is spurred on by the likes of Google Maps, Uber and Waze.

MapAnything's software, which is accessible by both mobile devices and PCs, maximizes the efficiency of sales and service workers. "We have essentially taken the core building blocks of what companies like UPS, FedEx and DHL have been doing for years, and we have kind of democratized that, made it accessible for customers [who] don't have logistics as their core business," says Brian Bachofner, chief marketing officer. "And we have done it in such a way that it is easy to use."

Founded in 2009, MapAnything shifted from software consulting to producing a subscription-based product with the 2012 launch of its flagship application. Since then, recurring revenue growth has averaged 70%-plus annually to "well north of $20 million," says co-founder and CEO John Stewart, 44. The company is positioned for expansion after raising $42.5 million in a new financing in November, boosting its total funding to date to $82.9 million.

After surging with 65 net new hires in 2017, MapAnything has 161 employees, including 85 at its Charlotte headquarters. The company anticipates expanding its staff by 10% this year.

MapAnything's software takes a company's proprietary data and other relevant information and plots it on a map; tracks personnel in real time and provides an "audit trail" of miles traveled and stops made; and optimizes routing, scheduling and territory management. In December, the company acquired a small Virginia startup, TerrAlign Group Inc., for its advanced territory-design technology.

Raleigh business-software company Pendo, which has a 65-person sales force, uses MapAnything to plot sales territories and for individual account executives to plan their routes. Chas Scarantino, Pendo's vice president of sales, calls MapAnything "best in breed and best in class." He adds, "We would not be able to territory plan without it."

The platform has other applications: A highway department in the United Kingdom uses it to make real-time updates to maintenance routes, then devises optimal new routes. Cardella Waste Services, a Bergen...