Fire 
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ATLANTA INNO'S 2019 COOLEST COMPANIES
What's cooler than being cool?
If you're André 3000, it's ice cold, but if you're an Atlanta startup, it's much more than that.
When it comes to culture among the Atlanta tech ecosystem, there are a few key ingredients that keep the company cool and flowing with innovation.
And no, it's not a free keg on Fridays.
For our Coolest Companies feature, we examined the company culture of dozens of startups nominated by our readers. We narrowed that list down to 10 startups we thought deserved the "cool" crown. The top determining factors we saw between our 10 Coolest Companies were collaboration, flexibility, bonding and giving back.
In Atlanta, it's important to know your voice is heard, as we all know so well given our collaborative nature. We share secret sauce around here. We don't covet.
Sarah Lodato, head of people ops at Roadie, an on-the-way delivery startup based in Atlanta, said the city has an underdog feel, often being overlooked for other tech metros such as New York City and Silicon Valley. But that attitude, she said, has made the ecosystem humble and more willing to collaborate.
"For us, for Roadie, our experience in the tech space in general, it’s a very well connected community that’s so willing to help each other in ways that perhaps other markets have a competitive nature," she said.
But that collaboration goes beyond company-to-company, and should exist coworker-to-coworker and boss-to-employee. Communication and collaboration go hand in hand for a successful, cool company.
"Having very genuine conversations with your team before making changes as an organization is huge," Lodato said. "Take the time to understand what your unique challenges and opportunities are, because all those things might not be right for your team."
Atlanta workers know all too well the torture of traffic and daily commutes, which is why the companies we saw all gave flexible work hours, remote/work from home days and even unlimited vacation.
"I think there are a lot of ways we can make people’s lives much more flexible in the workplace," Lodato said. "As a community with a lot of startups … we ask a lot of our employees. We ask them to care about this like it's theirs and we do a lot of things to make sure they feel that. Offering real equity in a company, equity that actually means something … engaging your team in profit sharing so they truly feel the benefit of their work and the growth of that company beyond what they were hired for."
Bonding experiences, from Nerf gun wars to "happy/crappy/grateful" powwows to family/friend trips with a group of employees, were another aspect we saw in our Coolest Companies.
And, of course, the generosity of the Southerner is evident in most of these cool startups, which have actively made an attempt to give back to their community together. Beyond the typical happy hour and corporate get-together, Lodato said the trend is to go out and help the local community and bond through volunteer work.
"I think Atlanta loves companies that are doing stuff in their community," she said. "From a cool tech company perspective, I think it’s important for startups to reach outside of their own doors---don’t take themselves too seriously. We are in a time where we are genuinely growing companies. Even our biggest companies are making an effort to blend in with people’s lives."
2ULaundry
2ULaundry, an Atlanta-based laundry and dry-cleaning delivery startup, has a diverse group of employees who get to make an impact outside of their work. The company has partnered with organizations like Atlanta Mission, a nonprofit Christian ministry serving local homeless men, women, and children. Based out of the cool earthy, rustic StudioPlex office complex, 2ULaundry employees work in a relaxed but efficient environment---and can take a break when needed with the company's "open vacation" policy.
AchieveIt Online
At AchieveIt, an Atlanta-based software company that helps businesses get better insight into how its initiatives impact the organization at an enterprise level, there's no shortage of fun for employees.
From company-sponsored social outings at Braves and Atlanta United games, on- and off-site happy hours, bowling and even afterwork movie viewings, there's plenty of time to get to know your coworkers at AchieveIt Online. Teams at the startup have taken turns to host a snack day for the whole company, which has featured some pretty cool events like a candy apple toppings bar, a summer 90s kids snacks theme and even a Whole 30 event.
In 2018, company leaders decided to tear down cubicle walls to make them short and more accessible for conversations in the office. During renovations, AchieveIt Online also created a common area for people to collaborate and get out of their cubby.
