Sandlot Games
It sounds like a big kid's dream job: getting paid to play games. Bothell's Sandlot Games, which creates downloadable, family-friendly games for handheld devices, mobile phones and video game consoles, encourages its employees to play like children but trusts them to act like adults, and that type of attitude won it the honors of the best small company in Snohomish County to work for this year.
Developers, designers and administrators alike at the 21-person company don't have any limitation on the amount of vacation or sick time they can take. Management trusts that if they're taking time off, it's because they need it and that privilege won't be abused.
Long lunches are okay and no one is peering over people's shoulders here to make sure they're at their desks. Not that that's a bad place to be -- folks here are getting quick gratification from their work, seeing a game they helped develop go to market within just a few months, making money for the company, and instilling personal pride in all those who helped make the product a success.
*Listed in alphabetical order
