The Coolest Companies of 2017

The Coolest Companies of 2017The Coolest Companies of 2017 5 Seemingly Minor Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Job The headlines have been packed with negative press lately, from abominable sexual harassment scandals to embarrassing CEO blunders. Today we want to refresh your hope for the corporate world with a list of seven companies doing really cool things this year. Continuing to pay employees who are recovering from destructive Hurricane Maria? Check. Gifting branded slippers to new employees? Its real. Read on to find out what made our cut for the coolest companies of 2017.What they do Headquartered in Framingham, MA, TJX Companies owns and operates the clothing and home decor department stores TJ Maxx, Marshalls and HomeGoods Associates. Why theyre cool When Hurricane Maria devastated the Puerto Rican islands in September of this year, no one could be sure when the power would be back on, let alone when theyd be able to return to work. As of this writing, the Huffington Post reports that the president of TJX Companies is still paying Puerto Rico employees whose stores are closed or destroyed, almost six weeks later. We think thats one majorly cool step ahead for the humanitarian side of providing employment and taking care of your employees. What employees say Hundreds of reviews comment on the chains flexible hours and scheduling, which might explain why it was the 28 best distribution policy to work in 2016 and 64% of employees would recommend working there to a friend. What they do A Chicago-based social media engagement and analytics company, Sprout Social wants to help businesses become better marketers. Theyre chasing after that goal by building software solutions and solving hard problems for their customers in social media, marketing, and analytics. Why theyre cool Sprout Socials motto, Open communication creates progress, says it all. The company shared a lot of research this year about how we use social media especially emotional touchpoints on social and how companies can use that information to be better at communicating with customers. And they obviously practice what they preach, with 72,000 likes on facebook inc and 89,000 followers on Twitter. What employees say Frequently voted Top Workplace and Best Place to Work on a number of lists, Sprout Social knows how to keep its employees happy. I look forward to coming to work every morning, is a common comment from current employees, as is Work-life balance is one of the best I have seen in the business, and Its an incredibly engaged and collaborative environment.What they do Founded in 2004,Facebook is a free social networking site that promotes and facilitates interaction between friends, family and the world at large. Plus, they won Glassdoors Employees Choice Award for the Best Places to Work 2018.Why theyre cool With 2 billion monthly users, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerber g revealed a new mission statement this year, to Give people the power to build community and bring the world closer together.Working at Facebook means making an impact on billions of people around the world each day. They build new products and services that bring people closer together. Facebook believes that every connection made takes us one step closer to a better world where ideas and knowledge can be shared freely.What employees say Ive been at Facebook for about a year and a half and it is the first company ive worked for thats truly walked the walk in terms of standing by its mission and values. The people that I work with care deeply about their users and about the company as a whole and Facebook cares deeply and invests in those employees as well. The problems are large-scale and complex, but the people working to solve them are the best of the best.- Current IOS RecruiterWhat they do The Freelancers Union is an advocacy group that promotes independent workers through e ducation, advocacy, and services. Its free membership gives freelancers, consultants, and independent contractors access to resources related to union discounts, client non-payment, health insurance, and taxes. Why theyre cool This year, The Freelancers Union partnered with UpWork to update its annual Freelancing in America report , providing important data around the employment opportunities available as a freelancer or independent contractor. Considering the fact that mora than a third of Americans and almost half of working Millennials freelance, its no surprise that the study predicts that the majority of the US workforce will be freelancers by 2027. We think its pretty cool that The Freelancers Union is studying, organizing, and advancing this important source of career options for the next generation. What employees say The Freelancers Union has a 3.7 overall rating among its employees. As you might suspect from a freelance advocacy group, employees love the flexibility of remote work, as well as the passion and energy that can be found among coworkers. What they do Based out of Palo Alto, CA, Houzz connects furniture, appliances, and home accessories with the people who want to buy them without leaving the site to finish the purchase. Why theyre cool Named to CNBCs Disruptor 50 List and LinkedIns Top Startup Companies, Houzz fits right in with the startup workplace vibe. LinkedIn reports that Houzzs common areas are inspired by homey themes like British Tea Room and Italian Closet. Also, part of the onboarding training includes a pair of Houzz slippers so you can feel at home and stay comfortable while you work. This continues the pleasant trend of making the workplace more comfortable and flexible working from home at work, if you will and we think thats really cool. What employees say Houzz scores a 4.1 rating for work-life balance, and 84% of employees approve of the CEO if you love interior design and home decor, those are great indicato rs that this might be a very cool place for you to work. What they do DigitalOcean, the wolke for developers, is a dynamic, high-growth technology company that serves a passionate community of technologists around the world. They want to simplify cloud computing for every developer and are working on some of the most challenging and interesting problems in cloud computing.Why theyre cool The cloud computing company caters to the individual programmers or startups that value simplicity and flexibility. And its making Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure take note. Digital Ocean with its 400 employees is on track to generate $175 million in revenue this year and is well positioned to go public.What employees say In everything Ive done, Ive felt respected and cared for. There was a table full of swag ready for me before I got to the office for my first day, Ive been given every possible opportunity to succeed, and Ive never felt pressured to do anything if I didnt think it would hel p me be successful. - Current EngineerWhat they do Turbonomic is the only Hybrid Cloud Management Platform that continuously analyzes application consumption, costs and compliance constraints and automatically allocates resources in real-time. It assures application performance by giving workloads the resources they need when they need them.Why theyre cool Turbonomic has had quite a year 2017 kicked off with the cloud company raising $50 million in financing from General Atlantic.The investment values Turbonomic at more than $800 million, according to reports. Then to wrap up the year, ithas been recognized by CRN , a brand of The Channel Company, as a CRN 2017 Tech Innovator , taking top honors in the Software Enterprise Management category.What employees say I am thrilled with my decision to join Turbonomic. Ive learned more in the last 6-8 months than I had learned in my entire 4 year career before that. The reason for this is simple Turbonomic is fast-paced, the software prod uct is highly technical, and employees are held accountable for their performance/actions.- Current EmployeeAre you a little more upbeat about whats going on in the private sector? Let us know in the comments if youll be applying to any of these companies and if you land the job