Aside from social outings, the startup has spent a significant amount of time volunteering for events such as ACFB product rescue center, throwing pies in executives faces for a canned food drive, starting a giving tree for local elementary school families, making leashes for Atlanta Rescue Dog Cafe, helping out with the Atlanta Community Food Bank, Habitat for Humanity, Open Hand Atlanta and Best Friends Animal Society.
Not to mention, the startup also offers company shares, 401k match, a PTO plan, company-wide work-from-home and health/vision/dental insurance.
Clean Hands, Safe Hands
At Clean Hands, Safe Hands, the culture is more like a family than an office. The team typically eats lunch together every day, and tries to keep a positive, supportive and team-oriented environment. Founder and CEO Chris Hermann is described as a coach or mentor more than a boss. And the company makes an active effort to make sure everyone's voice counts, whether its about interviewing new employees or voting on office snacks.
Team members have the opportunity to explore all aspects of the company operations, including finances. Clean Hands recently kicked a mentoring program where those who want the opportunity to learn new skills can do so. For example, the startup has allowed a developer to work on graphic design, a field engineer to learn how to do machining and an account manager to learn how to use visual analytics to better answer customer questions.
Inside their workspace, you'll find a giant beanbag, indoor hammock, multiple Nerf guns for spontaneous battles, a well-stocked beer fridge supplied by the company and even dogs roaming the office. Beer and games start at 3:00 p.m. on Fridays, with the occasional ukulele solo performance. Employees can schedule regular one-on-one meals with the CEO. They also enjoy fully covered benefits, a flexible, make your own hours schedule (while maintaining collaborative core hours) and unlimited paid time off.
Evident
Evident, an Atlanta-based startup that offers a secure solution for businesses and individuals to share verified personal information, knows that culture set with an original team will last for years, or even decades.
By investing in its employees, Evident ultimately benefits from increased performance and better quality work. Even in its early stages, Evident is implementing key initiatives that prioritize the mental and physical wellness of every staff member.
One thing that differentiates Evident culture-wise is that it helps employees stay connected to the latest gadgets with reimbursement of up to $750/year for personal technology (e.g. flat screen television, iPhone watch, under-the-desk elliptical machine, etc.), and also helps employees improve their mental, physical and emotional health with a reimbursement of up to $1,000/year for personal development (e.g. industry conferences and seminars, professional certifications, health and wellness, etc.).
At Evident, social and family life is respected and encouraged, and because the company only hires self-starters, management gives employees more autonomy and trusts that they will get their work done efficiently and effectively.
Other benefits at the company include unlimited paid vacation days, healthy lunches catered 3 days per week, full medical, dental and vision insurance benefits, 401k savings plan, short-term disability coverage, HSA contributions of $100 per month, flexible work-from-home policies and commuter reimbursement benefits (parking, public transport, etc.)
Experience
Experience, an Atlanta-based startup that partners with professional sports teams and live entertainment venues to help them create incredible fan experiences, knows how to welcome employees on day one.
On their first day, each employee is welcomed with open arms and showered with cool swag, a first-day lunch, welcome emails and onboarding sessions that provide an overview of its culture, products and company history. Work-life balance is a significant value for the company. Experience has flexible work hours and unlimited vacation time.
There's always fun things going on at the office, including happy hours, birthday shoutouts, group lunches, team-building outings, annual company Olympics, March Madness pop-a-shot competitions and ping-pong tournaments. In addition to all the social fun, the company sponsors volunteer initiatives and recreational sports teams to get the team involved outside of the office walls.
Whether taking a break with some ping-pong or Super Smash Brothers, or grabbing a snack from our bottomless pantry and rotating drink selections, the Experience environment is designed to make everyone feel energized and valued.
Gimme Vending
Gimme Vending, a startup with a full-service product suite for convenience services and vending machines, is located in the Atlanta Tech Village, surrounded by like-minded early stage companies looking to make a dent in the universe.
