Risk Factors Dashboard

Once a year, publicly traded companies issue a comprehensive report of their business, called a 10-K. A component mandated in the 10-K is the ‘Risk Factors’ section, where companies disclose any major potential risks that they may face. This dashboard highlights all major changes and additions in new 10K reports, allowing investors to quickly identify new potential risks and opportunities.

Risk Factors - BGSF

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Item 1A. Risk Factors.”
Although we have attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause results to differ from those anticipated. Forward-looking statements contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K are made as of the date of the Annual Report on Form 10-K and we disclaim any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, results or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws.

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Part I
ITEM 1. BUSINESS.
Overview and History

BGSF, Inc. (“BGSF,” “we,” or the “Company”) is a leading national provider of consulting, managed services, and professional workforce solutions with continuing operations that, along with its wholly owned subsidiaries, operate primarily within the U.S. in two industry segments: Property Management and Professional. We provide field talent to a variety of client partners that are seeking to match their workforce requirements to their business needs. Our client partners operate across a diverse set of industries.

We employ a diverse operating model, both from a skill set and a geographic standpoint, which we believe mitigates downside revenue risk.

Our workforce services consist of on-demand or short-term assignments, consulting services, managed services and on-site management administration. Short-term workforce solutions assist employers in dealing with field talent demands caused by such factors as seasonality, fluctuations in client partner demand, vacations, illnesses, parental leave, and special projects without incurring the ongoing expense and administrative responsibilities associated with recruiting, hiring and retaining permanent field talent. As more and more companies focus on effectively managing variable costs and reducing fixed overhead, the use of short-term workforce solutions allows companies to utilize a contingent approach for their personnel needs, thereby converting a portion of their fixed personnel costs to a variable expense.

Our consulting workforce solutions place field talent with client partners for extended time-periods or for an indefinite time period. This type of arrangement may involve outsourcing an entire department in a large corporation or providing the workforce for a large project.

Managed Solutions are a combination of both workforce solutions and fixed fee arrangements. Field talent is placed with the client partner and services are performed over a given period of time as determined with the client partner. Generally services are provided under a contractual agreement.

In an on-site management arrangement, we place an experienced manager on-site at a client partner’s place of business. The manager is responsible for conducting all recruiting, candidate screening, interviewing, drug testing, hiring and placement for field talent at the client partner’s facility for a long-term or indefinite period.

Management believes that these solutions and the field talent performing these workforce solutions are, and will remain, an integral part of the labor market in local, regional and national economies in which we operate.

BGSF, Inc. is the successor by conversion to LTN Staffing, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company that was formed on August 27, 2007. In 2011, we began doing business as BG Staffing. LTN Staffing, LLC converted into a Delaware corporation, BG Staffing, Inc., following the merger of LTN Acquisition, LLC (the former parent of LTN Staffing, LLC) with and into LTN Staffing, LLC. The conversion was completed on November 3, 2013. In 2021, we changed our name to BGSF, Inc.

We commenced operations on October 17, 2007 and since 2009 have began an on-going growth and diversification initiative. Since 2010, we have acquired fourteen businesses:

In June 2010, we purchased the interests of BG Personnel Services, LP and BG Personnel, LP, and purchased the common stock of B G Staff Services, Inc. Shortly after the purchase, we relocated our home office to Dallas, Texas.

In December 2010, we purchased substantially all of the assets and assumed certain liabilities of JNA Staffing Inc., which specialized in providing light industrial workforce solutions within the State of Wisconsin. These operations were rolled into our existing operations in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

In December 2011, we purchased substantially all of the assets and assumed certain liabilities of Extrinsic, LLC, which specialized in providing information technology (“IT”) workforce solutions to client partners within the U.S. We continue to operate under the Extrinsic trade name.

In December 2012, we acquired substantially all of the assets and assumed certain liabilities of American Partners, Inc., which specialized in providing IT workforce solutions to client partners within the U.S.
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In June 2013, we acquired substantially all of the assets and assumed certain liabilities of InStaff Holding Corporation and InStaff Personnel, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of InStaff Holding Corporation (collectively, “InStaff”).

In March 2015, we acquired substantially all of the assets and assumed certain liabilities of D&W Talent, LLC (“D&W”), which specialized in providing part-time and full-time workforce solutions of accounting and finance personnel and secretarial and administrative personnel to client partners in Texas and Louisiana.

In October 2015, we acquired substantially all of the assets and assumed certain liabilities of Vision Technology Services, Inc., Vision Technology Services, LLC, and VTS-VM, LLC (collectively, “VTS”), which provided IT workforce solutions and project management workforce solutions.

In April 2017, we acquired substantially all of the assets and assumed certain liabilities of Zycron, Inc. (“Zycron”), which provided IT workforce solutions and project management workforce solutions.

In September 2017, we acquired substantially all of the assets and assumed certain liabilities of Smart Resources Inc. and Accountable Search, LLC (collectively, “Smart”), which specialized in providing part-time and full-time workforce solutions of accounting and finance personnel and secretarial and administrative personnel to client partners in Chicago market.

In December 2019, we acquired substantially all of the assets and assumed certain liabilities of L.J. Kushner & Associates, L.L.C. (“LJK”), which provided cybersecurity retained search workforce solutions specializing in recruiting high and mid-level IT security professionals.

In February 2020, we acquired 100% of the equity of EdgeRock Technology Holdings, Inc. (“EdgeRock”), which provides specialized IT consultants and focuses on the sourcing and placement of technology professionals specialized in leading software and data ecosystems.

In February 2021, we acquired substantially all of the assets and assumed certain liabilities of Momentum Solutionz LLC (the “Momentum Solutionz”), which provided IT consulting and managed workforce solutions for organizations utilizing ERP systems.

In December 2022, we acquired substantially all of the assets and assumed certain liabilities of Horn Solutions, Inc. and Horn Solutions, Dallas, LLC (collectively, “Horn Solutions”). Horn Solutions provides services to clients in a variety of industries including, but not limited to energy, financial services, healthcare, real estate and construction, service, manufacturing, and software industries.

In April 2023, we acquired substantially all of the assets and assumed certain liabilities, of Arroyo Consulting LLC (“Arroyo Consulting”), which provides nearshore and offshore workforce solutions specializing in IT and software development with operations in the United States, Colombia, and India.

On March 21, 2022, we completed the sale to Sentech Engineering Services, Inc. of substantially all of the assets pertaining to our Light Industrial segment providing field talent primarily to manufacturing, distribution, logistics, and call center client partners which operated under the “InStaff” trade name. Instaff’s financial results have been reflected in our Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive (Loss) Income and Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows as discontinued operations. Instaff's financial results for periods prior to the sale have been reflected in our Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income and Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows as discontinued operations. See “Note 4 - Discontinued Operations” in our Consolidated Financial Statements included elsewhere in this report for additional information. See “Note 4 - Discontinued Operations” in our Consolidated Financial Statements for additional information.

The Company currently operates primarily within the United States of America (“U.S.”) through the Property Management and Professional segments.

Our Industry

The workforce solution industry supplies field talent to client partners helping them minimize the cost and effort of workforce planning. These workforce solutions also enable the client partner to rapidly respond to changes in business conditions, and in some cases to convert fixed labor costs to variable costs. Workforce solution companies act as intermediaries in matching available field talent to client partner assignments.


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The workforce solution market is subject to volatility based on overall economic conditions. Historically, in periods of economic growth, the number of companies providing workforce solutions has increased due to low barriers to entry. During recessionary periods, the number of companies has decreased through consolidation, bankruptcies, or other events.

