The inaugural list of specialty trade contractors features 10 firms providing 1,760 jobs across many areas of construction. Firms listed offer a range of skill sets from plumbing, HVAC and masonry to countertops, glass, solar and pool design-build services. The list, ranked by number of local employees, also highlights services offered, recent projects and local executives. To be eligible, companies must have headquarters in the Austin area, which includes Travis, Williamson, Hays, Bastrop, Burnet and Caldwell counties. Information on The List was obtained through ABJ research or supplied by individual firms through questionnaires that ABJ could not independently verify. Additionally, firms that did not respond to surveys but were still included on this year’s list are sorted by companywide employment figures derived from the Austin Business Journal archives, company websites and annual filings with the U.S. Department of Labor. This week’s List is part of a shift in our research methodology and philosophy in 2025, one that will emphasize more data and context for readers while better coordinating the resources available to us and our 46 sister publications under the American City Business Journals flag. We anticipate this effort will identify thousands of new local records — and cumulatively, tens of thousands of new businesses across ACBJ’s footprint — this year alone.