Though ATV is cool in of itself, Gimme takes it a step further. The first day on the job for a Gimme Vending employee includes riding with a vending truck on their route to see the technology in action. This provides a unique understanding for how the technology actually works.
The company hosts two to four excursions a year for all the employees and their families where they can unplug, unwind and get to know each other better. These are usually two-day or more excursions and have included lake trips, hikes and cabins. This brings the entire work/life balance to a nice level where everyone can meet the families and friends behind the employees.
When Gimme Vending receives an award or has a reason to celebrate, it's a party. They either fly out of the country or fly their internationally-based developers in at least once per quarter. These trips include lots of work but also incorporate sightseeing and other adventures to show their guests fun things in the United States.
When customers come to visit they always find fun activities or events to take them to once the work is done. After work events are also on the docket at Gimme Vending as they rent out a local brewery or plan other local activities.
LocatorX
LocatorX, a tracking startup based in Atlanta, makes an effort to make sure everyone on their team feels heard. The office regularly has conversations to promote connect-the-dot behaviors and gauge employee workloads by learning more about their family dynamic, commute time, etc.
Outside of the day-to-day, LocatorX offers an open town hall where the startup accepts anonymous questions and shares news to be transparent about the evolution of the business.
To inspire healthy minds, healthy bodies and healthy lifestyles, the startup offers unlimited PTO, as well as reimbursement for gym memberships and massage sessions each quarter. Employees are also given the ability to work virtually.
Motivo
Motivo, a startup that connects therapists on the path to licensure with experienced supervisors for online clinical supervision, says it's one of the coolest companies in Atlanta because its CEO and founder is a licensed therapist, which makes all the difference. According to her employees, Rachel McCrickard's empathy and unconditional positive regard for her employees make Motivo the coolest company.
At Motivo, there's passion behind the startup's mission, to the point that even its office space in the Atlanta Tech Village looks like a therapist's office. The Motivo team brought in its own lighting to keep the fluorescents off. Inside, you'll find sparkling water, healthy snacks and a team lunch every Wednesday following their All Hands meeting, in addition to team outings and philanthropy projects.
Because Motivo is centered around therapy, there's a big focus on self-care. Every team All Hands starts off with a "happy/crappy/grateful" update, where everyone shares how they are feeling before going into department updates.
Each employee gets a monthly sipend of $100 for self-care, whether its a yoga class, massage, you name it. The team also have flexible schedules to work from home.
ParkMobile
At ParkMobile, an Atlanta-based mobile parking startup, it's about more than just parking. The company's CEO, Jon Ziglar, firmly believes that a group of people with a unified vision can achieve extraordinary things. Through monthly town halls and a weekly internal newsletter, ParkMobile's leadership team ensures that everyone understands where they are as a business so that they are focused on achieving the same goals.
When it comes to achieving goals, the startup acts with integrity. Owning obligations, responsibilities, commitments, and mistakes is what determines the quality of a company in the long run, according to company representatives.
Throughout the day-to-day, ParkMobile offers lunch and learns, weekly happy hours, midday Nerf gun wars and more. As an organization, the team is also dedicated to giving back. Over the years, ParkMobile has aided a variety of local charitable organizations, including building a house for Habitat for Humanity.
Vestigo
For Vestigo, an Atlanta-based startup designing physical team building experiences to meet the needs and core values of the companies they serve, cool is practicing what they preach every single day. As a company that works to develop company wide campaigns that allow for high levels of engagement, ability to deal with change and increased trust and communication, Vestigo uses its own team as a test case.
To celebrate its success in the first quarter of the year, Vestigo employees went hiking, camping and kayaking on a challenging river in Q2. Not only did this experience allow for the expected outcomes, but re-engaged, energized and motivated the whole team. These experiences are routine and often take place during the normal workweek, allowing for a departure from the normal day-to-day.
These experiences, paired with flexible work hours, working from home/remotely, create an accepting and understanding work culture.