The workforce solution industry is large and highly fragmented with approximately 25,000 competing companies, while only 241 firms exceeded $100 million in annual revenues during 2023, which is down from 251 in 2022 according to Staffing Industry Analysts (“SIA”). SIA stated the 2023 U.S. temporary service market reported $145.2 billion, which is down from $168.8 billion in 2022. Workforce solution providers compete both to recruit and retain a supply of field talent and to attract and retain client partners to use these workers. Client partner demand for workforce solutions is dependent on the overall strength of the labor market and trends toward greater workforce flexibility. The workforce solution industry includes a number of markets focusing on business needs that vary widely in duration of assignment and level of technical specialization.

Our Operations

We have diversified our operations to provide field talent within distinct segments of the industry. We refer to our continuing operations as the Property Management and Professional segments, and discontinuing operations as the Light Industrial segment. We refer to our continuing operations as the Real Estate and Professional segments, and discontinuing operations as the Light Industrial segment.

We operate separate profit centers within each segment and provide managers considerable operational autonomy and financial incentives. Managers focus on business opportunities within their markets and are provided centralized support to achieve success in those markets. We believe this structure allows us to recruit and retain highly motivated managers who have demonstrated the ability to succeed in a competitive environment. This structure also allows managers and team members to focus on market development while relying on centralized services for support in back-office operations, such as risk management programs and unemployment insurance, credit, collections, accounting, advice on legal and regulatory matters, and quality standards.

Our Segments

Our continuing operations are organized into the Property Management and Professional segments, and our discontinued operations is the Light Industrial segment.

Property Management Segment

Our Property Management segment is a leading provider of office and maintenance talent. We currently operate in 40 states and D.C. The field talent we assign to our Property Management client partners are our employees, although our client partners generally provide on-the-job direction, control and supervision. The field talent we assign to our Real Estate client partners are our employees, although our client partners provide on-the-job direction, control and supervision.

Professional Segment

Our Professional segment provides highly skilled IT professionals with expertise in SAP, Workday, Peoplesoft, Hyperion, Oracle, One Stream, cyber, project management, managed services, and other IT workforce solutions to client partners on a national basis. Additionally, we provide finance, accounting, legal, human resource and related support personnel. Our client partners include large Fortune 500 companies, medium and small companies, as well as consulting firms engaged in systems integration projects. We operate our professional segment remotely and from our offices in Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Tennessee, and Texas. We operate our professional segment remotely and from our offices in Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, 7Massachusetts, New Jersey, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Tennessee, and Texas. The IT division provides additional nearshore/offshore field talent solutions in Colombia and India.

Light Industrial Segment

The Light Industrial segment is reported in our financial statements as discontinued operations. See “Note 4 - Discontinued Operations” in our Consolidated Financial Statements for additional information.

Financial Information about Segments

Refer to Note 19 in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included in Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K, which is incorporated by reference.


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Financial Information about Geographic Areas

Refer to Notes 1 and 2 in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included in Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K, which is incorporated by reference.

Our Client Partners

We currently provide workforce solutions to small and medium-sized companies as well as divisions of Fortune 500 companies. As is common in the industry, our engagements to provide workforce solutions to our client partners are generally of a non-exclusive, short-term nature and subject to termination by the client partner with little or no notice. No client partner accounted for more than 10% of our revenues in fiscal 2024, 2023, or 2022.

Marketing and Recruiting

We believe a key component of our success is the ability to recruit and maintain a pool of qualified field talent and regularly place them into desirable and appropriate positions. We use comprehensive methods to identify, assess, select and, when appropriate, measure the skills of our field talent and permanent placement candidates to meet the needs of our client partners.

We market our workforce solutions to client partners and field talent candidates via both national and local advertising activities. A significant portion of our total marketing efforts comes from direct marketing via email and telephone solicitation. Promotions consists of pay per click advertising, search engine marketing, social media, trade publications, job boards and events. Promotions consists of digital display, search engine marketing, social media, trade publications, job boards and events. As well, reputation management is a promotional utility that serves as the first impression; interactions on reviews, comments, posts, direct messages, etc. give our followers a cursory notion of our values and business practices. We market our hiring and career management advice through all digital platforms (websites, social media, and blogs) and have expanded our use of job boards and aggregators in all aspects of sales and recruitment. Joint marketing arrangements have been entered into with major software partners. We actively seek endorsements and affiliations with professional organizations in the accounting and finance, technology, apartment community, commercial building, creative and marketing fields. To enhance public recognition of us and our workforce solutions, we conduct public relations activities and team members and field talent are encouraged to be active in civic organizations and industry trade groups in their local communities.

Growth Strategy
We are committed to growing our operations and have grown from $35 million of Light Industrial revenue in 2009 to $272 million of revenue from continuing operations in 2024, by using a growth strategy reliant upon both acquisitions and organic growth.

We will continue to evaluate acquisition opportunities utilizing our proven approach to the assessment, valuation, and integration of acquisitions. Additionally, we are committed to continue to grow our operations in our current markets, as well as expand into new markets within the segments and industries that we currently serve.

We are organized to handle many of the administrative functions at our home office location so that our segment operations can focus on business development and the effective recruiting and assignment of field talent.

We continue to invest in technology and process improvements, as necessary, to ensure that we are operating at optimal productivity and performance. In 2022, we completed the board of directors authorized three year plan to enhance our processes through the information technology improvement project. In second quarter 2022, we completed the board of directors authorized three year plan to enhance our processes through the information technology improvement project. These workstreams included improvements to applications in front office, middle office, back office, modern workplace, IT infrastructure, and project management.

Competition

With about 25,000 staffing and recruiting companies, the workforce solutions market is highly competitive with limited barriers to entry. We compete in national, regional and local markets with full-service and specialized workforce solution companies. Some of our competitors have significantly more marketing and financial resources than we do. Price competition in the industry is intense. We expect that the level of competition will remain high, which could limit our ability to maintain or increase our market share or profitability.

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The principal competitive factors in attracting qualified candidates for assignments are pay rates, availability of assignments, duration of assignments and responsiveness to requests for placement. We believe that many potential candidates seeking assignments through us may also be pursuing assignments through other means. Therefore, the speed at which we place prospective field talent and the availability of appropriate assignments are important factors in our ability to complete assignments of qualified field talent. In addition to having high quality field talent to assign in a timely manner, the principal competitive factors in obtaining and retaining client partners in the workforce solution industry are properly assessing the client partners’ specific job requirements, the appropriateness of the field talent assigned to the client partner, the price of services and the monitoring of client partner satisfaction. Although we believe we compete favorably with respect to these factors, we expect competition to continue to increase.

Seasonality and Other Fluctuations

Our business experiences seasonal fluctuations. Our quarterly operating results are affected by the number of billing days in a quarter, as well as the seasonality of our client partners’ business. Demand for our Property Management workforce solutions typically increase in the second quarter and is highest during the third quarter of the year due to the increased turns in multifamily units during the summer months when schools are not in session. Demand for our Real Estate workforce solutions typically increase in the second quarter and is highest during the third quarter of the year due to the increased turns in multifamily units during the summer months when schools are not in session. Overall first quarter demand can be affected by adverse weather conditions in the winter months. In addition, our cost of services typically increases in the first quarter primarily due to the reset of payroll taxes.

The industry has historically been cyclical, often acting as an indicator of both economic downturns and upswings. Client partners tend to use contingent workforce solutions to supplement their existing workforce and generally hire direct workers when long-term demand is expected to increase. As a consequence, our revenues tend to increase quickly when the economy begins to grow and, conversely, our revenues can also decrease quickly when the economy begins to weaken. Historically, demand for permanent placement workforce solutions is even more sensitive to economic and labor market conditions than demand for workforce and consultant solutions and this is expected to continue.

