State’s 100 Best Companies to Work For announced

Several Clark County area companies are included in Seattle Business magazine’s Washington list

DiscoverOrg kick ball
Vancouver-based company DiscoverOrg made the number 15 spot on the Washington’s 100 Best Companies to Work For list under the Large Companies category. Courtesy of DiscoverOrg

For the 29th year, Seattle Business magazine looked for the top companies in Washington that “set the standard for work environment, rewards & recognition, benefits, communications, responsibility & decision-making, executive leadership and more” for its annual 100 Best Companies to Work For program for 2018, according to the Seattle Business magazine website.

On June 28, an awards banquet was held , where those companies who made the 2018 Washington’s 100 Best Companies to Work For were announced at the Washington State Convention Center. Winners were also featured in the July 2018 edition of Seattle Business magazine.

Of those 100 companies, five Clark County area companies were honored with a place on the list. Those companies included:

Large Companies (150 or more employees)

No. 15 on the list, DiscoverOrg

Located in Vancouver, DiscoverOrg has 391 employees (at the time of submission) and is a provider of sales and marketing intelligence software.

“When you hire smart, driven, passionate people, they push your company in a way that nothing else can,” said DiscoverOrg CEO Henry Schuck. “They drive your company to a level of success you never even imagined. I’m proud of winning the Top 100 Companies to Work for in Washington award because it validates what I already know: DiscoverOrg employees are our greatest asset.”

“I thoroughly enjoy working at DiscoverOrg,” said Chaysee Telles, a researcher at DiscoverOrg. “The company puts forth so much effort to ensure everyone is happy. There are so many things that the company does not have to do, but they do because they care about their employees – like Dorgie awards and Fun Fridays, where they take the time out to award hard work. Which is what makes us so successful!”

Midsize Companies (50 to 149 employees)

No. 14 on the list, Pacific Lifestyle Homes

Founded in 1996 and located in Vancouver, Pacific Lifestyle Homes is a home builder made up of 50 employees (at the time of submission). They serve Portland, Vancouver and the surrounding metropolitan areas.

“We are really honored to be selected by Seattle Business magazine once again for this award,” said Pacific Lifestyle Homes President Kevin Wann. “As we have grown as a company, we have put more emphasis on company culture and we are really happy about the team we have and the culture that we have created.”

“There are a number of things that I enjoy about working at Pacific Lifestyle Homes,” said Josh Ciolac, Accounts Payable. “I can really feel the comradery and teamwork at play every day. Others are genuinely driven to do their best and work together to create the best experience for our customers. Humor abounds in the office. Everyone is very open to giving and receiving some good humor/jokes, and it makes the work environment very friendly and entertaining. One of the most important reasons, though, the core values really do hold true to the company. I can honestly say that PLH is the first company I have worked for which exemplifies their core values and where it is not simply rhetoric.”

Small Companies (15 to 49 employees)

No. 10 on the list,Total Merchant Concepts

Based in Vancouver, Total Merchant Concepts is a processor of credit and debit card transactions. The business was started by Dean and Cheri Perry from their home in 1996. The company now has 16 employees (at the time of submission) and works with 153 financial institutions across the country.

“We are honored to be recognized for the second year in a row as one of the Top 100 Businesses to work for in the State of Washington,” Cheri Perry said. “What makes this award so special is that in a world where employee engagement is a tough topic, our team members are fully engaged and think so much of their workspace that they made this recognition possible. Dean and I love what we do – who wouldn’t? We get to fulfill our TMC mission by reducing frustration, increasing the bottom line for our merchants and helping them enhance their passion for being in business.”

“I love working at TMC because of the work environment,” said Kari Frabel, marketing maven. “Everyone has a place at TMC but the owners know it’s our company as much as theirs and we can bring our hearts to work. The owners care about us and help us to grow, and appreciate us and we can see that every day. In turn this allows us to show how much we appreciate and care to each person we serve.”

No. 17 on the list Pacific Energy Concepts

Since 2009, Pacific Energy Concepts has provided commercial and industrial lighting design and control services to businesses – “creating energy-efficient lighting solutions which maximize on incentive programs, provide optimum lighting and aesthetics, and help our customers save up to 50 percent in lighting costs.” The company currently has 31 employees (at the time of submission).

“It is a great honor for Pacific Energy Concepts to be recognized for the workplace we have created,” said Keith Scott, founder and president of the company. “I am a firm believer that our team is our most critical component to our success and accomplishments. We strive to equip our team with the best resources, and upgrading our office in the last year to create a more interactive environment was the start. We are excited to continue our efforts in building an atmosphere in which our team feels valued, where they are able work hard and play hard, and most importantly, continually make an impact.”

“I have been a part of this company for quite some time and have witnessed the investment that it provides for all employees to be the absolute best they can be,” said one Pacific Energy Concepts’ team member. “This job is constantly challenging me to be better as a professional. The culture is unbelievable and is not what you would typically see at any other company. We are like a big family and love what we do. I wake up in the morning excited to go into the office and tackle the job.”

No. 19 on the list, AbSci

AbSci, now located in Vancouver after relocating its headquarters from Portland in 2016, is a company that develops protein production technologies for the biopharmaceutical industry. Founded in 2011, AbSci is currently made up of 22 employees (at the time of submission).

“I couldn’t be prouder of the environment we’ve been able to build here at AbSci,” said Phil Barish, vice president of Research and Operations at AbSci. “Our company is built on strong values, and the culture and type of people we’ve been able to recruit are a reflection of those values. This culture has enabled us to attract and retain some of the best scientists in the industry to the Pacific Northwest. Thank you to the entire AbSci team for everything you do to make our company a great place to work and continuing to push the science as we seek to disrupt the bio-manufacturing industry.”

“As a new employee at AbSci, I appreciate the ample opportunities to work on projects that play to my individual strengths as well as learn from experienced people who are patient and set ambitious, but realistic, goals,” said Evan B., analytical development associate at AbSci.

According to the Seattle Business magazine website, firms must nominate themselves to be considered for the 100 Best Companies list, and their employees respond to a survey administered by the research firm Fieldwork Webwork. The scores in several different categories are combined to arrive at an average score, which determines a firm’s ranking.

Joanna Yorke-Payne
Joanna Yorke is the managing editor of the Vancouver Business Journal. She has worked in the journalism field since 2010 after graduating from the Edward R. Murrow College of Communication at Washington State University in Pullman. Yorke worked at The Reflector Newspaper in Battle Ground for six years and then worked at and helped start ClarkCountyToday.com.

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