Thirty-one cents out of every dollar in revenue. That’s how much enterprise software-maker Workday spends on research and development every year. That investment feeds an unusually rapid cycle of product updates and improvements, which, in turn, has built a loyal customer base that includes more than 35% of the Fortune 500. Shareholders have had reason to stay loyal, too, to the tune of annualized returns of 27% over the past three years.

For more about what makes Workday run, see executive editor Adam Lashinsky’s feature about the company.