Human Capital

We are a workforce solutions company dedicated to connecting people to work in ways that enrich their lives. At BGSF, we define our purpose by championing the future of people, transforming lives, and positively impacting entire communities. We are more than a transactional business. Our focus is on the big picture. We believe we can be a powerful force for good by connecting people to opportunities that enrich their lives and support their personal and professional development. Embedded in our character is the positive energy we embrace that drives a happy work environment, that shapes a happy home, which cascades into happier communities. We believe small actions can turn into big impacts, creating a ripple that becomes a wave powerful enough to change the world around us. This is what we call The BG Ripple Effect. In order to compete and succeed in our highly competitive and rapidly evolving markets, it is crucial that we attract and retain experienced internal team members, as well as talent to work for our client partners. As part of these efforts, we strive to offer competitive total rewards programs, foster an inclusive and diverse environment, and give team members the opportunity to give back to their communities and make a social impact.

Team Members
As of February 5, 2025, we employed approximately 405 team members working remotely or in our various market locations in the United States.

Field Talent

In addition to our team members, BGSF matches talent with our client partners. In 2024, we placed approximately 13,300 individuals in positions with our client partners. In significantly all of these instances, we remain the employer of record for substantially all of our talent working at our client partner locations. This means that we retain responsibility for all assignments, wages, benefits, workers’ compensation insurance, and the employers’ share of applicable payroll taxes as well as the administration of the team members’ share of these taxes. Also, working with us gives our talent access to competitive health and benefit programs. Eligible talent can participate in a defined contribution plan and the 2020 Employee Stock Purchase Plan (“2020 ESPP”).

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Compensation and Benefits

BGSF is committed to providing competitive, equitable and fiscally responsible total rewards programs to our team members. Our compensation programs are designed to attract, retain and reward talented individuals who possess the skills necessary to achieve our strategic goals and create long-term value for our shareholders. We provide team members with competitive compensation opportunities, with pay for performance opportunities that include a mix of base salary, commissions, short-term incentives and, in the case of our more senior team members, long-term equity awards. We believe that our programs provide fair and competitive opportunities that align team member and shareholder interests. In addition to cash and equity compensation, we also offer team members competitive benefits such as life and health (medical, dental and vision) insurance, paid time off including volunteer time off, wellness benefits, education/tuition reimbursement, a defined contribution retirement plan with BGSF matching contributions, and our 2020 ESPP.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

We are committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse workforce. Our responsibility commitment is overseen by executive leadership, along with board-level oversight led by our Nominating and Governance Committee. In September 2020, we formed a diversity, equity and inclusion council called Voices Inspiring Inclusion, Belonging, and Equity (“VIIBE”), which represents broad perspectives across our organization. In August 2022, we launched our first two team member resource groups: African American/Black Employees & Allies and Working Parents and Allies. During 2023, we launched our third team member resource group, Pride and Allies. Our team member resource groups focus on creating a strong sense of belonging within our work culture, raising awareness about obstacles standing in the way of team member success, gaining collaborative support from allies, and driving equitable opportunities throughout the organization for all. Our team member resource groups are designed to create a strong sense of belonging within our work culture, to provide awareness and gain collaborative support from allies, and to help drive equitable opportunities throughout our organization for all. The essential work of VIIBE has continued to align its work with the development of foundational pillars of excellence that promote this philosophy. We are focused on how we source, recruit, develop, appreciate, and leverage perspectives and experiences of underrepresented talent. This focus will extend to our collaboration with client partners, selection of vendor partners, engagement in our communities and prioritization of overall work-life harmony. Our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion does not sit with a singular individual, but with every BGSF team member. BGSF leaders will continue to be provided additional inclusive-leadership growth opportunities, understanding the importance of mitigating biases, as an ongoing effort to shape our future talent pool selections, onboard new talent, and support future career trajectories.

As of August 1, 2024, we employed approximately 3,456 people, of which 13% were internal team members and 87% were field talent supporting our client partners across the country.As of October 14, 2022, we employed approximately 3,025 people, of which 14% were internal team members and 86% were field talent supporting our client partners across the country.

Women represented 36% of all team members, and underrepresented minorities (“URMs”, defined as those who identify as Black/African American, Hispanic/Latinx, Native American/Alaska Native, Asian, Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander and/or two or more races) represented 71% of our all of our reporting team members (8% of team members in contingent roles chose not to disclose this information);

Women represented 61% of our internal team members and 50% of internal team members in managerial and leadership roles; and

URMs represent 39% of our internal team members and 20% of internal team members in managerial and leadership roles identified as URMs.

Our focus is to ensure BGSF is cultivating equality and equity, while recognizing and celebrating our differences at work, in our homes, and out in the communities.

Community Involvement

In 2024, we were committed to sustainability initiatives which guided our interactions with our workforce, vendor partners, and client partners. Through our volunteering time off program, we had 144 individuals volunteer over 1,400 hours and donated over $60,000 for philanthropic purposes, including volunteer hours from our first Service Week, which was spearheaded by our Employee Resource Groups (ERGs). Our ongoing dedication to community service was also emphasized by adding an “S” for Service to our GIIFTS (Growth Integrity Innovation Fun Teamwork Service). Focusing on impactful community events, we continued sponsorship of the State Fair of Texas’s Youth Agricultural Job Interview Contest, the Heart Walk with the American Heart Association and the Steps of Success 5K for the Transformation Life Center. We also continued to be involved with student development through the Junior Achievement organization. Our global investment in professional development initiatives delivered over 10,000 educational hours to 2,200 individuals. During 2025, we will remain dedicated to sustainability, employee development, and community impact.

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Team Engagement

As part of BGSF’s continued initiative to provide its team members with feedback opportunities, in 2024, we conducted several pulse surveys to understand team member needs and provide support. Survey results were analyzed and reviewed by our senior leadership, as well as shared with individual managers, who were then tasked with taking action based on their team members’ confidential feedback (both quantitative and qualitative). By paying close attention to the results, both at an aggregate enterprise level as well as at a department/business/workgroup level, we have been able to continue the enhancement of our culture of rewards and recognition, drive efforts to promote inclusion and diversity, increase communication in support of team member well-being and modernize our approach to foster a culture of continuous learning and feedback. In 2024, team members recognized our BGSF values through our “BIG Deal” platform by sending over 3,300 awards to their fellow team members.

Learning and Development

We emphasize team member development and learning as a priority for the organization. We believe learning and development are key elements to overall retention, engagement, and team member experience strategy. Our strategy is designed to empower team members to reach their full potential, and we provide a wide range of development programs, opportunities, and resources needed to be successful. As we continue to develop the BGSF University, our goal is to provide a variety of learning channels including instructor-led, facilitated custom workshops, leader-led, cohort and mentorships, self-paced, e-learning and a catalog of vendor-provided courses, videos, resources, and books. We are committed to the organization’s overall health and providing career progression by providing individual development, readiness, and transition plans as a part of our talent review and succession planning process. In 2024, we had over 10,000 hours spent in upskilling the workforce, with over 3,200 going through our training programs.

