Meet the Top Small Company Workplaces of 2010

What smart, principled, and effective management looks like today.

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No entrepreneur starts out intending to build a lousy culture, or even an average one. All leaders want work forces whose productivity is born of passion, whose loyalty springs from the perception of beneficence and fair play. Yet in the mad crush of business, many fail to invest in their employees: to develop their potential, reward their labors, and respect their personal lives. By contrast, the companies honored as 2010 Top Small Company Workplaces lavish on their staffs the care and consideration other companies reserve for their best customers. As a result, these honorees have proved uncommonly resilient during the recession and are reliable talent magnets in economies fair and foul. People come. They stick. They grow.

Building a great workplace is both a strategic decision and a moral one. The companies honored in these pages were selected by Inc.'s partner organization, Winning Workplaces, because they are successful in their industries and proudly trace that success to their cultures. CEOs are forever tossing metrics at their companies to judge how well run they are. High marks in employee satisfaction are the hallmark of best in class.

• ALL4, Kimberton, Pa.
• Alternate Solutions HomeCare, Kettering, Ohio
• Biomark, Boise, Idaho
• Chroma Technology, Bellows Falls, Vt.
• Daphne Utilities, Daphne, Ala.
• Dealer.com, Burlington, Vt.
• Dixon Schwabl, Victor, N.Y.
• Ginger Bay Salon & Spa, Kirkwood, Mo.
• Maya Design, Pittsburgh
• New York Jets, Florham Park, N.J.
• Optimax Systems, Ontario, N.Y.
• Patagonia, Ventura, Calif.
• PortionPac Chemical, Chicago
• Red Door Interactive, San Diego
• Return Path, New York City
• The Sky Factory, Fairfield, Iowa
• Tarlton, St. Louis
• Tasty Catering, Elk Grove Village, Ill.
• Van Meter Industrial, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
• A Yard & a Half Landscaping, Waltham, Mass.

• Akraya, Sunnyvale, Calif.
• Azavea, Philadelphia
• The Booksource, St. Louis
• Cargas Systems, Lancaster, Pa.
• Cooper Pest Solutions, Lawrenceville, N.J.
• Fentress Architects, Denver
• Finelite, Union City, Calif.
• Gongos Research, Auburn Hills, Mich.
• Honest Tea, Bethesda, Md.
• LoadSpring Solutions Inc., Lawrence, Mass.
• M & E Painting, Loveland, Colo.
• McGraw Wentworth, Troy, Mich.
• McNeely Pigott and Fox Public Relations, Nashville
• Menlo Innovations, Ann Arbor, Mich.
• NewAge Industries, Southampton, Pa.
• Pool Covers, Inc., Fairfield, Calif.
• SnagAJob.com, Glen Allen, Va.
• StarTex Power, Houston
• Torch Technologies, Inc., Huntsville, Ala.
• Workplace Options, Raleigh, N.C.