How we calculated the Top 50 in Business
Figures for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Top 50 lists were derived from company reports, Bloomberg and Post-Gazette research.
Overall top performers in the region
Remember when your parents warned you that the television, which they fondly referred to as the idiot box, would take over the world?
Top public companies based on growth
Companies landing atop the heap in the region's growth category this year generally can boast double-digit gains across all
Top performers based on income
PNC Financial Services Group saw earnings dip 6 percent in 2012 but still generated enough money to break into the top five this time.
Top performers based on revenue
Mergers and acquisitions are coming back into fashion, now that companies are starting to stand up from the recessionary crouch.
Top performers based on ROE
GlaxoSmithKline saw an increase in its return on equity last year to 66 percent, up from 58.8 a year earlier.
Top performers based on stock price
Involvement in a scandal to rig a benchmark interest rate, lingering fallout from its near collapse four years ago, protests against
Top performers based on market cap
Verizon ousted GlaxoSmithKline as the region's largest public company, a list dominated by firms headquartered outside of the Tri-state.
The region's top private companies
Looking for a foolproof business plan? Try getting Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin to sell Buicks and 2x4s.
Top foundations
Most of Pittsburgh's largest foundations handed out more grants in 2012 than the prior year, despite the slow economic recovery.
Highmark, UPMC drive health care industry
It is easy to see why the ongoing Highmark-West Penn Allegheny-UPMC affiliations and battles have drawn so much attention.
Colleges offering students and parents an education on the price of rising debt
In the freshman orientation process at Slippery Rock University, students are required to attend a series of seminars on campus life.