Intellectual Property

We own or have rights to various copyrights, trademarks, service marks, trade names and domain names used in our business, including, but not limited to, BGSF, BG Staffing, BG Staffing Group, BG Personnel Services, Extrinsic, American Partners, InStaff, BG Temporary Staffing, BG Multifamily, BG Talent, Triance, Donovan & Watkins, D&W Talent, Vision Technology Services, Zycron, Smart Resources, Accountable Search, L.J. Kushner & Associates, EdgeRock, EdgeRock Technology Partners, EdgeRock Technology Partners & Design, Momentum Solutionz, Creative Data Solutions, Horn Solutions, Arroyo Consulting, Arroyo IT Solutions, AC, bgsf.com, bgstaffing.com, bgstaffinggroup.com, bgpersonnel.com, bgpersonnel.net, bgstaffing.net, bgcompanies.net, bgmail.com, ltnstaffing.com, milwaukeetemps.com, milwaukeetmepsinc.com, extrinsicllc.com, extrinsicgroup.com, extrinsicresources.com, jnastaffing.com, therightpeoplerightnow.com, rightpeoplerightnow.com, americanpartnersinc.com, instaff.com, donwat.com, vistechs.com, zycron.com, smartstaffing.com, accountablesearch.com, executiveassistantsearch.com, ljkushner.com, edgerock.com, edgerock.net, edgerockblue.com, edgerockcares.com, edgerockcares.net, edgerockconsultants.com, edgerockit.com, edgerockpartners.com, edgerockperm.com, edgerockred.com, edgerocksearch.com, edgerocksolutions.com, edgerockstaffing.com, edgerocktech.com, edgerocktech.net, edgerocktechnologies.com, etphome.com, joinedgerock.com, myedgerock.com, momentumsolutionz.com, hornsolutions.com, edgerocksolutions. net, arroyoconsulting.net, and micro-talent.net. In 2023, the Board of Directors approved, and we completed, management’s plan to rebrand as BGSF, eliminating various current trade names. In early 2023, the Board of Directors approved management's plan to rebrand as BGSF, eliminating various current trade names.

Regulation

We are subject to regulation by numerous foreign, federal, state and local regulatory agencies, including but not limited to the U.S. Department of Labor, which sets employment practice standards for workers, and similar state and local agencies. We are subject to the laws and regulations of the jurisdictions within which we operate. While the specific laws and regulations vary among these jurisdictions, some require some form of licensing and often have statutory requirements for workplace safety and notice of change in obligation of workers’ compensation coverage in the event of contract termination. Although compliance with these requirements imposes some additional financial risk on us, particularly with respect to those client partners who breach their payment obligation to us, such compliance has not had a material adverse effect on our business to date. Increased government regulation of the workplace or of the employer-employee relationship, or judicial or administrative proceedings related to such regulation, could also materially harm our business.

Available Information

We file electronically with the SEC our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K, and amendments to those reports pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Our website address is www.bgsf.com. The information included on our website is not included as a part of, or incorporated by reference into, this Annual Report on Form 10-K. We will make available free of charge through our website
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our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K, and amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Exchange Act as soon as reasonably practicable after we have filed or furnished such material to the SEC. The SEC maintains an Internet site that contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC at www.sec.gov. Furthermore, we will provide electronic or paper copies of filings free of charge upon written request to our Corporate Secretary.


ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS.
There are numerous and varied risks that may prevent us from achieving our goals, including those described below. You should carefully consider the risks described below and the other information included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, including our consolidated financial statements and related notes. If any of the events or circumstances described below were to occur, our business, the financial condition and the results of operations could be materially adversely affected. As a result, the trading price of our common stock could decline, and investors could lose part or all of their investment. The risks below are not the only risks we face. Additional risks not currently known to us or that we currently deem to be immaterial may also adversely affect our business, financial condition or results of operations. Past financial performance should not be considered to be a reliable indicator of future financial performance, and investors or prospects should not use historical trends to anticipate results or trends in future periods.

Risks Related to Our Company and Our Business
We operate in a highly competitive industry with low barriers to entry, and may be unable to compete successfully against existing or new competitors.
The workforce solution market is highly competitive with limited barriers to entry. We compete in national, regional and local markets with approximately 25,000 full-service and specialized workforce solution companies. We expect that the level of competition will remain high, which could limit our ability to maintain or increase our market share or profitability.

Several of our existing or potential competitors have substantially greater financial, technical and marketing resources than we do, which may enable them to:

Develop and expand their infrastructure and service offerings more quickly and achieve greater cost savings;
Invest in new technologies;
Expand operations into new markets more rapidly;
Devote greater resources to marketing;
Compete for acquisitions more effectively and complete acquisitions more easily; and
Aggressively price products and services and increase benefits in ways that we may not be able to match.

In order to compete effectively in our markets, we must target our potential client partners carefully, continue to improve our efficiencies and the scope and quality of our workforce solutions, and rely on our service quality, innovation, education and program clarity. If our competitive advantages are not compelling or sustainable, then we are unlikely to increase or sustain profits and our stock price could significantly decline.

In addition, heightened competition among our existing competitors, especially on a price basis, or by new entrants into the market, could create additional competitive pressures that may reduce our margins and adversely affect our business. If we fail to successfully respond to these competitive pressures or to implement our strategies effectively, our revenues or gross margins could be significantly reduced.

Our business is subject to risks associated with geographic market concentration.

Geographic revenue in excess of 10% of our consolidated revenue from continuing operations in fiscal year 2024 and the related percentage for fiscal years 2023 and 2022 was generated in the following areas:

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Consequently, weakness in economic conditions in these regions could have a material adverse effect on our financial position and results of future operations.

A downturn of the U.S. or global economy could result in our client partners using fewer workforce solutions or becoming unable to pay us for our services on a timely basis or at all, which would materially adversely affect our business.
Because demand for workforce solutions is sensitive to changes in the level of economic activity, our business may suffer during economic downturns. During periods of weak economic growth or economic contraction, the demand for such workforce solutions typically declines. When demand drops, our operating profit is typically impacted unfavorably as we experience a deleveraging of our selling, general, and administrative expense base as expenses may not decline as quickly as revenues. When demand drops, our operating profit is typically impacted unfavorably as we experience a deleveraging of our selling and administrative expense base as expenses may not decline as quickly as revenues. In periods of decline, we can only reduce selling, general, and administrative expenses to a certain level without negatively impacting the long-term potential of our brands. In periods of decline, we can only reduce selling and administrative expenses to a certain level without negatively impacting the long-term potential of our brands. Additionally, during economic downturns companies may slow the rate at which they pay their vendors, or they may become unable to pay their obligations. If our client partners become unable to pay amounts owed to us, or pay us more slowly, then our cash flow and profitability may materially suffer.
Our business depends on a strong reputation and anything that harms our reputation will likely harm our results.

As a provider of workforce solutions, as well as consultant services, our reputation is dependent upon the performance of the field talent we place with our client partners and the services rendered by our consultants. We depend on our reputation and name recognition to secure engagements and to hire qualified field talent and consultants. If our client partners become dissatisfied with the performance of those field talent or consultants or if any of those field talent or consultants engage in or are believed to have engaged in conduct that is harmful to our client partners, our ability to maintain or expand our client base may be significantly harmed. Moreover, use of our copyrights, trademarks, service marks, trade names, domain names, or other intellectual property by third parties, including but not limited to unauthorized use by third parties for criminal purposes or otherwise, even if such use is outside our reasonable control, may significantly harm our reputation or the value of our copyrights, trademarks, service marks, trade names, domain names, or other intellectual property, or subject us to legal proceedings, and therefore have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, or financial condition.

We would be adversely affected by the loss of key personnel.
Our operations and financial success depend significantly on our leadership management team and team members. The loss of any key members of this group could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We depend on our ability to attract and retain qualified field talent.
We depend on our ability to attract qualified field talent who possess the skills and experience necessary to meet the workforce solution requirements of our client partners. We must continually evaluate our base of available qualified personnel to keep pace with changing client partner needs. Competition for individuals with proven professional skills is intense, and demand for these individuals is expected to remain strong for the foreseeable future. There can be no assurance that qualified personnel will continue to be available. Our success is substantially dependent on our ability to recruit and retain qualified field talent.

Our workforce solution agreements may be terminated on short notice, leaving us vulnerable to loss of a significant amount of client partners in a short period of time.

Our workforce solution agreements with our client partners are generally cancellable by the client partners with little or no notice to us. As a result, a significant number of our client partners can terminate their agreements with us at any time, making us particularly vulnerable to a significant decrease in revenue within a short period of time that could be difficult to quickly replace.

If we are unable to retain existing client partners or attract new client partners, our results of operations could suffer.

Increasing the growth and profitability of our business is particularly dependent upon our ability to retain existing client partners and capture additional client partners. Our ability to do so is dependent upon our ability to provide high quality workforce solutions and offer competitive prices. If we are unable to execute these tasks effectively, we may not be able to attract a significant number of new client partners and our existing client partners base could decrease, either or both of which could have a materially adverse impact on our revenues.

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Acquisitions and new business initiatives may not be successful.
We expect to continue making acquisitions and entering into new business initiatives, including, but not limited to, dispositions, joint ventures, and strategic investments, as part of our long-term business strategy. These acquisitions and new business initiatives involve significant challenges and risks, including that they may not advance our business strategy, that we may not realize a satisfactory return on our investment, that we may experience difficulty in integrating operations, or diversion of management’s attention from our other business. We may be unable to identify suitable acquisition candidates in the future. Moreover, acquisitions may require substantial capital needs and the incurrence of additional indebtedness which may change significantly our capitalization and results of operations. Further, these acquisitions could result in post-closing discovery of material undisclosed liabilities of the acquired business or assets, title or other defects with respect to acquired assets, discrepancies or errors in furnished financial statements or other information or breaches of representations made by the sellers, or the unexpected loss of key team members or client partners from acquired businesses. These events could cause material harm to our operating results or financial condition.

We have debt that could adversely affect our financial health and prevent us from fulfilling our obligations or put us at a competitive disadvantage.
While we believe our current debt level is reasonable, we have utilized, and expect to continue to utilize, debt for acquisitions. Our level of debt and the limitations imposed on us by our lenders could have a material impact on investors, including the requirement to use a portion of our cash flow from operations for debt service rather than for our operations and the need to comply with the various covenants associated with such debt. Additionally, we may not be able to obtain additional debt financing for future working capital, capital expenditures or other home office purposes or may have to pay more for such financing. We could also be less able to take advantage of significant business opportunities, such as acquisition opportunities, and to react to changes in market or industry conditions, or we may be disadvantaged compared to competitors with less leverage.
We have significant working capital needs and if we are unable to satisfy those needs from cash generated from our operations or borrowings under our revolving credit facility, we may not be able to meet payroll requirements.

We require significant amounts of working capital to operate our business. If we experience a significant and sustained drop in operating profits, or if there are unanticipated reductions in cash inflows or increases in cash outlays, we may be subject to cash shortfalls. If such a shortfall were to occur for even a brief period of time, it may have a significant adverse effect on our business. In particular, we use working capital to pay expenses relating to our team members and field talent and to satisfy our workers’ compensation and tax liabilities. Generally, we pay our field talent on a weekly basis while we receive payments from our client partners 30 to 90 days after billing. As a result, we must maintain sufficient cash availability to pay team members and field talent and fund related payroll liabilities prior to receiving payment from client partners.

We derive working capital for our operations through cash generated by our operating activities and borrowings under our revolving credit facility. We believe that our current sources of capital are adequate to meet our working capital needs. However, our available sources of capital are limited. If our working capital needs increase in the future, we may be forced to seek additional sources of capital, which may not be available on commercially reasonable terms, or at all.

At the end of fiscal 2024, the maximum amount we were entitled to borrow under our revolving credit facility was $20 million and the availability of unused funds was affected by financial, business, economic and other factors, as well as by the daily timing of cash collections and cash outflows.

We typically experience significant seasonal and other fluctuations in our borrowings and borrowing availability, and we aggressively manage our cash flow to ensure adequate funds to meet working capital needs. Such management steps include working to improve collections, adjusting the timing of cash expenditures and managing operating expenses. However, such steps may not always be successful.

Failure to comply with restrictive covenants under our credit agreement could trigger prepayment obligations or additional costs.

Our credit agreement includes various financial and other covenants with which we have to comply in order to maintain borrowing availability and avoid default interest, including minimum fixed charge coverage ratio and maximum leverage ratio.

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Any future failure to comply with our covenants which may occur under our credit agreement could result in an event of default which, if not cured or waived, could trigger prepayment obligations. There can be no assurances that any lender will waive defaults that may occur in the future. If we are forced to refinance our credit agreement, there can be no assurance that such refinancing would be available or that such refinancing would not have a material adverse effect on our business and financial condition. Even if such refinancing were available, the terms could be less favorable and our results of operations and financial condition could be materially adversely affected by increased costs and interest rates.

We could be required to write-off goodwill or intangible assets in future periods if our future operating results suffer.

In accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, we are required to review our goodwill and intangible assets for impairment at least annually. Our goodwill and intangibles assets were $59.2 million and $24.5 million, respectively, at the end of fiscal year 2024. An unfavorable evaluation could cause us to write-off these assets in future periods. Our goodwill and intangibles assets from continuing operations were $55.2 million and $47.6 million, respectively, at the end of fiscal year 2022. An unfavorable evaluation could cause us to write-off these assets in future periods. Any future write-offs could have a material adverse impact on our results of operations. For example, in 2023, the Board of Director approved management’s plan to rebrand as BGSF, eliminating various current trade names.In early 2023, our board of directors approved our management’s plan to rebrand as BGSF, eliminating various current trade names. See “Note 2 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” in our Consolidated Financial Statements included elsewhere in this report for additional information.

The amount of collateral that we are required to maintain to support our workers’ compensation obligations could increase, reducing the amount of capital we have available to support and grow our field operations.

We are contractually obligated to collateralize our workers’ compensation obligations under our workers’ compensation program through irrevocable letters of credit, surety bonds or cash. Our workers’ compensation program renews annually on January 1 of each year, and as part of the renewal, collateral is adjusted to reflect current operating levels. These collateral requirements are significant and place pressure on our liquidity and working capital capacity. We believe that our current sources of liquidity are adequate to satisfy our immediate needs for these obligations; however, our available sources of capital are limited. Depending on future changes in collateral requirements, we could be required to seek additional sources of capital in the future, which may not be available on commercially reasonable terms, or at all.

We are dependent on workers’ compensation insurance coverage at commercially reasonable terms.
We provide workers’ compensation insurance for our team members and field talent. Our workers’ compensation insurance policies are renewed annually. We cannot be certain we will be able to obtain appropriate types or levels of insurance in the future or that adequate replacement policies will be available on commercially reasonable terms. The loss of our workers’ compensation insurance coverage would prevent us from doing business in the majority of our markets. Further, we cannot be certain that our current and former insurance carriers will be able to pay claims we make under such policies. The loss of workers’ compensation insurance could have a material adverse effect on our financial position and results of operations.
Because we assume the obligation to make wage, tax and regulatory payments in respect of our team members and field talent, we are exposed to client partner credit risks.

We generally assume responsibility for and manage the risks associated with our team members and field talent payroll obligations, including liability for payment of salaries and wages (including payroll taxes), as well as group health and retirement benefits. These obligations are fixed, whether or not the client partner makes payments required by our workforce solutions agreement, which exposes us to credit risks. We attempt to mitigate this risk by generally invoicing our client partners weekly and having a high number of client partners who are geographically and industry diverse. We also carefully monitor the timeliness of our client partners’ payments and impose strict credit standards on our client partners. If we fail to successfully manage our credit risk, we may suffer significant losses which would decrease our profitability.

Our business is subject to foreign, federal, state and local labor and employment laws and a failure to comply could materially harm our business.Our business is subject to federal, state and local labor and employment laws and a failure to comply could materially harm our business.
We are subject to regulation by numerous foreign, federal, state and local regulatory agencies, including but not limited to the U.S. Department of Labor, which sets employment practice standards for workers, and similar state and local agencies. We are subject to the laws and regulations of the jurisdictions within which we operate. While the specific laws and regulations vary among these jurisdictions, some require some form of licensing and often have statutory requirements for workplace safety and notice of change in obligation of workers’ compensation coverage in the event of contract termination. Compliance with these requirements imposes some additional financial risk on us, particularly with respect to those client partners who breach their payment obligation to us. Any inability or failure to comply with government regulation could materially harm our business. Increased government regulation of the workplace or of the employer-employee relationship, or judicial or administrative proceedings related to such regulation, could also materially harm our business.
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The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (collectively, the “Health Care Reform Laws”) include various health-related provisions that took effect during 2014 and established new regulations on health plans. Although the Health Care Reform Laws do not mandate that employers offer health insurance, beginning in 2015 tax penalties were assessed on employers who do not offer health insurance that meets certain affordability or benefit requirements. A portion of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act became effective in 2019 reducing the penalty to zero that requires most individuals to have health insurance, which effectively repealed the Health Care Reform Laws requirement. However, some states have begun proceedings to keep these mandates intact through state legislation. Unless modified by regulations or subsequent legislation, the payment of tax penalties if such coverage is not adequate, may increase our costs. Without the individual mandate, more individuals might decline coverage, which could have an impact on employer premiums. If we are unable to raise the rates we charge our client partners to cover these costs, such increases in costs could materially harm our business.

In addition, certain of our client partners may require that we indemnify them against losses in the event that the client partner is determined to be non-compliant with the Health Care Reform Laws with respect to one or more of our field talent assigned to such client partner. While we have not received notice from any client partner that acts or omissions by us may have resulted in losses to the client partner relating to non-compliance with the Health Care Reform Laws, any future liabilities that may be incurred by us pursuant to any such indemnification provisions could materially and adversely affect our results of operations.

It is likely that the U.S. Congress will continue to seek to modify, repeal, or otherwise invalidate all, or certain provisions of, the Health Care Reform Laws. It is unclear at this point what the scope of any future such legislation will be and when it will become effective. Because of the uncertainty surrounding this replacement health care reform legislation, we cannot predict with any certainty the likely impact of the Health Care Reform Laws’ repeal or the adoption of any other health care reform legislation on our financial condition or operating results. Whether or not there is alternative health care legislation enacted in the U.S., there is likely to be significant disruption to the health care market in the coming months and years and the costs of our health care expenditures may increase.
We may be exposed to employment-related claims and losses, including class action lawsuits, which could have a material adverse effect on our business.
Workforce solution providers typically assign personnel in the workplaces of other businesses. The risks of these activities include possible claims relating to:
discrimination and harassment;
wrongful termination or denial of employment;
violations of employment rights related to employment screening or privacy issues;
classification of field talent;
assignment of illegal aliens;
violations of wage and hour requirements;
retroactive entitlement to field talent benefits;
errors and omissions by our field talent;
misuse of client partners proprietary information;
misappropriation of funds;
damage to client partners facilities due to negligence of field talent; and
criminal activity.

We may incur fines and other losses or negative publicity with respect to these claims. In addition, these claims may give rise to litigation, which could be time-consuming and expensive. New employment and labor laws and regulations may be proposed or adopted that may increase the potential exposure of employers to employment-related claims and litigation. There can be no assurance that the policies we have in place to help reduce our exposure to these risks will be effective or that we will not experience losses as a result of these risks. There can also be no assurance that the insurance policies we have purchased to insure against certain risks will be adequate or that insurance coverage will remain available on commercially reasonable terms or be sufficient in amount or scope of coverage.

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U.S. federal tax regulations and interpretations could adversely affect us.

On December 22, 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “TCJA”) was signed into law. Notwithstanding the reduction in the corporate income tax rate, the overall impact of these changes on our results of operations will likely evolve as new regulations and interpretations relating to the TCJA are implemented. In addition, various political figures have pledged their support to overturning or modifying key aspects of the TCJA which could further increase the uncertainty relating to the impact of this or any future tax legislation on our results of operations.

Natural disasters and unusual weather conditions, pandemic outbreaks, terrorist acts, global political events and other serious catastrophic events could disrupt business and otherwise materially adversely affect our business and financial condition.

With operations in many states, we are subject to numerous risks outside of our control, including risks arising from natural disasters, such as fires, earthquakes, hurricanes, floods, tornadoes, unusual weather conditions, pandemic outbreaks and other health emergencies, terrorist acts or disruptive political events, or similar disruptions that could materially adversely affect our business and financial performance. Our operations are often dependent on the ability of team members, field talent and consultants to travel from business to business and from location to location. Any public health emergencies, including a real or potential pandemic such as those caused by the avian flu, SARS, Ebola, COVID-19, or even a particularly virulent flu, could decrease demand for our workforce solutions and our ability to offer them. Uncharacteristic or significant weather conditions can affect travel and the ability of businesses to remain open, which could lead to decreased ability to offer our workforce solutions and materially adversely affect our short-term results of operations. Although we cannot predict such events or their consequences, these events could materially adversely affect our stock price, reputation, business and financial condition.

Risks Related to Our Information Technology, Cybersecurity and Data Protection

Our results of operations and ability to grow could be materially negatively affected if we cannot successfully keep pace with technological changes impacting the development and implementation of our workforce solutions and the evolving needs of our client partners.

Our success depends on our ability to keep pace with rapid technological changes affecting both the development and implementation of our workforce solutions and the needs of our client partners. Technological advances such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, and automation are impacting industries served by all our lines of business. In addition, our business relies on a variety of technologies, including those that support hiring and tracking, order management, billing, and client data analytics. If we do not sufficiently invest in new technology and industry developments, appropriately implement new technologies, or evolve our business at sufficient speed and scale in response to such developments, or if we do not make the right strategic investments to respond to these developments, our workforce solutions, results of operations, and ability to develop and maintain our business could be negatively affected.

We are dependent upon technology services, and if we experience damage, service interruptions or failures in our computer and telecommunications systems, or if our security measures are breached, our client partner and field talent relationships and our ability to attract new client partners may be adversely affected.

Our business could be interrupted by damage to or disruption of our computer, telecommunications equipment, or software systems, some of which are managed by third-party vendors, and we may lose data. Our client partners’ businesses may be adversely affected by any system or equipment failure we experience. As a result of any of the foregoing, our relationships with our client partners may be impaired, we may lose client partners, our ability to attract new client partners may be adversely affected and we could be exposed to contractual liability. Precautions in place to protect us from, or minimize the effect of, such events may not be adequate. In addition, our business involves the storage and transmission of field talent or client partners’ proprietary information, and security breaches, computer viruses or cyber-attacks, including attacks motivated by grievances against the business industry in general or against us in particular, could expose us to a risk of loss of this information, litigation and possible liability. If our security measures are breached as a result of third-party action, field talent error, malfeasance or otherwise, and, as a result, someone obtains unauthorized access to client partner data, our reputation may be damaged, we may be subject to government sanctions, our business may suffer and we could incur significant liability. Techniques used to obtain unauthorized access or to sabotage systems change frequently and are growing increasingly sophisticated. As a result, we may be unable to anticipate these techniques or to implement adequate preventative measures. If an actual or perceived breach of our security occurs, we could be liable and the market perception of our workforce solutions could be harmed or result in increased costs or loss of revenue. The potential risk of security breaches and cyber-attacks may increase as we introduce new workforce solution offerings.

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We maintain insurance with respect to many of such claims; however, there can be no assurance that we will continue to be able to obtain insurance at a cost that does not have a material adverse effect upon us or that such claims (whether by reason of us not having sufficient insurance or by reason of such claims being outside the scope of our insurance) will not have a material adverse effect upon us.

Changes in data privacy and protection laws and regulations in respect of control of personal information could increase our costs or otherwise adversely impact our operations.

In the ordinary course of business, we collect, use, and retain personal information from our team members, field talent candidates, and contractors, including, without limitation, full names, government-issued identification numbers, addresses, birth dates, and payroll-related information. The possession and use of personal information in conducting our business subjects us to a variety of complex and evolving laws and regulations regarding data privacy, protection and security, which, in many cases, apply not only to third-party transactions, but also to transfers of information among us and our subsidiaries. Complying with the enhanced obligations and future laws and regulations relating to data transfer, residency, privacy and protection has increased and may continue to increase our operating costs and require significant management time and attention, while any failure by us or our subsidiaries to comply with applicable laws could result in governmental enforcement actions, fines, and other penalties that could potentially have a material adverse effect on our operations and reputation.

Risks Related to the Ownership of Our Securities
An investment in our common stock should be considered high risk.
An investment in our common stock requires a long-term commitment, with no certainty of return. Investment banks may not agree to underwrite primary or secondary offerings on behalf of our company or its stockholders in the future. If all or any of the foregoing risks occur, it would have a material adverse effect on our company.
We cannot predict whether an active trading market for our common stock will continue. Even if an active trading market continues, the market price of our common stock may remain volatile.
In the absence of an active trading market:
you may have difficulty buying and selling our common stock at all or at the price you consider reasonable;
market visibility for shares of our common stock may be limited, which may have a depressive effect on the market price for shares of our common stock and on our ability to raise capital or make acquisitions by issuing our common stock.

Even if an active market for our common stock continues, of which no assurances can be given, the market price for our common stock may be volatile and subject to wide fluctuations in response to factors including the following:
actual or anticipated fluctuations in our quarterly or annual operating results;
changes in financial or operational estimates or projections;
changes in the economic performance or market valuations of companies similar to ours;
conditions in markets generally;
sales of significant amounts of our common stock; and
general economic or political conditions in the United States or elsewhere.

The securities market has from time to time experienced significant price and volume fluctuations that are not related to the operating performance of particular companies. These market fluctuations may also materially and adversely affect the market price of shares of our common stock.

We will likely issue additional common stock in the future, which would dilute the holdings of our existing stockholders.

In the future we may issue additional securities up to our total authorized and unissued amounts, including shares of our common stock or securities convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for our common stock, resulting in the dilution of the ownership interests of our stockholders. We may issue additional shares of our common stock or securities convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for our common stock in connection with hiring or retaining personnel, option exercises, restricted stock awards, 2020 ESPP purchases, future acquisitions or future placements of our securities for capital-raising or
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other business purposes. Moreover, the exercise of our existing outstanding stock options, which are exercisable for or convertible into shares of our common stock, would dilute our existing common stockholders. Moreover, the exercise of our existing outstanding stock options, which are exercisable for or convertible into shares of our common stock, would dilute our existing common stockholders.

Our compliance with complicated regulations concerning corporate governance and public disclosure has resulted and may in the future result in additional expenses.
We are faced with expensive, complicated and evolving disclosure, governance and compliance laws, regulations and standards relating to corporate governance and public disclosure, including the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, which we refer to as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, and the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. New or changing laws, regulations and standards are subject to varying interpretations in many cases due to their lack of specificity, and, as a result, their application in practice may evolve over time as new guidance is provided by regulatory and governing bodies, which could result in continuing uncertainty regarding compliance matters and higher costs necessitated by ongoing revisions to disclosure and governance practices. As a result, our efforts to comply with evolving laws, regulations and standards of a public company are likely to continue to result in increased general and administrative expenses and a diversion of management time and attention from revenue-generating activities to compliance activities.
Our failure to comply with all laws, rules and regulations applicable to U.S. public companies could subject us or our management to regulatory scrutiny or sanction, which could harm our reputation and stock price.
There may be limitations on the effectiveness of our internal controls, and a failure of our control systems to prevent error or fraud may materially harm our company.
Proper systems of internal controls over financial reporting and disclosure are critical to the operation of a public company. Should such systems fail to detect or prevent error or fraud, it would leave us without the ability to reliably compile financial information about our company and significantly impair our ability to prevent or detect errors and fraud, all of which would have a negative impact on our company from many perspectives.
Moreover, we do not expect that disclosure controls or internal control over financial reporting, even if established, will prevent all errors and fraud. A control system, no matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the control system’s objectives will be met. Further, the design of a control system must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints and the benefits of controls must be considered relative to their costs. Because of the inherent limitations in all control systems, no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues and instances of fraud, if any, have been detected. Failure of our control systems to prevent and detect errors or fraud could materially adversely impact us.

We cannot be sure we will pay dividends in the future, and consequently, your ability to achieve a return on your investment will depend on appreciation in the price of our common stock.
We are limited in our ability to pay dividends by our credit agreement, and therefore, we cannot be certain if we will pay any cash dividends to holders of our common stock in the future. Any future determination with respect to the payment of dividends will be at the discretion of our board of directors and will be dependent upon, among other things, our financial condition, results of operations, capital requirements, the terms of our then existing indebtedness, contractual restrictions, future prospects, general economic conditions and other factors considered relevant by our board of directors. Consequently, investors must rely on sales of their common stock after price appreciation, which may never occur, as the only way to realize any future gains on their investments. There is no guarantee that shares of our common stock will appreciate in value or even maintain the price at which our stockholders have purchased their shares.
Upon dissolution of our company, you may not recoup all or any portion of your investment.
In the event of a liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of our company, whether voluntary or involuntary, the proceeds and/or assets of our company remaining after giving effect to such transaction, and the payment of all of our debts and liabilities will be distributed to the stockholders of common stock on a pro rata basis. There can be no assurance that we will have available assets to pay to the holders of common stock, or any amounts, upon such a liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of our company. In this event, you could lose some or all of your investment.
Certain provisions of our organizational documents may make it difficult for stockholders to change the composition of our board of directors and may discourage hostile takeover attempts that some of our stockholders may consider to be beneficial.
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Certain provisions of our certificate of incorporation and bylaws may have the effect of delaying or preventing changes in control if our board of directors determines that such changes in control are not in the best interests of us and our stockholders.
The provisions in such certificate of incorporation and bylaws include, among other things, the following:
a classified board of directors with three-year staggered terms;
the ability of our board of directors to issue shares of preferred stock and to determine the price and other terms, including preferences and voting rights, of those shares without stockholder approval;
stockholder action can only be taken at a special or regular meeting and not by written consent except in limited circumstances;
advance notice procedures for nominating candidates to our board of directors or presenting matters at stockholder meetings;
removal of directors only for cause;
allowing only our board of directors to fill vacancies on our board of directors or increase the size of our board of directors; and
super-majority voting requirements to amend certain provisions of our certificate of incorporation.

We have elected in our certificate of incorporation not to be subject to Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law (the “DGCL”), a statutory provision that may have the effect of delaying, hindering or preventing some takeovers of our company. In general, Section 203 prohibits a publicly held Delaware corporation from engaging in a business combination, such as a merger, with a person or group owning 15% or more of the corporation’s voting stock for a period of three years following the date the person became an “interested stockholder,” unless (with certain exceptions) the business combination or the transaction in which the person became an “interested stockholder” is approved in a prescribed manner. Accordingly, we will not be subject to any anti-takeover effects of Section 203. Our certificate of incorporation contains provisions that have the same effect as Section 203, except that they generally provide that Taglich Private Equity LLC, Taglich Brothers, Inc. or any of their respective affiliates or associates, including any investment funds or portfolio companies managed by any of the foregoing, or any other person with whom any of the foregoing act as a group for the purpose of acquiring, voting or disposing of our shares, or any person that becomes an interested stockholder as a result of a transfer of 5% or more of our voting stock by the forgoing persons to such person, will be excluded from the “interested stockholder” definition in our certificate of incorporation and will therefore not be subject to the restrictions set forth therein that have the same effect as Section 203.

While these provisions have the effect of encouraging persons seeking to acquire control of our company to negotiate with our board of directors, they could enable the board of directors to hinder or frustrate a transaction that some, or a majority, of the stockholders might believe to be in their best interests and, in that case, may prevent or discourage attempts to remove and replace incumbent directors.
These provisions may frustrate or prevent any attempts by our stockholders to replace or remove our current management by making it more difficult for stockholders to replace members of our board of directors, which is responsible for appointing the members of our management.

Our strategic alternatives review process may not be successful, may be costly, time-consuming, and complex, and may not yield the desired results.

On May 8, 2024, we announced that our Board of Directors had initiated a process to evaluate potential strategic alternatives and had engaged Houlihan Lokey as its financial advisors. We have not set a timetable for completion of this strategic alternatives review process, and our Board of Directors has not approved a definitive course of action. There can be no assurance that this strategic alternatives review process will result in us pursuing any transaction or that any transaction, if pursued, will be completed on attractive terms, or at all. Any potential transaction would be dependent on a number of factors that may be beyond our control, including, among other things, market conditions, industry trends, the interest of third parties, and stockholder support. The process of evaluating strategic alternatives may be costly, time-consuming, and complex. Speculation regarding any developments related to the review of strategic alternatives and perceived uncertainties related to the future of the Company could cause our stock price to fluctuate significantly or otherwise materially impact our stockholder, employee, customer, supplier, and other business relationships. Even if we successfully consummate a transaction from our review of strategic alternatives, we may fail to realize all of the anticipated benefits of any transaction, those benefits may take longer to realize than expected, or we may encounter integration or other difficulties.


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Cost restructuring plans may be costly, time-consuming, and complex, and may not yield the desired results.

We implemented a cost restructuring plan during the fourth fiscal quarter of 2024 designed to reduce costs, improve operating performance, and position the Company for profitable growth, and we may implement or modify cost restructuring plans in the future. Any such cost restructuring plans may be costly, time-consuming, and complex. Speculation and uncertainties regarding any developments related to any cost restructuring plans may cause our stock price to fluctuate significantly or otherwise materially impact our stockholder, employee, customer, supplier, and other business relationships. Even if we successfully implement or modify any cost restructuring plan, we may fail to realize all of the anticipated benefits of any cost restructuring plan, those benefits may take longer to realize than expected, or we may encounter implementation or other difficulties.

ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS.
None.


ITEM 1C.ITEM 1A. CYBERSECURITY.

Our broader information security program aims to secure our systems, keep our business running, and protect our client partners, field talent, team members, and shareholders from vulnerabilities and threats by protecting against, detecting, and recovering from cybersecurity incidents. With oversight from our Board, the Audit Committee, and management, we have put proactive measures and systems in place in an effort to protect our information assets from unauthorized use or access. Our cybersecurity framework is based on the National Institute of Standards and Technology (“NIST”).

Management Oversight

Key members of senior management, including our Chief Information Officer (“CIO”), are accountable for our cybersecurity and data privacy programs and is supported by the Board of the Directors (the “Board”). Under the guidance of the Board, our IT department, under the direction of our CIO, manages day-to-day operations of the security and data privacy functions and proposes changes to our cybersecurity strategy, which is part of our overall information technology strategy. The senior management, including our CIO, and the Board meet frequently to discuss cyber and data operations, privacy programs and risks. Our CIO has extensive information technology and program management experience and has served many years in our corporate information security organization.

Our IT department monitors and manages system infrastructure in an effort to protect us against threats. Our cybersecurity process considers risks from many sources including, but not limited to, alerts, threat intelligence sources, risk assessments, and vulnerability management. Our cybersecurity process includes a risk assessment procedure, a risk evaluation procedure, and a third-party partner to strengthen our cybersecurity controls. These controls are designed to block and/or provide alerts on suspicious activities. Our security team responds as appropriate to risks identified.

Board Oversight

The Board is actively engaged in the oversight of cybersecurity and data privacy. On a quarterly basis, the Board receives updates on (a) our progress on security improvement objectives, (b) relevant reported cybersecurity internal incidents and the global evolving risks, and (c) results of work performed by our third-party information security partner. We engage subject matter experts in conducting independent assessments of our cybersecurity program maturity, penetration tests, and other tests and assessments.

Third-Party Vendor Management

Many of our information technology systems and networks are cloud-based or managed by third parties, whose future performance and reliability we cannot control. The risk of a cyberattack or security breach on a third party carries the same risks to us as those associated with our internal systems. We seek to reduce these risks by performing significant vendor due diligence procedures prior to engaging with any third-party vendor who will have access to sensitive data. Additionally, we require annual audits of certain third parties’ information technology processes.
We face risks from cybersecurity threats that could have a material adverse effect on our business strategy. See “Risks Related to Our Information Technology, Cybersecurity and Data Protection” in Part 1, Item 1A. Risk Factors of this report for a discussion of these risks. With respect to our cybersecurity process, we are not aware of any material breach to date.
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NEN 3 days, 11 hours ago
HSON 3 days, 11 hours ago
BMRC 3 days, 11 hours ago
UHG 3 days, 11 hours ago
AMTX 3 days, 11 hours ago
GRI 3 days, 11 hours ago
GAN 3 days, 11 hours ago
USCB 3 days, 11 hours ago
LSBK 3 days, 11 hours ago
SKYT 3 days, 11 hours ago
XPOF 3 days, 11 hours ago
MYPS 3 days, 11 hours ago
FRAF 3 days, 11 hours ago
HBIA 3 days, 11 hours ago
AROW 3 days, 11 hours ago
WMT 3 days, 12 hours ago
MCHX 3 days, 12 hours ago
BZFD 3 days, 12 hours ago
MX 3 days, 12 hours ago
MNTK 3 days, 12 hours ago
KBSR 3 days, 12 hours ago
NRXP 3 days, 12 hours ago

OTHER DATASETS

House Trading

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Corporate Flights

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App Ratings

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